chadr

my stock upper control arms with 160k+ miles rotate up/down freely on the bolts, so there is no rotational stress on the bushing as far as I can tell.

moat

Anyone here tried or heard of UCA by Dorman? I called them today, here is some info for the thread:

UCA from Dorman sold on Amazon by Amazon.

We can see here on CL that Arnott is no good. I am not sure about APX. APX is just a reseller and they source the arm from DMA Goodpoint. I called DMA Goodpoint and they no longer sell the arms (as of two months ago).

My guess is Arnott, APX, DMA Goodpoint, are all resellers. They all sell the same crap from China with the bad ball joint. If you go on Alibaba.com you will find you can buy these arms by the 100s or 1000s for very very cheap. My guess is all those arms on ebay are from this source in China. All crap.

Dorman may be different and better, but I am not certain at this point.

I searched and have not seen feedback from CL members about Dorman UCA. This is strange because the OEM is so expensive ($600) and I thought by now we would have some feedbacks about Dorman.

I called Dorman tech support directly today 800-523-2492 www.dormanproducts.com (1/9/2012). The man on the phone told me they design and engineer this part and they are manufactured in Taiwan.

http://www.dormanproducts.com/p-2213...2520Suspension


The fact I got a real tech support person to tell me this gives me some comfort.

I will probably buy one Dorman arm and try it out. At $195 I think I am will to give them a try. (And Amazon.com will take it back if I tell them it's crap.) This product is also sold on rockauto.com.

Dorman part no. 520-459 and 520-460 (L and R upper control arm for first gen LS)

If you know anything about these Dorman UCA please share your knowledge with us.

moat

Aftermarket UCA from China. I think all the stuff we see on ebay are from places like this:

http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/35...610_50020.html


they sell UCA for $30 each, if you buy 20 pairs or more.

There is a very good chance these are a.k.a.: Arnott, APX, DMA .... all the same crap.

Live4brew

This might be a bit of a high jack, as I have posted this same message in another thread, but I think it's important for people to get as much info about Arnott as possible..

1998 ls400.

I bought Arnotts UCAs two years and 20k miles ago @ about 200k. I have been hearing bad clunks for months and finally investigated this weekend. I was SHOCKED that the problem was these poorly made UCAs. I assumed that, being relatively new, the problem was surely somewhere else in the suspension. The bushing on the rear side of the UCA is all but gone. I can shake the whole assembly by hand and there is a ton of play. I can also see shreds of the bushing falling out. This is completely unacceptable. It's hard to believe anyone sells something so poorly made.

Arnott is going to send me a new set this week, but now I'm not only worried about how long they will last (my hopes aren't high), but now I'm worried the ball joint taper will be incorrect as has been discussed in this thread.

Oh...and when I installed the first set, it was a HUGE pain to get these arms in. I was so frustrated. The arms were slightly too small to slide into their respective mounts. I thought I was going to have to send them back....called Arnott and their tech support basically told me I was an idiot. I finally forced them in place with a ton of elbow grease...

The only bright side (if I can really call it that), is that this is pushing me to go ahead and replace some other suspension components at the same time. I'm still on factory shocks @ 216k. Even though I think the car still rides well, I figure it's time for a replacement. The tires are wearing funny up front, so something is getting old for sure...

I plan to replace shocks, strut mounts, strut boots and bumpers, and sway bar bushings. The lower ball joints and tie rods I put in two years ago are fine. Anything else recommended while I have everything apart?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

strut rod bushings.

Live4brew

Ah, I guess I incorrectly assumed a new shock would be supplied with the bushing?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

strut rod bushings arent part of the shock at all. they are the bushing for the strut rod, aka the Caster arm. there's a couple tutorials on R&R if you search for it.

moat

I was very frustrated a month ago when I found out a pair of new OEM UCA is $1300 for 1LS (and all those Chinese arms can not be trusted). I ended up installing two used OEM arms, at $50 each. One from my local junk yard & one from ebay. They worked out very well. Problem solved for $100 + labor charge.

(note: very important to check bushings and ball joint for play before buying an used oem arm. To check for ball joint play, turn it upside down, on a hard surface push down and feel for any play. A tiny amount of play is probably ok. Best to find one with no play at all.)

After researching, I also suspect new arms from Dorman might be good (I spoke with their tech support and was told the arms are manufactured in Taiwan). New Dorman arms are reasonably priced. I am surprised the Dorman arms are not talked about here on CL.

I also learned something else while dealing with the suspension. It helps to spray some WD-40 in various places. That will get rid many squeaky noises typical with old cars. I was told by an experience mechanic to do this once every 6 to 12 months. It made a huge difference in my case.

moat

PD: in case you have not followed this issue closely recently. The source of the problem is not the boot or that "stop" in above pictures. The boot and stop break because the taper is too thin. The taper is that little short shaft with the thread. The taper on [some] Arnott arms are thinner than OEM. That obviously is a huge problem because the hole on top of the knuckle is fixed in size.

Another member today just told us Arnott bushings doesn't last. When I took my stock arm out last month, the two 19 year old bushings were perfectly fine. The ball joint had developed too much play over the years though.

Solution: $50 used OEM arms all across America's junk yard. (One just have to know how to check the bushings and for play in the ball joint. Once in a while you may get lucky where the junked car has pretty new arms in it, some still have the label with oem part # on it when it was replaced.)

Live4brew

Thanks, I have been pouring over the forums tonight trying to figure out what to do about the Caster arm bushings. I still can't decide what to buy...the whole bushing, just the inner bushing, a new arm, etc...and can't figure out if the polyurethane bushes are going to provide the ride I'm looking for.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

they are crap.

Live4brew

Really?! So there are aren't any good options??

Live4brew

This is after only two years of use. Bushings completely gone. Boots torn wide open. AND both sets (original and replacement the sent under warranty) were a B!!(# to replace!! They are just too wide to easily slide into place. A 45 minute job took 4 hours. The first time I complained about the fitment, I was told by Arnott that I was an idiot...RIGHT. I had to use far more force than should be required to get these into place.

The ten year old arms I pulled out of the car were in FAR better shape than these after only two years. The old bushings and boots were fine. I WISH I had just kept the old ones on, but I foolishly threw them away.

moat

All these upper control arms are from China. They are all crap. You can see them on www.alibaba.com for under $30 per arm:

http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/35...610_39015.html

All the stuff you see on ebay cannot be trusted. You are much better off buying used OEM arms at around $50-70 each all across America's junk yards. That's what I did about a month ago and they worked out great at $50 ea. plus labor to put them in. Just check the ball joint to make sure there is not too much play.

Live4brew

I went by the local junkyard here before I put in the replacement arms. Only one ls400...and only one of the two arms remaining...argh!