'97 Explorer AWD UCA psngr

[marspatch125]

Hello there fellow Explorer mechanics.. I am looking to locate an inner piece for the upper control arm 2pc kit, passenger side on a 97 AWD Explorer. I had an idiot assisting me on working on this vehicle and he threw away the piece known as the inner control arm for the 2P set which is also the piece with the bushings that attaches to the frame. Does anyone know where I can locate another one of these pieces after market? I can't even find a picture of this part, Otherwise I'm stuck with the junkyard nonsense.
Thanks guys.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! Did you check Rock Auto?

 

[donalds]

You will need to press in your own bushings it's not that bad

 

[Fix4Dirt]

welcome!

 

[J_C]

I expect that this part is discontinued, so you might try ebay but then would want to press in new bushings, same as one from a junkyard.

Aftermarket parts support only has the BJ piece you still have, or what most people would do in tis situation i sthat instead aftermarket for the missing piece uses a one piece control arm to replace both of the two pieces. It's a mirror image of the left side upper control arm.

1997 FORD EXPLORER 4.0L V6 SOHC Control Arm | Shop Now at RockAuto

Suspension Parts and More for Your 1997 FORD EXPLORER at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

It removes the ease in adjusting castor that the two piece allows, but the castor is still adjustable to match the left side, using an eccentric bolt/plate kit.

1997 FORD EXPLORER 4.0L V6 SOHC Alignment Bolt / Camber Plate | Shop Now at RockAuto

Suspension Parts and More for Your 1997 FORD EXPLORER at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

The downside to replacing the two piece with the one piece, is that with the two piece if you record how far out the adjustment bolt was, you might get close enough to adjusting the new one to the correct castor to not need an alignment done. If you instead use the one piece and the bolt/plate kit, odds are the alignment will be much further off and need realigned. Then again, if doing the left side, and maybe the tie rod ends at the same time is a good idea too, then can just get one alignment done after replacing all that.

 

[nameskreen]

Unfortunately that style uca was discontinued long ago. Even an OEM is 1 piece. As others have said, you could try a used one and be sure to replace the bushings with a quality set

 

[marspatch125]

Welcome to this forum! Did you check Rock Auto?

Hey there. Sorry it's been a while. I did look on rock auto and I come to find out after speaking to someone at a Ford dealership that the part is no longer manufactured or produced. They stopped producing that part after I believe the 99 model Explorer was released. I went to a pull and pay junkyard and found one on an old Explorer and threw it on my truck after replacing the bushings with a balljoint press. However I'm still having major issues with seeing negative camber on my passenger side tire. This was the same issue I was having when I had a 1 piece control arm on the psnger side..

 

[marspatch125]

I expect that this part is discontinued, so you might try ebay but then would want to press in new bushings, same as one from a junkyard.

Aftermarket parts support only has the BJ piece you still have, or what most people would do in tis situation i sthat instead aftermarket for the missing piece uses a one piece control arm to replace both of the two pieces. It's a mirror image of the left side upper control arm.

1997 FORD EXPLORER 4.0L V6 SOHC Control Arm | Shop Now at RockAuto

Suspension Parts and More for Your 1997 FORD EXPLORER at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

It removes the ease in adjusting castor that the two piece allows, but the castor is still adjustable to match the left side, using an eccentric bolt/plate kit.

1997 FORD EXPLORER 4.0L V6 SOHC Alignment Bolt / Camber Plate | Shop Now at RockAuto

Suspension Parts and More for Your 1997 FORD EXPLORER at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

The downside to replacing the two piece with the one piece, is that with the two piece if you record how far out the adjustment bolt was, you might get close enough to adjusting the new one to the correct castor to not need an alignment done. If you instead use the one piece and the bolt/plate kit, odds are the alignment will be much further off and need realigned. Then again, if doing the left side, and maybe the tie rod ends at the same time is a good idea too, then can just get one alignment done after replacing all that.

Hey there fellow mechanics! I managed to locate the inner piece for the upper control arm 2 piece set. Now I managed to replace the bushings with a ball joint press, and got it on the vehicle now. However I'm still having issues aligning the passenger side tire. This was the issue that I was experiencing before when I replaced my original 2 piece with a one piece control arm. I have not taken it to an alignment professional yet because well quite frankly I do not trust them and they've given me the whole nonsense paperwork with the pictures and the diagrams and I was told by several people on another forum not to trust those. Would perhaps taking a universal protractor to the vehicle make any sort of difference? I'm very inexperienced and uneducated in the alignment procedure. YouTube doesn't seem to tell me much about a 2 piece control arm. I am only trying to get it aligned enough to take it to a friend who can do it but lives 45 minutes away..
Thank you guys for all your comments and thoughts.

 

[J_C]

The best I can make out from what you wrote, is that you just need to take it to a shop that you trust to do an alignment, unless you have more suspension parts you plan to replace, then do those too, then get an alignment done after all that.

45 minutes away, it depends on how bad the alignment is, what the value of the tires is, how much wear and/or safety driving it, if it's a really bad mis-alignment versus not too bad. In general, you can usually use a tape measure to tell if it's at least close enough aligned to be worth the risk driving. I mean considering that it's winter, so traction issues are magnified.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Take it to an independent alignment shop. Find one that’s been in your area at least 10 years, and check some reviews. Alignments are a specialty for a reason.