11-01-2022, 12:58 PM
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#1
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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SPC UCA’s quality going downhill
2018 4runner with Toytec Boss/Blistein Aluma 2.0 3” lift w/SPC UCA’s.
Use the truck for off-roading on a somewhat regular basis and this is the second set of these things that have developed play after off and on road use. I’ve barely put 30k on the truck in the time since I first installed the whole lift.
Has anyone else had bad luck with the SPC UCA’s? I like the fact that I was able to get my front wheels to not rub since the caster angle could be reset, but if these UCA’s were designed for posers who just want the lifted look and not for actual off-road use, I am denouncing SPC as the new Rough Country in terms of subpar quality.
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11-01-2022, 01:31 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: OC, Derpifornia
Age: 40
Posts: 1,244
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: OC, Derpifornia
Age: 40
Posts: 1,244
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Never had issues with mine on my Tacoma. I purchased a set but haven't installed them on my Runner. I know at some point there was a bad batch.
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2019 Runner TRD Offroad Premium w/KDSS
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11-01-2022, 01:44 PM
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#3
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Member
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Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 514
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 514
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Almost 60k on mine and zero issues.
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2011 SR5 4x4, Toytec Ultimate w/ SPC UCA's, Shrockworks Front Bumper, 285/70/17 BFG KO2, NFAB Steps
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11-01-2022, 02:24 PM
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#4
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Whippersnapper02
Never had issues with mine on my Tacoma. I purchased a set but haven't installed them on my Runner. I know at some point there was a bad batch.
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I haven’t heard much bad press about them so that’s why both me and the guys in the shop that installed them were baffled. SPC does have good CS so hopefully they give me a credit because after 2 sets I just don’t have faith in them anymore.
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11-01-2022, 02:25 PM
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#5
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Soneill
Almost 60k on mine and zero issues.
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With off-road use?
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11-01-2022, 02:28 PM
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#6
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Member
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Join Date: Jun 2020
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 296
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2020
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 296
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Have 50k on mine with lots of off-road use and no issues.
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2016 Limited 4WD Blizzard Pearl | Black
TRD Pro Sema | Toyo AT3 LT285/70/R17 C
Dobinsons IMS 302/700 and 505/705 | SPC UCAs | Durobumps
Victory4x4 Rack, BajaRack Ladder, Full RCI Skids & Sliders
CaliRaisedLED Ditch Lights & Light Bar
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11-01-2022, 02:57 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Denver, Colorado
Posts: 1,032
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Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Denver, Colorado
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I've got about 80,000 miles and I do off road quite a bit. What exactly failed on them?
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'13 TE w/ KDSS, 4:56 Gears, Dobinson's IMS C59-352/C59-701V, Sonoran Steel KDSS Trac Bar, Overland Custom Design Control Arms. Fuel Revolver 17x9 +1 mm 5" Backspace, Falken Wildpeak A/t3w 285/75r17, Hefty Fabworks Aluminum Front Bumper and Full Skids, C4 Fab Dual Swingout Rear Bumper, MetalTech OPOR Sliders, Northstar, Off-Grid Engineering, SPod, Blue Sea, Rigid, Baja Designs, KC HiLites, Stedi, Aplharex, National Luna, Drifta, Goose Gear, RAD Rubber Designs, Viair, Bandi Mount, URD, Gobi, ARB, Warn, Factor 55, Fourtreks, Axia Alloys, Desert Does It, Agency 6
Last edited by comtn4x4; 11-01-2022 at 03:16 PM.
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11-01-2022, 03:15 PM
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#8
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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SPC UCA’s quality going downhill
Quote:
Originally Posted by comtn4x4
I've got about 80,000 miles and I do of road quite a bit. What exactly failed on them?
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First set had side to side play in the bushings. Replaced under warranty.
Noticed a popping sound when turning my steering wheel at low speeds which I thought was a tie rod. Brought it into the shop for an alignment and mentioned the pop. Turned out to be the second set but they didn’t say what was specifically causing it. Only that they were going to open a case with SPC and work on getting me a credit towards a different brand of UCAs. Truck left the shop without getting aligned.
Seems like I either got 2 bad sets or their quality is going down the drain.
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11-01-2022, 03:26 PM
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#9
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Denver, Colorado
Posts: 1,032
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Denver, Colorado
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo3500
First set had side to side play in the bushings. Replaced under warranty.
Noticed a popping sound when turning my steering wheel at low speeds which I thought was a tie rod. Brought it into the shop for an alignment and mentioned the pop. Turned out to be the second set but they didn’t say what was specifically causing it. Only that they were going to open a case with SPC and work on getting me a credit towards a different brand of UCAs. Truck was not aligned in the shop.
Seems like I either got 2 bad sets or their quality is going down the drain.
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Interesting that popping symptom. I'd like to know more about what was going on there.
Quite some time ago there was some issues with the bushings and something in the ball joint design IIRC. They changed the design and I hadn't heard much since then. That was probably '15 or around that time. I don't know if that could have affected you. I had a set installed in '13 and the shop I used at the time got me a new set for free in '16 under the guise of "failure".
If I was going to run something else I'd consider Dirt King ball joint UCA's
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'13 TE w/ KDSS, 4:56 Gears, Dobinson's IMS C59-352/C59-701V, Sonoran Steel KDSS Trac Bar, Overland Custom Design Control Arms. Fuel Revolver 17x9 +1 mm 5" Backspace, Falken Wildpeak A/t3w 285/75r17, Hefty Fabworks Aluminum Front Bumper and Full Skids, C4 Fab Dual Swingout Rear Bumper, MetalTech OPOR Sliders, Northstar, Off-Grid Engineering, SPod, Blue Sea, Rigid, Baja Designs, KC HiLites, Stedi, Aplharex, National Luna, Drifta, Goose Gear, RAD Rubber Designs, Viair, Bandi Mount, URD, Gobi, ARB, Warn, Factor 55, Fourtreks, Axia Alloys, Desert Does It, Agency 6
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11-01-2022, 04:51 PM
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#10
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: CO
Posts: 26
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SPC UCA’s quality going downhill
Quote:
Originally Posted by comtn4x4
Interesting that popping symptom. I'd like to know more about what was going on there.
Quite some time ago there was some issues with the bushings and something in the ball joint design IIRC. They changed the design and I hadn't heard much since then. That was probably '15 or around that time. I don't know if that could have affected you. I had a set installed in '13 and the shop I used at the time got me a new set for free in '16 under the guise of "failure".
If I was going to run something else I'd consider Dirt King ball joint UCA's
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I’ll ask when I they call me for an update. And they were installed in 2020 and the second set in 2022 so definitely beyond the redesign.
Thanks for the recommendation for Dirt King!
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11-01-2022, 05:18 PM
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#11
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: illinois
Posts: 1,608
Real Name: Ron
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Join Date: Oct 2013
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Was watching a youtube video the other day and guy was unboxing his new SPCs and box was clearly marked: "Made in China". Don't recall the age of that video though.
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2003 Limited, V8, AWD. 4600 Bils/FJ springs, 1/2" spacer, SPC UCA, Super Pro bushings in front LCA and in all rear control arms, Michelin 265/65R17 LTX/Defenders, stock wheels with homemade center caps, Stop Tech slotted rotors w/Posi Quiet pads all around.
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11-02-2022, 12:12 PM
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#12
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Member
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Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Grand Forks
Posts: 83
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Member
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Grand Forks
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My SPC's started making noise less than a year after install. It turned out to be a bad bushing on the passenger side arm. I've seen complaints from other people that had the same issue that had theirs fixed or replaced under warranty only to run into the same issues again. I was worried about that so I figured I was better off going with a different brand rather than pay for shipping and multiple alignments. I removed the SPC's and installed JBA's a few months ago and they've been great so far. To be fair, I'm guessing that there are probably more people running SPC UCA's than any other brand so there's bound to be more threads popping up about issues with them.
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2016 SR5 Premium Pro Comp Series 32 Bandido wheels (17x9) * 265/70R17 KO2 C load * Eibach Stage 1 lift * JBA UCA * Energy bumps (F), Durobumps (R) * LFD 3/4 roof rack * BajaRack ladder * CTH TRD skid plate * CTH TRD Pro grille * TRD Pro front lower valance * Diode Dynamics SS3 Sport fog lights * R4T smoked sequential turn signals and CTH sequential side mirrors * black out emblems * Kicker Hideaway powered subwoofer
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11-02-2022, 02:17 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: SoCal
Posts: 1,298
Real Name: BLACK TRD PRO
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: SoCal
Posts: 1,298
Real Name: BLACK TRD PRO
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I was initially going to go with SPC’s, but my off road shop talked me into Nolathane UCA’s. Just got these installed last month with my new extended travel Radflo’s. No tire clearance problems with positive offset wheels. Time will tell. Attached is a link. Nolathane Upper Control Arms for your lifted 4x4
Features:
Fixed camber & caster rectification (for typical 2 inch lift)
Non-adjustable meaning no slipping.
Built tough utilising 1020 grade forged ball joint housing, forged end-rings and 1020 DOM tubing with 360º welds.
Heavy duty, greaseable, chromoly ball joints with increased articulation for improved travel and minimal binding.
GIIRO – the ultimate touring bushing with increased articulation while being lubrication and maintenance free.
Last edited by TRD PANTHER; 11-03-2022 at 03:23 AM.
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11-02-2022, 03:43 PM
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#14
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Member
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Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 514
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 514
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo3500
With off-road use?
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Yes sir!!
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2011 SR5 4x4, Toytec Ultimate w/ SPC UCA's, Shrockworks Front Bumper, 285/70/17 BFG KO2, NFAB Steps
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11-02-2022, 07:44 PM
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#15
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Member
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Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 297
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Member
Join Date: Jan 2015
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SPC installed 11/16 - needed a new drivers side 11/2018. I probably could have greased them more often- I chalk this one up to me.
Installed 2 new BJ's 11/21 and now year later they are toast- this set I greased every 5k (on my oil change schedule), to avoid having issues again.
Not super pumped - shop that was going to do alignment today told me get OME or Icon for longevity.
Looked again at the mileage- lift install at 30k, now at 130k. So within that 100k miles I am now going to be installing ball joints #6 & #7. Only needed 1 in 2018 hence the odd number.
I see something else like JBA in the future for me.
Last edited by Teamoatmealpie; 11-20-2022 at 10:50 PM.
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