How difficult to replace left lower control arm?

Some drunk (assuming) hit my 2007 Prius one night while it was parked on the street and took off. Main impact was to the left front wheel with some fender damage. The car was undrivable as the two wheels were then pointing in different directions. The shop replaced the inner tie rod, which had been badly bent, and gave it an alignment as close to spec as they could. It drives okay except on roads angling even slightly left and especially at slower speeds when it will drift to the left. Thought that I could live with it, but it's bugging me and I'm sure will result in excessive tire wear and other issues.

The shop couldn't identify the specific problem that's causing the alignment issue. They suggested either bent control arm, bent strut, or bent frame. They want over $400 just to replace the control arm, but I can buy a new control arm for only about $50 and, from what I've seen on the internet, it seems to be a DIY job (though there is nothing specifically about control arm replacement on a Prius).

My question is: how complicated is a left control arm replacement on a 2007 Prius really?

 

Thanks, but that's the first I've heard about removing the front axle nut. None of the videos or articles I've seen about lower control arm replacement on other cars even mentions it. Also, "disassemble most of the front suspension" sounds pretty complicated.

The best video I've seen is on YouTube (nIG9Z6FX7LI). The car being worked on is a Toyota Avensis, a model we don't get in the states, but the control arm looks just like the 2007 Prius one. All that's done in the video is to remove the various bolts holding the control arm. No axle nut or disassembling of the front suspension is done, unless I missed something.

I appreciate your suggestion to do a complete replacement of every part that could have been affected, but that's what I'm trying to avoid. Other than that leftward drift, the car drives fine, no funny noises, no leaks. So I'd rather try the apparently simplest thing first - the control arm. Besides I don't have the equipment (or cash) to do the struts and all the rest of that. If the control arm doesn't do the trick, I'll just live with it.

I also appreciate that techinfo.toyota has manuals (at a price). I was just hoping somebody could give me a clue.

One thing I do know is that if I ever find the drunk who slammed into my car, I'll strangle him (or her).

 

Here's the Alignment Report I got from the shop (after they played around on the alignment machine a few times). Figures with (r) were printed in red, otherwise green.


Initial Final

Front Caster Left 1.98(r) 0.88(r)

Right 3.27 4.10(r)

Camber Left 0.37(r) 0.13

Right -0.31 -0.45

Toe Left -4.37(r) 0.09

Right -4.56(r) -0.02

Total -8.93(r) 0.07

Rear Camber Left -1.16 -1.20

Right -1.65 -1.59

Toe Left 0.26 0.23

Right 0.14 0.14

Total 0.40 0.37

Max Thrust -0.06 -0.05

 

Whoops! The alignment on my alignment report transposition got screwed up. Here's one that's more readable (the first figure is the Initial, the second is the Final, (r) means red):


Front Caster Left 1.98(r) 0.88(r)

Front Caster Right 3.27 4.10(r)

Front Camber Left 0.37(r) 0.13

Front Camber Right -0.31 -0.45

Front Toe Left -4.37(r) 0.09

Front Toe Right -4.56(r) -0.02

Front Toe Total -8.93(r) 0.07

Rear Camber Left -1.16 -1.20

Rear Camber Right -1.65 -1.59

Rear Toe Left 0.26 0.23

Rear Toe Right 0.14 0.14

Rear Toe Total 0.40 0.37

Rear Max Thrust -0.06 -0.05

 

The shop I went to is Jack Furrier, a southwest tire chain (the closest shop I could find so I wouldn't have to pay too much for towing ). The inner tie rod being bent was obvious. They said they just couldn't tell visually what else was off. As far as I know they didn't measure anything. Later I measured the wheel position in relation to the wheel well and it's a half inch back on the left compared to the right. Turning corners doesn't feel weird at all. And I don't feel or hear any clunks or whatever. It's just that leftward drift, which is only really noticeable at slower speeds on rough roads and especially on streets with a slight leftward lean. I'll have a shop check the wheel balance, but I doubt it's the problem since I just had the wheels rotated and the wheel that was hit is now on the left rear and the alignment problem persists.

 

The actual quote I got for the left lower control arm is $121.99 parts (with ball joint) and $262 labor. I don't get the labor being so high on what is supposed to be a one and a half hour job max according to what I've gleaned on the internet, though admittedly that's for Toyotas other than the Prius. Either the shop is shafting me on labor or the Prius control arm replacement is a lot more involved than other Toyotas. That's why I'm on PriusChat trying to get a clue to just how involved it really is . . .

 

Thanks for the input. I took the left front wheel off and took various measurements on the control arm. I'll compare those figures with the right one when I get a chance. While I had the wheel off I also did a thorough visual study and couldn't see any signs of bends in the control arm or anything else down there.

Just to give you any idea of how bad this drunk whacked my car, here's photos of the old tie rods next to the new installed ones. The inner tie rod got bent all to hell while the outer looks unaffected.

 

According to a mechanic I spoke to, replacing the control arm on a 2007 does not require removing the axle nut or disassembling most of the front suspension as Mr. Wong stated. Only the five bolts/nuts holding the control arm in place need to be removed.

My insurance would have covered it, however I had a $1500 deductible (since lowered). When I got an estimate from a body shop for $1800 just to replace the fender, irregardless of the suspension damage, I determined I could get it all repaired for much less if I didn't involve my insurance company.

But thanks for sticking your two cents in, pal.