What is the difference between the rear control arms from the 94-98 and the 99-04 cars ? I know that Lakewood and some other companies have different arms depending on which car you have. Are the arms chasis specific or rear end specific ?
When I pulled the 7.5 rear end out and put it back into the donor car (95GT), I used my stock arms off my v6 (2000). It all went back together just fine. The 8.8 that came out of the donor has aftermarket arms on it but I don't know who makes them. They are box type and are greasable, however I think the bushings are rubber. I would like to replace the bushings with poly but the energy suspension kit has the oblong bushings for the stock lower arms. The other reasons I want to replace the bushings is that the lower control arm shaft is too small for my stock bolt to fit through and I don't want to use a smaller (thinner) bolt on something that bears that much wieght on the car. There is a reason Ford made it with a bolt that thick and I'm not willing to put a thinner one on. Secondly, the upper arms did not fit snugly into the box when I went to bolt them to the frame. I suppose I can shim that with a washer to fix it but I think new bushings would ultimately solve that problem. Third, the metal shaft that goes through the center of the bushings does not sit in there firmly at all. In fact, its basically the opposite of a tight fit. It slides right through as if there is no friction holding it in place what so ever.
I think a new set of bushings for the arms will solve all my problems and then everything should bolt together smoothly. Any opinions on this ? Anyone know where I can get replacement bushings ?
When I pulled the 7.5 rear end out and put it back into the donor car (95GT), I used my stock arms off my v6 (2000). It all went back together just fine. The 8.8 that came out of the donor has aftermarket arms on it but I don't know who makes them. They are box type and are greasable, however I think the bushings are rubber. I would like to replace the bushings with poly but the energy suspension kit has the oblong bushings for the stock lower arms. The other reasons I want to replace the bushings is that the lower control arm shaft is too small for my stock bolt to fit through and I don't want to use a smaller (thinner) bolt on something that bears that much wieght on the car. There is a reason Ford made it with a bolt that thick and I'm not willing to put a thinner one on. Secondly, the upper arms did not fit snugly into the box when I went to bolt them to the frame. I suppose I can shim that with a washer to fix it but I think new bushings would ultimately solve that problem. Third, the metal shaft that goes through the center of the bushings does not sit in there firmly at all. In fact, its basically the opposite of a tight fit. It slides right through as if there is no friction holding it in place what so ever.
I think a new set of bushings for the arms will solve all my problems and then everything should bolt together smoothly. Any opinions on this ? Anyone know where I can get replacement bushings ?