Front UCA's

I know it's been said many times, but I will repeat it. If you plan to keep your car for a long time DO NOT buy cheap aftermarket control arms. I was unemployed a year ago and bought a set of el-cheapos on eBay that included the bushings. They were so noisy I replaced the bushings with Moog. They were fine for a good while, but as soon as the weather turned cold it sounded like I was driving a freight train. I hear a constant clacking, squeaking, and creaking. I jacked up the front end and found that the front upper ball joints already have play in them.

Please, do yourself a favor and stick with Moog, at least. Rock Auto still had a few at the clearance price. I find it embarrassing if I have a passenger when it's cold outside. An uninformed person might think that the car was falling apart.:uh:

I used the Moogs and mine still scrub a little bit when it's cold out, but then, so does the '93 Accord. For that matter, so does the Bimmer. I wouldn't obsess too much over it.

I recommend the Moogs heartily though.

Mike, Mike, Mike. I won't say I told you so. But at least you know better now(again).

{cough}{cough} Honda OEM. more money, less squeaks

I used the orileys brand ones on my cb7
Master Pro and they seem to be pretty good, They have Blue poly boots like moog does so i wonder if there made by them? i know most napa suspenion parts are made by moog.

but yeah never used the cheap ebay crap, i got some ebay tie rods for my civic within a month the boots were riped and they had play in them

Are the blue boots moogs I need a set or two. Even with grease fittins my boots dont look that great atm.


wp

I knew the ones I bought wouldn't last as long as OEM, but I figured they would work for a few years. I replaced a set of aftermarket ones my mechanic had installed three years prior. These have been so noisy, but after using the Moog bushings they had been pretty quiet - until the weather got cold. At least by going with Moog this time, plus new bushing covers and sleeves from Honda if it still makes noise I will be satisfied that I have done all I can do.

Mike this is kinda funny but I had alot of the same noises from my UCAs and after I changed my shocks they quieted down quite abit.

When was the last time you replaced the shocks? I used the bilstien HDs way to stiff for Mama, I'd go with the touring class next time.

nswst8, I wish you hadn't said that! The last time I replaced my dampers was 1998 when the car had 150,000 miles on it. Now, I'm at 311,000. I actually tried to get a set of Sensatracs at O-Reilly's to redeem my lifetime warranty. They couldn't seem to get me a matching set. They apparently make them in Spain and the U.S. There were a couple of key things that seemed different, including the length of the piston rod. If I could get a matching pair for the front and one for the back I would have taken them. After they ordered in three different sets that didn't match I gave up for a while, intending to try an O'Reilly's store where someone gave a shit. The ones I have now are actually still pretty good.

There is definitely play in the upper ball joints. It's not much, but they are creaking, too, like they're out of grease. I'll get around to the shocks eventually. I always get around to the things that need attention on this car.

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Originally Posted by DBMaster

nswst8, I wish you hadn't said that! The last time I replaced my dampers was 1998 when the car had 150,000 miles on it. Now, I'm at 311,000. I actually tried to get a set of Sensatracs at O-Reilly's to redeem my lifetime warranty. They couldn't seem to get me a matching set. They apparently make them in Spain and the U.S. There were a couple of key things that seemed different, including the length of the piston rod. If I could get a matching pair for the front and one for the back I would have taken them. After they ordered in three different sets that didn't match I gave up for a while, intending to try an O'Reilly's store where someone gave a shit. The ones I have now are actually still pretty good.

There is definitely play in the upper ball joints. It's not much, but they are creaking, too, like they're out of grease. I'll get around to the shocks eventually. I always get around to the things that need attention on this car.

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Thats what I replaced the Monroe Shitatrac (installed 1997). Although they seemed to be okay on the car when I removed them, not one of them had any rebound at all. I was thinking of sending them in to Monroe for warranty. Just decided it wasn't worth the trouble.

The car actually raised up again after I installed the BILSTEIN's
"BILSTEIN"

www.ajusa.com

www.tirerack.com

Great! Now that the idea is planted I will end up spending the bucks. I am absolutely certain that my annoying noises are caused by using el-cheapo UCA's. There's no sympathy for the unemployed in this world. But, then again, it was one of those rare times that I cheaped out on replacement parts. There's not a shock out there that really "lasts" 160,000 miles.

Sorry Mike. I can be such a pain in the neck.

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Originally Posted by DBMaster

Great! Now that the idea is planted I will end up spending the bucks. I am absolutely certain that my annoying noises are caused by using el-cheapo UCA's. There's no sympathy for the unemployed in this world. But, then again, it was one of those rare times that I cheaped out on replacement parts. There's not a shock out there that really "lasts" 160,000 miles.

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My struts have about 300k+ miles on them and they are the originals and still not blown which surprised the hell out of me! However i think the back ones about to blow now from using the accord as a truck for 3 weeks when i moved lol,
Front shock/lca bushings are completely shot tho it has turned in to rubber dust and now the front shock bangs around like crazy... so many things to replace so little money lol..

It's time AND money these days, my friend. I probably need to replace the strut tops next time I replace them.

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Originally Posted by DBMaster

It's time AND money these days, my friend. I probably need to replace the strut tops next time I replace them.

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I got all the time in the world, just no money , when I do find a job that will all be vise versa, we just cant win!

That's the situation I was in a year ago. I spent a lot of time rebuilding and replacing things. Unfortunately, I didn't want to spend $250 for arms and bushings. I should have. Just a little over a year later I am replacing everything again. At least this time the Moog arms were only $40 each - closeout on Rock Auto.

What are my options with the Prelude UCA's, cuz I won't waste time on the accord UCA's when the Preludes give you better camber when you're lower. ;)

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Originally Posted by DBMaster

Great! Now that the idea is planted I will end up spending the bucks. I am absolutely certain that my annoying noises are caused by using el-cheapo UCA's. There's no sympathy for the unemployed in this world. But, then again, it was one of those rare times that I cheaped out on replacement parts. There's not a shock out there that really "lasts" 160,000 miles.

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I'm still running the factory shocks at 180,000 miles. ;)

Honestly, I think the factory shocks can last the life of the car if they don't get damaged or leak. Based upon conventional tests and ride quality my so-called "Sensa-craps" are still doing fine. When I bought them in 98 I noticed they were painted blue and did not say Sensatrac on them. I have an email from Monroe indicating that at the time that was the retail store version of the Sensatrac and the only difference between it and the shop version was the paint job. Well, they have done quite well and I am in no rush to replace them. With that said, we all know that when you install a new set of shocks you always notice some difference. They wear so gradually. I got my Moog UCA's two days ago. Now I am just waiting for the new mounting hardware from Majestic. I just went with the parts that the shop manual indicated as "replace." That was the two seal caps, the sleeve, and the locking nut. I am going to reuse my Moog bushings since they were expensive and have hardly any use on them.

Mine were as old as yours are. You will really be surprised when you take them off and push the piston down and it doesn't come back up. My UCAs are more quiet now now than what they were with the shitatrac's.

Well, the job is done after a little hitch. I couldn't get the stupid bushings out. I tried driving them out with a drift just like the shop manual shows. Then, I tried prying a little and ended up ripping a bushing in half. Lucky for me O'Reilly's could get me new Moog bushings this afternoon. The causes of the noises were quite obvious. The cheapo aftermarket UCA's had pressed in ball joints with retainers. The driver's side joint was popped out of the arm and the only thing holding it was the retainer ring. The passenger side joint was secure in the arm, but it was nearly frozen. I couldn't move it by hand at all. That would explain the clatter from the left side and the creaking from the right side.

The Moog arms have the joints welded in. The moral of this story is obvious. I read all the posts about not using aftermarket arms, but I did it anyway because unemployed people need to save a few bucks. In this case, not worth it, BIG TIME. The arms I just replaced were just slightly over a year old.

I hear you Mike, glad you got it squared away.

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Originally Posted by nswst8

Mine were as old as yours are. You will really be surprised when you take them off and push the piston down and it doesn't come back up.

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They aren't charged shocks, are they??

Hey guys, what about Beck/Arnley parts. I see alot of them on the web.

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Originally Posted by Bass Man

They aren't charged shocks, are they??

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Whatever Monroe sensatrac has, when I put them in back in 1997 they had rebound.

Sensatrac are gas charged. I can understand the attraction to the inexpensive UCA's, though. Even with the clearance price on the Moog's from RockAuto it still cost me around $220 for parts. With regular prices you are looking at something like $300 for UCA's, new bushings, and replacement mounting parts. Compared to the $90 I spent on eBay it's a big difference. As my best friend always says, "You don't always get what you pay for, but you never get what you don't pay for."

The chariot is much quieter now. On cold days I was still hearing some rattling from the front left. I sprayed some more silicone lubricant down around the top of the strut mount after removing the plastic cap. That helped last year and did the trick this time as well. It's extremely quiet now. I am still pretty sure that replacing the struts in in the near future for me. The top mount is not really being pressed tightly into the top of the strut tower. That probably indicates that the struts have lost some of their gas pressure. Now, the question is going to be do I get a set of Sensacraps for free from the lifetime warranty, or spring for a set of Bilsteins.

Bilsteins! Mike you won't be sorry.

Hell, theres a set on ebay for like $250. I paid over $400 for the HDs and I really think I should have grabbed the TCs.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BILST...Q5fAccessories