Buying new front suspension parts? Reviews and Discussion

[Roadwarrior]

Alright ladies and gentlemen, if one were to buy all new front suspension components; what's the best on the market, back your opinion, good or bad.

 

[Roadwarrior]

I'm thinking of replacing the upper and lower ball joints, tie rod ends and adjusters, center link, shocks, bump stops and anything else the alignment shop says it needs.

Now who makes the best products?

(planning to use this thread to guide those in the future to the best purchase)

 

[Muadeeb]

I'm thinking of replacing the upper and lower ball joints, tie rod ends and adjusters, center link, shocks, bump stops and anything else the alignment shop says it needs.

Now who makes the best products?

(planning to use this thread to guide those in the future to the best purchase)

I did my balls about a year ago, and both lowers are already torn again. Did Moog for upper and lower, but am thinking Raybestos this time.

 

[robcarync]

I have QUITE a bit of experience with this stuff with regards to getting an alignment...and it depends on your cash flow:

upper and lower ball joints: I replaced my uppers with Duralast from AutoZone. They seem good enough...but I have UCAs, so I just get the replaceable ball joints.

tie rod ends: I got Duralast from Autozone for the outers and inners...they didn't seem to last very long, and they are a very low end service part. I still have them for back up, but I replaced them with Moogs from RockAuto. I liked these better, both of them seemed higher quality to the feel, and both had zerks to pump with grease.

adjusters: 4x4parts.com heavy duty ones...or Calimini...but if you do change the adjuster rods, get some bigger and better ones!

center link: I replaced my center link with a Moog center link, and it improved a LOT of my steering slop and alignment issues...not sure how long it will last though. Grassroots4x4 makes a heavy duty centerlink it that is my ultimate goal. It eliminates a ball joint from the center link completely, so that it can't wear down and get sloppy over time. A bit pricey at $230

shocks: I went with Bilstein shocks from 4x4parts.com for a 3" SL...I like them. Especially with adding armor front and back, I felt the shocks increased the damping just enough to keep the frot end from vibrating too much

bump stops: I have the ultra low profile bump stops. They are a waste. Just rip the old ones out if you want to, but there really is NO reason to change them

 

[Prime]

I've always been a fan of Moog stuff. I love the fact that everything is greaseable.

The grassroots link looks impressive. But. For my money, if I was planning on staying IFS for the long haul, I'd be doing the Total Chaos kit. Heim joints and over engineered everything ftw.

That just leaves ball joints.... Which our trucks are always going to destroy. I plan on doing them every other year unless they don't need it.

 

[Thanks48]

Im going with the MOOG there $67.66 shipped so i can always buy a cheap replacement.

 

[Jack Stilts]

My permanent IFS setup has one vote for the Total Chaos kit.

That being said, I'm glad I replaced the gear box and steering pump when I did. The whole steering system feels better than new, and it is the polar opposite of the loose / wobbly / sloppy steering that I despised for so long. And THAT being said, there are times when I think the system is overkill. Sometimes it's so tight that it feels like I'm driving a car with no power steering. Which, to me, is better than barely breathing on the steering wheel and taking a hard curve at 40mph.

 

[Mirage]

I'll preach OEM nissan for tie rods and ball joints all day long, i'm not a fan of moog anymore. If you buy the tie rod assembly from nissan (both tie rods and the adjuster) it costs less than buying just the tie rods separate. If you have aftermarket UCA's you can get the OEM WD21 upper ball joints, but you can't get the OEM lowers without buying the whole control arm assembly. I went with Napa chassis products for the lower balljoints but get the made in japan ones if you can, or at least the taiwan ones, stay away from the china ones they are utter garbage. I have one japan and one taiwan because I couldn't find another japan one out of 8 napa's in the area.

 

[Intender]

Just recently replaced my upper ball joints with napa brand, replacing the ones that came from AC that cracked after about 8 months. My lower ball joints are about a year old from napa. Went with them at the advice of a good friend that runs a shop. They have two levels of ball joints a cheaper and higher dollar, cant remember the name, but I went with the higher dollar and they were replaced before nxm last year and have held up very well so far. I have moog inners and random ebay outer tie rod ends and they have held up well. replaced the centerlink with grassroots but havnt wheeled it yet. I put on bandit idler arm bushings and the combination of it and the grassroots makes for a tight steering combo. almost too tight.

I personally feel like in any situation the tie rod adjusters are always going to be the weak link. the grassroots centerlink removed the ridiculous amount of up and down movement that I had in my steering setup. which I think will help with breaking/bending tra, but I havnt wheeled since replacing stuff so only time will tell.

 

[Silver dude]

Moog = garbage in my opinion. The boot material they use cracks shortly after installation. I've used their ball joints and tierod ends, boots cracked debris and moisture quickly ruined them. Also many of their products are re-engineered they say for better performance. I say they engineer things to make them cheaper to make. For example the idler arm they make is way different then the stock one. The upper ball joint they make for aftermarket UCA's is a complete abomination. A few members have had that design fail while driving down the road.

 

[TJTJ]

I'll preach OEM nissan for tie rods and ball joints all day long, i'm not a fan of moog anymore. If you buy the tie rod assembly from nissan (both tie rods and the adjuster) it costs less than buying just the tie rods separate. If you have aftermarket UCA's you can get the OEM WD21 upper ball joints, but you can't get the OEM lowers without buying the whole control arm assembly. I went with Napa chassis products for the lower balljoints but get the made in japan ones if you can, or at least the taiwan ones, stay away from the china ones they are utter garbage. I have one japan and one taiwan because I couldn't find another japan one out of 8 napa's in the area.

The OEM tie rods are too weak though, so, a no go for durability. WAAAY too many OEM are trail damaged, regularly. The HD ones from AC for example are beefier and hold up longer.

The ball joints MEANT for the X don't have enough flex, and are damaged by the range of motion on a lifted rig, so, instead of the OEM for the X, you get ones with more degrees of rotation, etc...so you don't tear the boots up, etc.

 

[Mirage]

The OEM tie rods are too weak though, so, a no go for durability. WAAAY too many OEM are trail damaged, regularly. The HD ones from AC for example are beefier and hold up longer.

The ball joints MEANT for the X don't have enough flex, and are damaged by the range of motion on a lifted rig, so, instead of the OEM for the X, you get ones with more degrees of rotation, etc...so you don't tear the boots up, etc.

I don't mean the adjuster, just the ends, I have AC HD ajdusters. I've replaced mine with new OEM tie rod ends a little over 3 years now and they are still in good shape, no slop and boots are in good shape, I just stuck the new stock adjusters in my trail spares. My upper balljoints were done when I did the lift over 4 years ago, OEM WD21 nissan again and still in good shape. Never seen a comparison of degrees of range, would be interested in seeing a break down on that.

Luke what brand was your upper ball joint that came apart at WENT?

 

[Thanks48]

That being said what's the cheapest steering gearbox and best hd tie rod adjusters. Brand and price please cause my steering is crazy right now