Control Arms???

[usaf_branham]

Im sure this has been beat to death in these forums, but I am pretty clueless when it comes to suspensions stuff.

Im getting ready to put a kenne bell on my car... i am already running 4.10's so I know im going to have some serious traction problems. I was talking to a tech when I was at Summit Racing the other day, and was told that I should definately consider installing some upper and lower control arms.

Its an 04 GT, and a daily driver, occasional drag racing. So, could some body explain to me what I should get, and how its going to benefit me, please. The tech said that the summit racing brand upper and lower control arm kit should be fine, any input on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[SRT Handz]

Maximum Motorsports or NOTHING

 

[blubullett]

I have maximum motorsports adjustable lowers on the back along with thier panhard bar. I love them. The adjustables are good cause you can have it nice and low for the street and raise it up for clearence if you are going to put some slicks on. Now I just have to go to the track someday.

I wouldn't get the summitt uppers cause they can cause binding because the upper control arms aren't parallel to the arc of the suspension. Maximum Motorsports web site has a nice article that explanes it better then I can. The lowers would be fine though.
My buddie has the billett Steeda lowers and he likes them also. I would go with steeda or maximum. Both make a really quality product.

This site is really biased so you are probably only going to get recomendations for the Maximum ones. Just remember its not that complicated to make them so any brand lower is probably ok. If you give a monkey a welder, some steel, and enough bananas it could probably make you some.

Read the thing on Maximums site about the uppers.

 

[usaf_branham]

I cant afford mm's or steedas... i did do a little research though, and these seem like a nice kit.

UMI Performance 101416-R - UMI Performance Rear Adjustable Lower and Fixed Non-Adjustable Upper Control Arms

They have the poly bushing on one side and the bearing on the other

what do you guys think?

 

[nitetrain]

I run the upr crome - moly fixed upper and lowers , good price and well made. dont forget to change your housing bushings to urethane. if you dont it will tear the crap out of the stock rubber ones. unless your going to run your car at the track all the time you dont need adjustable control arms, and for the solid rod ends they are noisy and rough

 

[blubullett]

I would get these Maximum Motorsports :: The Leader In Mustang Performance Suspension and get a coulpe peices of steel and weld them over the open side of your stock uppers to box them. Only 20 bucks more.

Those are pretty nice though. A friend of mine with a Firebird has some of thier suspension parts and he likes them. He has had to replace the spherical bearings on them cause they strated to get a little sloppy. I think he had them for two years before he had to replace them and his car is a daily driver. Its not too expensive for new rod ends though. I don't think you could go wrong with them, and the red looks good.

 

[san~man]

I cant afford mm's or steedas... i did do a little research though, and these seem like a nice kit.

UMI Performance 101416-R - UMI Performance Rear Adjustable Lower and Fixed Non-Adjustable Upper Control Arms

They have the poly bushing on one side and the bearing on the other

what do you guys think?

How can you afford a Kenne Bell but not UCA/LCA's?

Save up a little more money and get proven gear. Do it once, the right way.

 

[usaf_branham]

lol, im spending all of my money on the kenne bell...

 

[SRT Handz]

^...Then it would be very stupid to not spend the same amount on suspension. Whats the point of having power if it cant get to the ground?

 

[stangman98]

UPR non adjustable uppers and lowers. Maximum Motorsports is great if you are road racing, but you don't need to spend all that money. Call UPR and just get the non adjust upper and lowers and you will be perfectly fine!

 

[squeak93]

MM makes great stuff.... But there are other quality items out there.

HPM mega bite jr's are great as well. Box your stock uppers and use the jr's on the bottoms. I know quite a few guys that pulll sub 1.6's with this set up (not even with boxed uppers).

I have used mega's myself but they were in a car I never put a good motor in.... But they still worked well even for a 14.50 car.

I have also used Lakewood traction action bars. They are very similar in design to the hpm's. But the lakewoods have a brace that goes around the axle to help distribute the pressue.. I used these on a 351 swap fox and it would not spin the tires on launch (auto with 3500 stall).

So with that said.... You don't HAVE to buy MM stuff to make your car work. They do make a nice product but there are other options.

 

[usaf_branham]

thanks for the info on the other types of control arms. some people have a real hard on for these mm's, but the car is not going to be a road racer, and those are really expensive, and not worth the money for what im going to do with the car, in my opinion

 

[blackfang]

You can't go wrong with MM/UPR/Griggs or Steeda.

 

[Waterdrake]

in the event you're still looking for control arms, check out J&M. i've got their upper and lower control arms and cc plates. never messed with the adjustables. adjustable upper control arms are good for fine tuning the suspension for drag racing though. i'm sure it can help in the twisties too, but i'm a little more familiar with the geometry set ups for drag racing. J&M have a nice price too, if you're on a budget. pretty much anything is better than stock though, the aftermarket is pretty much all tubular steel, way better than stock. definitely recommended, especially with the blower.

 

[san~man]

in the event you're still looking for control arms, check out J&M. i've got their upper and lower control arms and cc plates. never messed with the adjustables. adjustable upper control arms are good for fine tuning the suspension for drag racing though. i'm sure it can help in the twisties too, but i'm a little more familiar with the geometry set ups for drag racing. J&M have a nice price too, if you're on a budget. pretty much anything is better than stock though, the aftermarket is pretty much all tubular steel, way better than stock. definitely recommended, especially with the blower.

An aftermarket upper will not help in the twisties, fyi.

 

[SaleenGT2001]

Maximum Motorsports or NOTHING

this man knows what he is talking about

UPR non adjustable uppers and lowers. Maximum Motorsports is great if you are road racing, but you don't need to spend all that money. Call UPR and just get the non adjust upper and lowers and you will be perfectly fine!

i tore my UPR's out in 1200 miles. 3 of the 4 bushings in the LCA's were split in half.

i spent the money twice when i could have saved by getting MM to start with

 

[98COBRA281]

this man knows what he is talking about



i tore my UPR's out in 1200 miles. 3 of the 4 bushings in the LCA's were split in half.

i spent the money twice when i could have saved by getting MM to start with

ive sent you 3 pm's about your control arms

 

[Stark77]

I'm running Granatelli's and consistently get 1.90 60's on Nitto Drag Radials, automatic trans, and 3.73's - stock stall. The Granatelli's uppers and lowers are solid, and as long as you grease the bushings every 6 months or so they work flawlessly. Don't waste money on MM's or other flashy brands unless you are a professional racer and your car generates income for you, otherwise the difference is insignificant.

 

[san~man]

No one in their right mind would recommend Granatelli's, even to their worst enemy. Do a search on their products, and you'll get a lot of threads showing broken parts.

 

[UPRMike]

Haven't had an opportunity to introduce myself properly yet as an employee of
UPR , but I'll take this opportunity to say howdy to all of you.

SaleenGT2001,
We were having issues with the bushings in our control arms that have been
resolved in the past year and a half or so. A different manufacturer and an
improved design have since cured all the problems we experienced with splitting
bushings in our control arms and they remain, as they have been, covered by a
lifetime warranty. If you or anyone else on this forum ever has problem or concern
with a product of ours please contact us by phone, email, or pm on this site. Our
phone number is 561 588 6630 and my direct email is [email protected]
All that said, Saleen2001GT, your signature shows a setup pushing out more than 600 ft/lb.s of torque, which is more than pushing the limits of any arm running urethane bushings. Anyway, hope it all worked out well in the end.