I have a 1995 Ford Mustang GT 5.0.
I need left and right upper trailing arms, I'll probably get some used ones since mine are completely destroyed.

What years will work for my Mustang?
Does it have to be a GT or can a V6, Cobra, Mach 1 Bullitt, Saleen or whatever work?

 

What are wrong with yours. Unless the metal is bent in some way you can replace the bushings which is what normally goes out on them. Get stock rubber bushings. You can probably use any upper control arms from 94-04 from, v6, GT, or non IRS cobra. Only differences may be the bolt size.

 

My mechanic looked at them and said they need to be replaced. He says it looks like someone tried to pry them open. Something very strange that shouldn't happen to them.

Dumb question, I didn't know they were called Upper Control Arms.

 

Have YOU taken a look at them? Are both of them are pryed out looking, the same way? If so, then it's bullshit. If they look identical then no one tryed to pry them open. I doubt anyone could bang on the UCAs hard enough to damge them, and then to do each one the same. They are just stamped steel, not boxed in, very basic looking.

 

Yes I've looked at them multiple times, by my brothers landlord who is good with cars and fro my personal mechanics. My mechanic said their should be NO gap between the bushings and the Upper Control Arms. It's the part that like hooks up to the car, not the rear diff or whatever.
They will slide left to right on both sides and there is a gap on both sides. Gap such as you could put a toothpic through it just fine.
From what they were saying, there should be NO GAP at all. He said to just buy some used ones and if needed replace the bushings.

 

So the bushing is shot? If the bushing has become disconnected from the shell or the inner sleeve then it should be replaced. Due to the inner sleeve the control arm or bushing itself won't contact the connection point on the subframe of the car.

 

He says my bushings seem to be fine, but my Control arms aren't.

 

maybe time for a new mechanic.

have you looked at another mustang to compare yours to? i'd definitely do that before buying parts.

if you do buy parts, it will probably be almost as cheap (and a lot less hassle) to get new arms with the bushings installed as it would be to just replace bushings in used arms. and then you'll know exactly what you're getting, not some old abused junk.


anyway you can get new arms with bushings for 130 from Maximum Motorsports. these are heavy duty boxed arms with heavy duty bushings.

http://www.maximummotorsports.com/st...roducts_id=544

i'm sure there are cheaper ones and probably a lot of used ones from guys who have upgraded. you could learn a TON about mustang suspension from the MM website.

 

There's a steel liner in the middle of the bushing. It's what's pressing against the control arm. It would appear though that your bushings may be shot. Replace with factory rubber. Maximum Motorsports or AM should be able to help you out.

TNell beat me to the exact link.

Kid: post up some pics of your UCA's. Focus on the attachment points and give me good clean shots of both sides of at least 1 of them. Between me and the rest of the suspension guys we should be able to tell you what's up.

Here's a tip: If there's even a little tiny issue with the UCA's you'll probably hear banging and popping as you go over bumps/dips while in a turn, the sharper the turn and bigger the bump/dip the bigger the noise.

 

bikersk8erkid,

listen to r3d. i was just hoping he would chime in on this.

 

TNell - I like my mechanics, well one of them. Even though he doesn't do this kind of work, he's pretty knowledgable. I wasn't going to buy new ones, I was just going to get a used set. I'm not trying to dump a lot of money into the car. Since I'm trying to buy an 03-04 Cobra and doing work to my Crotch Rocket.
Of course I'd listen to r3dn3ck, he's VERY knowledgable and VERY smart.

r3dn3ck - I tried to get the best of pictures I could, but it's kind of hard. I've had blown shocks for a long time now, wasn't having problems. After I got the new tires, my rear end doesn't want to stick when turning or the slightest turn, it like wants to break lose. If that makes any sense at all. If you move the steering wheel left to right to get the rear end to like swing back and fourth, it will try to break lose and that just started happening.








My mechanic said I should just get used arms and if needed buy new bushing for those.
I think he says I should do that because of the gap between the bushing and the arm hole or whatever. You can see it in some of the pictures, if not all.

 

good pictures, past my knowledge level. but they do look like the holes are pretty elongated.

r3d?

 

Are they good quality pictures?
They're taken from my cell phone, haha. I forgot to mention that. The flash light was better, but when I take the picture it flashes, which is very weird how it gets brighter compared to the flash light.

To me, the bushings look a little woreout, but not enough for there to be that gap. My mechanic said I either did that or I made it worse. Because I'm a hot-rod, I love taking off fast to get up to spend, I rarely ever launch though, but I do floor it.

 

yeah, the pictures are definitely good enough. you may know this but just in case...

the bushing is made of a steel shell, inside the shell is a rubber bushing, inside the bushing is a steel sleeve where the bolt goes through.

if the outer shell is not in contact with the control arm (as in picture 1) then the arm must be damaged because the shell is definitely not going to shrink. IDK but it looks like someone has ben hammering pretty hard on those bushings (with the throttle, not a hammer). now of course the rubber part is still going to be very bad.

with the damage it LOOKS like you have, i'd say new (or used) UCAs with NEW bushings.
get rubber bushings, not poly.

Also, i'd be concerned about upper torque boxes, drive shaft U-joints, maybe even rear-end gears and motormounts. you already got a new clutch a while back, right?

r3dn3ck, am i way off base here or pretty close?

sk8er, r3d is going to tell you to get the MM torque arm/panhard bar and call it a day

 

Nope, I never even knew I had them on the car, nor knew the name of them.
Since my shocks are pretty blown and the spings, well I'm not sure about them. But since the way I drive, I'm the one who probably ruined them. Getting the new tires and having this problem was probably just a Cowincedence.

I guess I'll have my mechanic check out the rear tomarrow. He checked out the front of my car, only thing I needed to replace was an inner tie rod. Then did my alignment again to make sure everything was good for the new tires.

When my little brother and I were doing my Rear Diff Oil, he said my gears seem to be just fine. I did replace my preasure plate, ThrowOut Bearing, Clutch Disk, and Pilot Bearing. Come to find out the only thing that was bad was my throwout bearing.

Since my Upper Control Arms got that bad, could that have happened because of bad shocks as well?
or whether you have good shocks or not, you can still damnage them by doing what I do?
I'm thinking that if I had good shocks that it wouldn't have got that bad or wouldn't period.

 

any time you hve to replace a throw out bearing, you might as well do the whole thing. don't feel like you wasted your money there. the labor (or time if you do it yourself) makes it worthwhile to do them all together.

if you're not launching hard, i doubt you did the damage to the arms.

looks like you're ok up front and with the clutch. u-joints are easy and cheap if they turn out to be bad. (should be about $25 or less for each)

if it was me, i'd do the arms/bushings first ($100-130). that way you'll be at a known starting point.

when you do the arms do a thorough inspection of the torque boxes and be prepared to install reinforcements if necessary ($50-80 plus welding--requires someone with decent welding skills).

http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/...nforcement-Kit

then shocks/struts because you know you need them. tokico blues are a good price/performance value. should be around $300 or less for the set plus another alignment when you're done. don't pay for labor for the shocks/struts. do them yourself. it's not hard and you'll learn a lot about your car.

you should be a squared away for another $500-600

or just drop 6 grand and get the MM maximum grip box and cobra brakes

 

If anything, the shells are loose, and would require replacement of the bushings. I just don't think the lip of that bushing shell should be out that much. The bushings are oval, and in the picture it does appear that the hole of the UCA has been elongated, or the shell squished. It would be better if the shell of the bushing was damaged.

 

+1, but i don't think the shells could be squished without ALSO elongating the holes.

sk8r, i think your gonna need arms and bushings. i still recommend just getting new arms with the bushings already installed. research the cost of the used arms, new bushings, and bushing installation. i bet you'll be close enough to the cost of new ones to make it worth the difference. plus, if you get used, how do you know if they will be any better than what you already have.

 

here's a theory on the cause of your problem.

one purpose of the UCAs is to keep the axle centered under the car. that is why they are angled.

now, with worn out bushings your axle is able to move side to side too much. because of the geometry of the LCAs, any time the axle moves side to side it also pivots or steers just a little bit. with your old bald tires you may not have had enough grip for you to feel the rear axle steering. with the new tires on you're probably able to feel something that was already happening.

new arms/bushings will keep your axle centered, but not nearly as well as a panhard bar

old cars eat money and the harder you drive, the more they eat

 

I currently don't have a job, so I'm not going to spend that much money. If it's something I seriously need I'll do it, but otherwise I wont. I'm getting a used set of UCA's for $50 in great condition. I'd rather go that route, I can get bushings for pretty cheap with the discounts and people I know.

Now with the tires, they're wider then the old ones, but same brand. I had to put on my stock rims and tires which were pretty much new, but no where near the size/brand and it wasn't doing this.
I actually do not ever launch my car, I might have done it a few times, but nothing like your supposed to for racing ect...

I'm getting KYB Gas-A-Just for the rear and KYB GR-2's for the front. $150 or so and I can do it my self.
I can pretty much do anything as long as it's nothing major, like a machine or lifting the engine out. I got pretty much all the tools, jacks, stands, but not a lift, hoist, air tools (maybe some) ect... If it's something serious I have connections/friends, plus my mechanics shop is next to my house. haha

The Throw Out Bearing is pissing me off actually. It's making noise and I just installed it not to long ago, didn't take long after install for it to start making noise. I have no clue what caused it, but when my Crotch Rocket is up and running, I'm going to be doing a lot of work to my car.

As far as I know, I need
Oil Pan Gasket
Muffers
Struts and Shocks
Maybe Springs
Upper Control Arms
Smog Pump Delete with shorter belt
I think My valve seals (might be something else) need to be re-sealed, because I'm leaking Oil into the Engine or whatever.
Oil Change with Filter
and I need to fix the Ignition (long story).

As far as right now, Oil Pan Gasket and Upper Control Arms are a must.
I'm not up set or anything about the car, I know it's because the way I drive it and I undersatnd. I already had to replace my cooling fan, smog pump is going out as well. But I don't need it, so I'm just removing it to save the money. The main reason why I'm not trying to put money into the car is because it's a daily driver and I run the **** out of it. Also trying to save up for the Terminator.

 

Your bushings are just fine. Don't touch em.

EDIT: To be clear: I see no signs of damage to either the arms or the bushings. That discolored bit on the last pic and the 3rd pic is nothing to worry about. It's not possible for the arm to slide over that so what you may think is a rub mark is not. Make sure that that one is properly torqued down.

 

Is there supposed to be a gap between the air hole and the bushing?
You can slide both sides back and forth.

 

no... but that's the mount not the arm or the bushing. Pull that side of the arm, bang on the mount a bit to close the gap and put it back together. Replacing a fixed width object with the same fixed width object is not going to fill an expanded hole. Shrink the hole.

 

r3d, doesn't the first pi look like there is a gap between the shell and the arm (forward part of hole)?

i've been look more at the bushing shell/arm relationship than the torque box to bushing relationship

if the bushing is sliding on the bolt, then what r3d said

BUT if the arm is sliding on the bushing ...

NO, there should be NO gap between the bushing shell and the arm hole and NO sideways movement

the bushings have to be pressed into the arms so the fit is VERY tight. any gap or side to side movement between the arm and bushing is damage

r3d??

 

The arm is slidhing on the bushing, litterly can push it back and fourth with your hand.

Where is my Torgue box located?

 

TNell is right... you need to be clear if the bushing is sliding in the arm or if the bushing is sliding on the bolt and not moving relative to the arm. the tq box is the big bracket that's welded to the chassis. The arm is inserted between the ears of it and a bolt connects them. If the bushing is sliding in the arm which I don't think it is, then you have damaged the arm and the bushing and possibly the mount. Replace the arm, bushing and have the mount fixed because it's probably cracked. Quick touch-up welding may be required.

 

sk8r,

what's the latest. don't leave us hangin'.

 

I ordered some off E-Bay for $38, still waiting on them. Going to install the new Oil Pan Gasket Monday. Trying to save some money up so I can buy Shocks and other stuff.
In the mean time I've been buying stuff for my Crotch Rocket and barrowing my little brothers Lifted Jeep.

 

If you have no job, why fix this? Its not a major deal right now.

 

Because the rear end lets go so easy. Like if I'm driving on the highway and I go to switch lanes the rear end will shift or whatever you want to call it. If I do it when going over a bump switching lanes I almost lose complete control.
I'm not going to risk totalling my car because I couldn't spend the $38 to get some good used ones.