[bigtom]

hey guys i need to change my upper control arms. i want to know what you guys would suggest for that. like what companies are good. im also looking to do the lowers while im at it. but in non adjustable.. thanks

[wraitherx]

MM (maximum motorsports) are good

[ReverendDexter]

With UCAs, my suggestion is to get a set with spherical bushings.

Really, as long as you avoid poly bushings, though, you're good.

[bigtom]

are you talking poly bushings on the housing or on the body? what about the mm lowers i think one side has the spherical bushing on one side.

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by bigtom are you talking poly bushings on the housing or on the body? what about the mm lowers i think one side has the spherical bushing on one side.

Oh, poly is fine in the LCAs. It's only evil in the UCAs. Sorry 'bout that, I should've been more clear.

[bigtom]

UCA no poly at either end.. i was looking at americanmuscle. it looked like everything has poly bushings on the body side

[bigtom]

what about these..

Steeda Heavy Duty Upper Rear Control Arms 96-04 Mustang [555-4094] : Lethal Performance, Performance parts for Ford Mustangs

or

Steeda 99-04 Mustang Tubular Steel Upper Control Arms [555-4095] : Lethal Performance, Performance parts for Ford Mustangs

[bigtom]

and also found some bmr's.

BMR 99-04 Upper Non-adjustable Control Arms w/Spherical Bushings [UTCA013] : Lethal Performance, Performance parts for Ford Mustangs

BMR 99-04 Upper Non-adjustable Control Arms with Poly Bushings [UTCA012] : Lethal Performance, Performance parts for Ford Mustangs


urp makes a set too: UPR 99-04 Chrome Moly Upper Rear Control Arms $120 but im not too sure about them for UCA or LCA?

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by bigtom UCA no poly at either end.. i was looking at americanmuscle. it looked like everything has poly bushings on the body side

Those should be fine. I could've swore you could get UCAs with spherical on both sides, though.

The issue that you're trying to avoid is bind of the upper control arms - the two mounting surfaces don't stay parallel as the axle goes through it's range of motion, so the UCAs need to "twist" in the mounts. You can allow that twist through the deflection allowed by soft rubber bushings, or through a spherical bushing.

[ReverendDexter]

Of the ones you posted, I'd go for the tubular BMRs with the spherical joint.

[bigtom]

ok and for the lowers im going with the MM.. i looked at there uppers and all they are are ford pieces they sell for more them ford..

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by bigtom ok and for the lowers im going with the MM.. i looked at there uppers and all they are are ford pieces they sell for more them ford..

Yeah, MM's a handling company, and the UCAs are the bane of Mustangs set up to handle. I'm honestly surprised they sell any at all.

[bigtom]

ok os i guess ill order the bmr uca and the mm lca. then

[99blkcobra]

ive got baseline uppper and lower, i like them

[ModMustang97GT]

MM sells ford ones because in their oppinion they should just be removed and a 3 link set up. They don't have any plans to re-design something that is flawed design no matter what you do.

You are not really able to find UCA's with spherical bushings on each side because they wouldn't do anything then. The resistance created by the rubber bushings is necessary to their function. Its the bushing's resistance that makes them able to do their job. And a spherical end on the diff side makes them a little easier to move. Ultimatley you should just get rid of the Mofo, but its not worth it unless you really want to get into your suspension with some green.

Your UCA's are not that big a deal to swap, you will get some gain by getting poly bushing ones, but its not really worth it cause it causes more dmg to the car. You can get kits that you just replace the bushings in your stock arms with poly ones if you really want to go that route.

I would advise just upgrading the lowers and leaving the tops alone. The only reason I would swap the upers is if I wanted adjustable ones.

[Mach Boy]

^ +1

Plus with spherical bushings your ride quality goes down considerably IMO. Every other gear shift you can hear the bushings hitting the frame. But if you don't care about ride quality then sphericals help out a bit. I took mine out because of the ride quality. I left the lowers in and they do their job nicely. You should look into full length subframe connectors too if you don't have those yet. I'd get Subframes, LCAs, and UCAs in that order.

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by ModMustang97GT You are not really able to find UCA's with spherical bushings on each side because they wouldn't do anything then. The resistance created by the rubber bushings is necessary to their function.

Seriously, this is incredibly wrong.

What function exactly is the resistance of the rubber bushings necessary for?

UCAs have two functions:
1) Lateral location of axle
2) Controlling axle wrap

In the case of #1, the triangulation of the UCAs is what locates the axle. This is basic geometry - if you have 3 fixed lengths, you have a defined triangle. The deflection allowed by rubber bushings allows the distance between the two mounting points to change, and thus allows that geometry to change. If you were to look at this triangle formed by the UCAs, the base of the triangle is formed by the chassis mounts of the UCAs, and the tip of the triangle is at a point on the axle side. Lateral location of the axle depends on how the tip of the triangle is located. Changing a length of either of the UCAs shifts that tip to the left or right - going back to the actual car, that means your axle is shifting left to right.

Contrast that with spherical joints. They do not have such slop, which means that sides of the triangle have a fixed length. With the fixed length, the tip of the triangle stays put.

Now let's look at #2, axle wrap. Axle wrap is controlled by disallowing the axle to pivot around the axle-side mount of the LCA. With a spherical bushing, the length of the UCA is fixed, which means for a particular point within the suspension articulation motion, there is only ONE pinion angle possible. With a rubber bushing, the distance between the chassis- and axle-side mounts is not fixed, meaning that for any one point in the suspension articulation, there is a possible range of the angle of the pinion.



Let me know if any of this is unclear, I wrote it hurriedly during a meeting, hahaha.