Control arm

[justinf89]

I have the two piece rh upper control arm on my explorer. I'm about to change all uppers and lowers and was wondering why they sell a two piece and a one piece? Is the one piece a replacement for the two piece? I need to know which part to buy. The two piece only comes with the ball joint, and If possible, I'd like to change it all. Thanks.

 

[Elessar65]

They should all come with ball joints, except maybe the bottom ones, which are pressable? The 2 piece design makes it easier to align, as it gives you a lot more adjustment.

 

[my pos mounty]

And, if you have the two-piece design, and replace it with the one-piece, you will also need to purchase the "alignment kit" which is just four bolts for the upper control arms that have an eccentric built into them.
Hmmm, maybe you would need two of those kits, I don't remember if they come as two bolts or four???

 

[justinf89]

So it would be possible to purchase the one piece design? I'm also looking to change the bushings which do not come with the two piece design upper control arm. Maybe I should stick with stock and just change the bushings myself. Is this difficult to remove these bushings?

 

[my pos mounty]

Yes, replacing the 2 piece with a one-piece will get you new bushings.

 

[justinf89]

Where do I get this alignment kit? Thanks for the help with this

 

[Elessar65]

Its not too hard to do yourself. The passenger side? (or is it the drivers side, its been a while) is the one thats a real pita. There are a bunch of hard lines for either the brakes or the fuel system that Ford decided to put right in your way.

 

[justinf89]

I guess I'll have to take a look. Its the passenger side that has the two piece control arm. When I go to buy the upper 2 piece design, it only comes with the arm that has the ball joint, so you don't get the bushings. I was just figuring I should change these at the same time.

 

[my pos mounty]

Yeah, it is the drivers side. A real pain in the arse. Great design there, put all the lines right where you need the space.

To the OP: try www.rockauto.com , or any autoparts store worth buying from (ie: not autozone and the "auto parts supermarkets") for the alignment kit. Even if you do not install it and go for an alignment, the alignment shop will install it.