Ever Been a Successful Front Suspension Rebuild ?

[The_Jeff]

Originally Posted By: thr_wedge
Last front end I did I used cheap [censored] parts and aligned in my driveway with a tape measure. Did that 6 hears ago, sold it to a friend at work 3 years ago who daily drives it, and he's never touched anything and the tires still wear fine.

So no I don't think it's a problem. Vehicle i did it to was a 96 zj with 210k miles.


This is me as well. I'll also grind macpherson struts to fix the camber, something shops avoid like the plague. All I use is an 18 inch laser level.

Tire wear, handling, etc is great.

I've also done all four struts in all corners. Even with cheap parts it's a massive improvement.

 

[Alex_V]

Originally Posted By: barkingspider
I have replaced upper and lower control arms, ball joints, tie rods, axles and sway bars, mainly on GM trucks that I have owned and/or still own. I just get it aligned by a good shop after replacing the parts and it's all good. Tires wear normally. What vehicle are u talking about?


This. And X2 that if some experience has given you the idea the front suspension on most any car can't be rebuilt and perform up to snuff, it's because it wasn't done properly or thoroughly. Now, in 2013 I went round and round with my sister's '84 Cherokee, trying to fix death wobble - replace one or two components, hope it cured it, fail, replace another part(s), still no luck. Finally, because of time constraints (she was getting married and moving 2 states away) I had to swap in the whole axle from my '90 Comanche and that more or less fixed it. That proved to me that, true to some good advice but in spite of my hopes, that problem in that suspension system is seldom fixed until everything is redone at once. Lesson learned.

In about 2009 I replaced the upper control arm bushings on my '85 GMC C3500, and after determining it had been aligned to compensate for the component wear, took it to my family's preferred tire shop in town to have it aligned. The dummy doing it put it on the rack, checked it, jacked it up, adjusted it, set it down, checked it again, drove it off, and wrote up my $70 ticket. It left worse off than it arrived, and I had to ball-park it with a tape measure and level afterward just to keep driving it.

I had front struts (with springs) done on my '96 Buick at a friend's shop who didn't have an alignment machine and afterward the camber was so bad positive you could feel the tires slide around curves. After taking it to an alignment shop that knew what they were doing, it was fine and the car's performance reflected the work that had been done.

Week before last I finished up ball joints, sway bar links, idler/pitman arm, and one wheel bearing and CV shaft on my FIL's '03 1500HD. Not knowing any reputable alignment shops in my new town, I took a friend's recommendation and took it to a one-man operation that charged me $40 and did it on what looked like thoroughly outdated equipment. But, he drove it before pulling it in and twice during the process, after which it looked and felt good. It hasn't accumulated enough miles yet to judge tire wear, but I'm confident I replaced what needed replaced to restore its manners and that the alignment guy did a good job even without shiny new equipment and a "competitive" fee.

I certainly agree it's hard to ever get suspension quite as good as it is from the factory, but it can come darn close if it's not done in the, seemingly, prevailing fashion of half-[censored]ing it with "adequate" parts.

 

[Astro14]

Many times.

OE parts, including all the needed parts - control arm bushings, tie rod ends, idler arm, ball joints, strut mounts, spring seats, springs, etc. depending on the front suspension design. The key is good parts, and replacing all the worn parts...for example, putting new ball joints on control arms with tired bushings keeps you safe, but does little for restoring handling or ride.

Successful rebuilds, done personally, where the car drove well afterwards: 1977 Olds 98, 1981 Mercedes 240D, 1990 Toyota 4 Runner, 2002 Volvo V70, 2002 Volvo XC70

 

[rob0781]

I would say yes,on my 2002 Toyota echo I just replaced both struts and mounts both bearings both outter tie rods 1 inner tie rod both ball joints ,4 new tires and a alignment I feel I was successful I like how it drives afterwards and even though it's a old car it's still dependable and best of all no car payment.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: rob0781
I would say yes,on my 2002 Toyota echo I just replaced both struts and mounts both bearings both outter tie rods 1 inner tie rod both ball joints ,4 new tires and a alignment I feel I was successful I like how it drives afterwards and even though it's a old car it's still dependable and best of all no car payment.


Did you replace just the ball joints or the entire control arm? What brand did you use?

 

[rob0781]

Originally Posted By: kschachn
Originally Posted By: rob0781
I would say yes,on my 2002 Toyota echo I just replaced both struts and mounts both bearings both outter tie rods 1 inner tie rod both ball joints ,4 new tires and a alignment I feel I was successful I like how it drives afterwards and even though it's a old car it's still dependable and best of all no car payment.


Did you replace just the ball joints or the entire control arm? What brand did you use?


Just the ball joints as for brand I'll have to dig out the receipt and get back to you.

 

[DoubleWasp]

Yes. 30 or so times.

I've used OEM parts, or aftermarket made better than OEM.

Key is getting an honest alignment. I run into too many shops that have a "problem with their machine", and do not get the alignment right.

When I recently had my Navigator done, I had to force them to take the truck back in and do an actual alignment, after witnessing my truck go onto the rack, and the tech literally not touch a single part under my truck, and be released.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: rob0781
Originally Posted By: kschachn
Did you replace just the ball joints or the entire control arm? What brand did you use?

Just the ball joints as for brand I'll have to dig out the receipt and get back to you.


So you pressed the old ones out of the existing arms? The one aftermarket ball joint I saw would not fit in the Toyota arm.

Plus on mine the rubber isolators were shot, so there was little reason just to replace the ball joint.

 

[Trav]

I have done so many front end rebuilds in my life I wouldn't even want to guess how many. Never a problem.
On unibody cars that have suspension parts mounted on the engine cradle its important to line up the cradle properly after changing parts requiring loosening any cradle bolts like a rack replacement. Most alignment places don't do it or don't even know how to do it.

Best case the manufacturer has alignment holes that are used when the car was assembled, sometimes a home made tool is needed. Worst cae you need to take X measurements.
An even slightly off cradle will cause problems no matter how good the parts are.

 

[Rylan]

Too many factors to consider from vehicle to vehicle... Also drivers' habits, road conditions, etc.

We've had good success with a couple cars by replacing just suspension bushings and ball joints (plus an alignment). In fact, a couple of the used cars my family owned had minor suspension issues and were quick fixes.

It actually takes very little effort to improve suspension on a 20+ year old car.