Best Suspension Parts

[mmikemanmuir]

Have been having some odd issues with my 97 Mark 8 yearly going through lower control arms it seems and tie rods could just be just had roads around here anyhow I heard on this forum we can use thunderbird control arms which might be cheaper ? Is this true? Also anyone have some good advice on where I could get some top quality control arms plus tie rods and what the manufacterer would be?

 

[soduka]

Probably go back in time to get quality parts. They're all pretty much the same and all pretty low quality. Moog is no promise of quality anymore either. There is no difference between Mark VIII lower control arms/tie rods and Thunderbird/Cougar parts. They are exactly the same. The upper control arms are slightly different in that the Mark VIII has the appendage for the air ride sensor. If you no longer have air ride you can use Thunderbird upper control arms because they're the same otherwise.

 

[unity]

Or go TRW. TRW was OEM. But I use Moog a lot. I agree. Moog used to have all greasable fittings, etc. Now they are usually "sealed for life". Well life is a matter of only some years. But trust me, there is some cheap crap out there. So I would at least stick to TRW or Moog, whichever is most economical. Rockauto.com usually has good prices.

 

[mmikemanmuir]

I appreciate this I might just bite the bullet with MOOG overall cheap I am running on coils as well so that will save me a little bit , I saw the AC Delco ones apparently have greasable fittings but obviously at an extra cost

 

[whtwhale]

GO TRW!. I just went through this dog and pony show. Ordered all ac delco professional parts intentionally and received a bunch of mismatched parts (tie rod different nut than the other same with the LCA and UCA). Saw the moog stuff at the local Advance Auto and it was the sam mismatched garbage. I got all the TRW stuff off amazon and am happy with it.

 

[Spree]

I used Doorman upper and lower, never had a problem with them.

 

[unity]

Oh god Dorman.... a route I would never, ever go down again. Hell, my Dorman issue got so bad I had to involve ordering direct from Dorman (drop shipment through Rock) and it was still a giant mess. But with Dorman re-packaging more than they actually make I suppose some parts are bound to be good.

 

[soduka]

If you get Dorman make sure you do what you can to get the greasable ones and NOT the "sealed for life" units. I'm fairly certain there's more grease in the average person's hair than their sealed ball joints.

 

[ONLYTONY]

I used mostly MOOG on my 95 a few years ago,( when they were well made), and they've held up well. When I did the CE, I went with Rabestos, after reading about their products, especially their ball joints. Bruce, dbleb88, did the work, and he said he liked them because things fit together properly. I found that NAPA's ball joint is the same as rabestos.

 

[Teccmoney]

I went all ac Delco professional line from Amazon.

 

[BILLBOATS]

I asked for advice on buying detroit axel kit and having it tested for rockwell hardness at a heat treating shop. No one ventures to say what thier experience was with the detroit, or an other low cost front end kits. And I do not hold my breath for anyone to step up providing they tried them.

 

[Rockbottom]

Or go TRW. TRW was OEM. But I use Moog a lot. I agree. Moog used to have all greasable fittings, etc. Now they are usually "sealed for life". Well life is a matter of only some years. But trust me, there is some cheap crap out there. So I would at least stick to TRW or Moog, whichever is most economical. Rockauto.com usually has good prices.

Moog sell a "problem solver" ball joint thats advanced in manufacturing with a grease fitting. Moog uses all metal ,others can use plastic which wears quick. See rock auto for instance, a complete suspension kit, ball arms, tie rod inner outer, is 330 , Ball joints 50 individualy. I am buying the set and do the front end 100% with moog