Upper control arm, one piece or two pieces.

[mr49]

Hey, all,

I'm replacing the upper control arm on my 2001 explorer sport due to aged ball joint. I have the 2-piece kind installed on my car. However when I look up part on 1A Auto, they suggested the 1-piece design. Are they interchangeable? Is one better than another?

I assume that the 2-piece offer more degrees of adjustability when it comes to alignment.

Thanks.
Jia

 

[DjDom]

If you have the 2 piece, keep the 2 piece design. It was put there by Ford for a reason.
However, I would recommend you get the full 2 piece to replace the bushings at the frame as well.

 

[chefduane]

I went with the one piece design when I did my ball joints last year. Very easy to replace, and easer to align according to the shop that did the alignment. No performance issues or problems at all.

Design innovations are a continual process. Why continue to use a dated technology when a newer, more efficient, and better design is available?

Just because the Wright Brothers originally designed biplanes doesn't mean we should now have jet powered biplanes.

But, to each his own.

 

[2000StreetRod]

caster/camber adjusters

When I replaced the upper control arm on my 2000 Sport I purchased the one piece design for increased strength and reduced weight and the Moog kit to make alignment easy. Many shops will not align the one piece unit without installing the Moog kit or equivalent: Front suspension

 

[mr49]

Thanks for the replies, guys. I usually order parts for this explorer from 1A auto. They are out of stock on 1-piece design. I looked around on amazon and other sites. The 1-piece design is significantly more expensive than the 2-piece one. I will stick with the 2-piece kind for now.

Another question about upper control arm. After I remove the knuckle, how freely should the control arm pivots at the bushing? When I try to pivot it up or down by hand, it only moves a little.

 

[koda2000]

Thanks for the replies, guys. I usually order parts for this explorer from 1A auto. They are out of stock on 1-piece design. I looked around on amazon and other sites. The 1-piece design is significantly more expensive than the 2-piece one. I will stick with the 2-piece kind for now.

Another question about upper control arm. After I remove the knuckle, how freely should the control arm pivots at the bushing? When I try to pivot it up or down by hand, it only moves a little.

it should be fairly difficult to move it up/down by hand. if it moves easily, the bushings are shot.

 

[jacksonh18]

pressing out lower ball joints and new control arms advice

I did this repair on my 2000 4wd ohv a couple years ago. I recommend buying the best and most recommended parts you can find if you are doing the job yourself. I can see that my ball joints are already worn because I used bad parts to save money and I'll probably be repeated the job again soon. Here is an excellent YOUTUBE video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0E90mZB_uM that walks you thru the repair. I found it easier to pound out the lower ball joint with a socket the way the guy in the video does it. I rented a press but it didn't end up working the way I wanted it to. I used a 1-piece replacement arm (all I could find). Good luck, it was pretty easy but frustrating at times (like any repair)