Control Arm Woes

[natius]

The Control Arms on my 2000 TJ keep going out on me. It all started when I replaced my stock arms with an adjustable set from teraflex. I went through two sets of those (bushings) in only a summer, with very minimal wheelin. I had all the work done at Six States. After the last set went out they recommended going to a better set from skyjacker. So I had them put the best damn control arms that skyjacker makes on my Jeep about 2 months ago. Problem solved? Nope. I posted on here about a jolting when I would release the clutch a couple of weeks ago. I didn't even consider that the control arms could be the issue again since I have only done grocery store driving since I had them put on. I finally took it back in to six states to see if they could help determine what the jolting was. Control Arms. No joke. they have loosened up to where there is so much give that it jolts when the clutch releases. I am wondering if anyone else has had the same problem with control arms and if they found a solution. HELP ME! This has been an ongoing problem for more than a year. Is there no relief?

 

[Milner]

How much lift, tires, and what other suspension mods do you have?

 

[mesha]

I don't know about the skyjacker control arms. The teraflex ones I have had have all been crap. Then when I called them they told me they couldn't warrantee them or the disconnects I bought because they didn't know how I used them or if I had been greasing them. I told them I had and they said sorry nothing we can do. I have a lot of friends that have had good luck with teraflex just not me I guess.

 

[MRJ]

If you put the Flex series of Skyjacker control arms on I would venture to guess that the cheep heim joints they use are shot already. You can repalce them with better heims but they too will wear out with time.

 

[waynehartwig]

I have a Rubicon Express Long Arm kit on my TJ, have been all over the place with it and they are still tight. Granted, I only have 7k miles on my Jeep, but almost all of it has been off road. Moab, Rubicon, etc.

 

[kyojin]

I have a Rubicon Express Long Arm kit on my TJ, have been all over the place with it and they are still tight. Granted, I only have 7k miles on my Jeep, but almost all of it has been off road. Moab, Rubicon, etc.

I have the RE Super Flex short arm kit on mine and no problems.

 

[Andy]

If you put the Flex series of Skyjacker control arms on I would venture to guess that the cheep heim joints they use are shot already. You can repalce them with better heims but they too will wear out with time.

I would like to put some of your Jimmy joints in and see if that fixes(sp) it.

Andy

 

[natius]

No matter how hard you try you cant stop us now

I have 3" suspension and 2" body. I also have the spicer short shaft in it. I had the nicest skyjacker arms in there that money could buy, and they wore out with just daily driving, groceries and what have you. Thats like getting a black eye from your sister......... there is no honor in that. So I got refunded on the skyjackers from Six States, and have gone back to my stock arms. No problems so far. I asked them about the Rubicon Express arms since I have been told they are long wearing and they said at six states that the RE arms were made up of the same shiz as the Skyjacker. They also said that the stock arms have a harder substance than the polyurethane stuff that were in the arms I kept going through. Huh? I thought poly was the way to go? Oh well, maybe God was punishing me.

 

[Tacoma]

I get a clunk over certain cracks/bumps on the road... have yet to isolate the cause though, as it's my wife's Jeep w/the long arms on it.

If it's the bushing, well count me in brutha! Certainly sounds like it's coming from that area. I suspect that, or a loose shock mount.

 

[BlackSheep]

I have 3" suspension and 2" body. I also have the spicer short shaft in it. I had the nicest skyjacker arms in there that money could buy, and they wore out with just daily driving, groceries and what have you. Thats like getting a black eye from your sister......... there is no honor in that. So I got refunded on the skyjackers from Six States, and have gone back to my stock arms. No problems so far. I asked them about the Rubicon Express arms since I have been told they are long wearing and they said at six states that the RE arms were made up of the same shiz as the Skyjacker. They also said that the stock arms have a harder substance than the polyurethane stuff that were in the arms I kept going through. Huh? I thought poly was the way to go? Oh well, maybe God was punishing me.

I"m using the RE long arm on my rig. It seems like the skyjacker stuff is all heim joints, whereas the RE stuff is either the stock rubber bushing (on one end) or the RE ball type bushing (on the other end. Poly control arm bushings are crap. I had the procomp arms on my rig and those poly bushings are why I now have the RE arms.

 

[natius]

I get a clunk over certain cracks/bumps on the road... have yet to isolate the cause though, as it's my wife's Jeep w/the long arms on it.

If it's the bushing, well count me in brutha! Certainly sounds like it's coming from that area. I suspect that, or a loose shock mount.

That sounds like the exact symptoms that I encountered, time, and time, and time again. You would think if someone was making an aftermarket part, it would be a step up in quality. I mean, if somone is going to pay added money for an aftermarket upgrade, it should be better. I don't get it. I have now heard from a few people who have after market arms and a lot of them have had problems of wear/bad bushings/etc same as I had, sooner or later. So my plan is to stockpile the stock arms whenever they pop up on RME free stuff, and just drive them until they break or wear. The irony is though, that I never had any trouble with the arms until I replaced them with $400 after market arms. Go figure, I might not even need to stockpile.

 

[Badcop]

Ive been running Rustys Fixed LCA's on my TJ for well over a year now (5.5" lift, 35's), drove from AK to UT, UT to TX and back, over all about 17k miles with em and they are just starting to go. Im not recommending Rustys parts or service by far, I have many other disappointments with them, but for now there LCA's seem to be a good thing.

 

[Tacoma]

well dang it all, now I have to get under there and take a look. UGH.

will post results.

 

[KToy]

i dont know much about jeeps but it seems to me maybe some of ur problem is the place u take ur jeeps to (six states) my friends driveline was made there and they messed it up pretty good.

i dont like to rag on local shops as some ppl probably work at them but my personal experience with them isnt good.

i would venture to say its not the arms at all, but maybe the ppl installing them are not setting them right or there is something tweaked on ur suspension causing it to do this.

ever thought of makeing ur own ???

just a thought with a tube bender or something.


just my .002

 

[BlackSheep]

i would venture to say its not the arms at all, but maybe the ppl installing them are not setting them right or there is something tweaked on ur suspension causing it to do this.

I have to disagree. The poly bushings I had on the procomp arms simply didn't last at all. Every time I checked them, they were loose, and I did torque them whenever I found them loose. The bushings were completely hammered when I removed those control arms. I just feel that the poly is not a good material for control arm bushings.

 

[KToy]

u are probably right. i dont know much about jeeps. and polyurathane is maybe not the strongest to use.

someone mentioned the skyjacker ones with heims in them, that what my friend ran and he broke a heim bolt before he broke the heim. and he wheeled it quite a bit and pretty hard. never had an issue with it.

his was the long are kit too.

 

[MRJ]

someone mentioned the skyjacker ones with heims in them, that what my friend ran and he broke a heim bolt before he broke the heim. and he wheeled it quite a bit and pretty hard. never had an issue with it.

his was the long are kit too.

It's not that the heims break, they wear out and loosen up. This causes the knocking or clunking sounds. It can also cause the "death wobble" people talk about. If a heim gets loose enough to move .010-.015 thou. it will make noise and cause wobble.

On the other part of your post. Six States has been nothing but great to us. I have sent plenty of people there and have not received one complaint.

 

[XJEEPER]

I've run RE arms with a combo of stock rubber bushings and super-flex joints for several years, with zero complaints. If you flex it up alot, the stock rubber bushing will eventually fail, but are easy and cheap to replace. On that note, the super-flex joints are easily rebuildable and will last a long time if you grease them occasionally.