What should I do? Lower control arms

[azygoustoyou]

I'm was going to purchase the lower ball joints and control arm bushings. Then I realized I need a press to get the bushings out and put the new in. What route should I go? Should I just buy the lower control arms with everything installed? Or, buy the ball joints and bushings and have them put in at a shop? I have no clue what a shop would charge. I do know there is about $85.00 difference if I buy new lower control arms.
FYI
I was talking to the tech at IAP and asked why some people say the bushings and such only last about a year. He said that a lot of people put everything together while the car is jacked up. He said that you shouldn't tighten everything up completely until it's on the ground and after everything has settled. Or you'll put stress on the bushings and it will shorten their life span.

[mbouse]

i dunno about jersey, but shop rates around here are north of $55/hour, one hour minimum. becomes a real toss up. i'd personally go for the A-Arms with bushings installed. that way, the day the Brown truck arrives, you can get to work, rather than make two trips to the shop and shell out some more cash-0-la

theres' a limit you should set for yourself on D.I.Y. if you don't have the tools, or skills... yup, you are learning where that limit is.

[azygoustoyou]

That's where I was leaning Mike. I just needed someone else to give a little shove. LOL It's a tug of war! The wife is getting tight on my Fiat money. She wants flowers for the yard.

[mbouse]

buy her a pack of seeds, or a shovel and a flashlight.


(shovel, flashlight, and a midnight excursion to the neighbor's)

[azygoustoyou]

You don't even wanna know what she said. LOL

[manoa matt]

If you are tight on money and want the best suspension for your Spider, then individual component replacement is the way to go. The "A" arms with everything installed are made from a thinner gauge metal than the original arms. The ball joints that come with those arms are of a lesser quality, and you especially don't want to skimp on the lower ball joints.

Even if you replace the bushings and ball joints it can all still be done and back on the car in several hours (unless you blast and repaint the arms). You don't need a press or even a bench vice to remove the bushings, but they do help. An easy and cheap way to remove and install them is with a length of threaded rod, washers, some short pipe sections or large sockets. You simply push and pull the bushings into the arm. If you have original ball joints, then they are likely riveted into the arm and will need to be drilled/ground out. The new ball joints simply bolt in.

You can buy ball joints for as low as $14 each, but the best are "Moog" and they are about $25 each at Rock Auto: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php

You can get the regular rubber bushings for $35 for a complete set: http://www.performancefiat.com/catalog/ ... cts_id=279

Or you could upgrade to urethane bushings for $99: http://www.performancefiat.com/catalog/ ... cts_id=278

Here is the procedure for removing and replacing the bushings: http://www.mirafiori.com/~thad/bushing.html You can use the threaded rod and washers to push/pull them into the arm without wacking it with a hammer.

If you go with Moog ball joints and urethane bushings you will be at about $200 before shipping, but will have the best suspension components and the thicker "A" arms.

If you buy all new arms with everything installed you will pay $270 without shipping, have cheap ball joints and thinner "A" arms.

[FiatColombia1]

good Advice!!

Anyone know how is the ride with Polyurethane bushings? what about the site performancefiat?

Thank you.

[azygoustoyou]

I was told with the poly bushings, its a louder ride. You can hear more road noise because they don't give.

[htchevyii]

I didn't use delrin or poly because I was afraid to put any more stress on the allready marginal front end/crossmember.

[manoa matt]

"Anyone know how is the ride with Polyurethane bushings?" Don't know, I've only ridden on rubber, but I would imagine marginally stiffer. Derlin would be too hard and is probably not recommended for street use. There is not a whole lot of rubber in the stock bushings. The rubber just seperates two metal sleeves.

Part of the appeal of urethane bushings is their ability to keep the alignment specs closer to the desired values when the car is loaded, unloaded, and when cornering. Durring my last alignment I watched how much the specs changed from an unladen car to one with me in it. According to my mechanic the changes were "considerable". Granted, most of that's attributed to the springs.

Another reason is their long life. The typical rubber bushings will "look" pretty bad after just a few months of daily service even if installed and torqued properly. The exposed rubber at each end of the bushing is what looks bad, however the non-exposed rubber between the metal sleeves is still typically good. Considering the parts that must be removed and the labor involved; it's not a procedure that you want to perform on a routine basis or even every couple of years.

I think the ride quality and noise would be more attributed to the aspect ratio of the tires, the shocks, and the springs. If you got some big sidewalls like 185/70 R13 tires on stock springs then it will be a softer ride than low profile tires on 15 inch rims with sport springs. Don't forget the road surface.