derukun

Hey y'all. First post here.

I bought a 2013 ES with 95K KM recently, and it's been great. But the steering wheel and pedals have a noticeable vibration that gets worse at some times. Occasionally, when I brake, the car will pull to the right a bit and the steering wheel moves along with it. While pretty good at absorbing bumps, bigger bumps are harsh and make a bit of a loud clunk or thump sound.

Based on some reading online, this sounds like it could be a control arm bushing issue.

However, it seems like the labor costs of pressing in new bushings could cost quite a lot, so I considered getting replacement control arms entirely.

However, I can't find any good aftermarket options - Moogs only offer RK series which is their cheapo China value line. There don't seem to be any good premium options, and OEM runs at least $300 CAD...

What are your experiences with this? Anyone get aftermarket arms, and how long did they last before they became problematic? Anyone have experience just replacing their bushings?

Thanks in advance everyone.

BradTank

Are you sure its the control arms? There's a test where you jack the front of the car up and grab the wheel/tire in the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock position and rock it back and forth and see if it has play. If it clangs around, its the control arms.
If you grab by the 3 o'clock and 6 o'clock position and push/pull and it has play, it's the tie rod ends.

Usually tie rod ends go before ball joints. It could really be a lot of things: sway links, sticky brake caliper, blown strut, unbalanced tire etc. If you are replacing ball joints, might be a good idea to rebuild a lot of things in the front suspension.

As far as brand, I agree Moog's "real" suspension line is probably best besides OEM. After that, maybe Dorman (but their stuff is hit or miss)

frankymenz

I’ve used Beck Arnly control arms in the past on a 2000 Avalon, Amazon does show them. They installed easily, alignment was necessary.

derukun

I'll have to try this tomorrow. After doing a bunch of reading, it looks like it could also be misaligned/unbalanced wheels or a problem with the AC compressor too. Ruled out bad engine mounts as I tested that today and no shaking or vibrating of the engine.

derukun

I'll have to check for Amazon Canada. How long have those control arms been lasting you?

Doublebase

Unfortunately what you’re experiencing could be a lot of things.

A pull when braking could Mean a stick or sticking caliper. A thunk going over bumps could be sway bar bushings, links, upper strut mounts, ball joints and control arms.

Luckily for you, control arms are easy to inspect on these cars: just lift the car, let it hang and then pry bar the bushings, pushing up and down looking for movement, tears or looseness. You’ll see it. Good luck.

jgscott

iTrader: (1)

Beck Arnly seems to be now the go to source for good quality parts.