JBA Upper Control Arms On a 3rd Gen?

T

toyotaoffroadaz

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I have been looking for a more inexpensive aftermarket UCA, preferably ball joint. I found the JBA high caster Ucas made for 1st gen Tacoma’s, but it also says on their website that they fit 3rd gen 4Runners. I noticed a few 4th and 5th gen guys using them, but I’ve found nothing about 3rd gens. Does anybody run these?

https://jbaoffroad.com/jba-std-high-caster-upper-a-arms-for-1996-2004-toyota-tacoma.html

I like the simplicity of design and readily available replacement BJ over the SPC, plus made in the USA. Would I be better off just going with the SPCs?
 
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I have been running a pair of JBAs on my lifted 99 for 3-4 months now and can't say a bad thing about them. Great design, solid build quality and my alignment is spot on. I did have trouble getting much input from the 3rd gen community when I researched them but did find a few groups online with a fair number of people running them and happy.
 
I don't directly have 3rd Gen 4Runner experience but, I ran JBA UCA's on my 2nd gen Tacoma and I really liked them. I think for the money they are a great option. I have been considering them for my project 3rd Gen as well.
 
I’ve been running JBA UCAs on my ‘99 for about 18 months now, no issues whatsoever. Look through the first few pages of my build thread and you’ll find some pictures of them.
 
Thank you all for your input.

I emailed JBA regarding fitment since they only offer the high caster arms for 3rd gen 4runners. I got an instant response saying they're appropriate for 1-4 inches of lift, pretty much the same as Camburg. I should be fine with my taller 99 coils right?
 
DerKaiser said:
I should be fine with my taller 99 coils right?
Click to expand...

Just curious - why not re-bush stock UCA and new ball joints? A lot of guys punish stock UCA pretty hard, haven’t heard about any trouble from them. Are you planning ahead for a lift?
 
DaMonkey said:
Just curious - why not re-bush stock UCA and new ball joints? A lot of guys punish stock UCA pretty hard, haven’t heard about any trouble from them. Are you planning ahead for a lift?
Click to expand...
Stock upper control arms limit down travel and make alignment difficult at higher lifts (over 2" or so).

-Charlie
 
I have been running JBA's for almost two years now. I don't think I have put quite 10k miles on them yet but I have zero complaints. I like that they are a booted ball joint rather than an exposed uni-ball. I wouldn't mind if they were black but you can always paint them. No issues w alignment either.
 
[MENTION=155359]DaMonkey[/MENTION] You're right. I'm evaluating all options.

There wasn't much talk on here about JBA compared to others. Hopefully this will be a good reference going forward.
 
Can anyone here tell me how much further the JBA upper control arms come out towards the tire than the stock UCA?

Concerned about tire rub and no, I can’t run spacers without rubbing on my fender.

Just wondering from someone who has installed these how much of a difference if any that there was - I have a 99 4runner
 
AlpineHigh said:
Can anyone here tell me how much further the JBA upper control arms come out towards the tire than the stock UCA?



Concerned about tire rub and no, I can’t run spacers without rubbing on my fender.



Just wondering from someone who has installed these how much of a difference if any that there was - I have a 99 4runner
Click to expand...
They have more clearance. Full droop with 315s and 16x8 4.5 BS wheels I still had plenty of room.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
I’m currently running 275/60R20, and my tire comes within probably a half inch or less from rubbing on the UCA.
So you’re saying they actually sit closer in towards the spring bucket than the stock UCA?
 
I took a picture of what I’m referencing to if there’s any confusion.

UCA — ImgBB

I would of thought JBA would have made them to give extra space for bigger tires not less... However someone who bought them (albeit for a 02 Tacoma not a 99 4runner) said they came a half inch closer to the tire and therefore he needed spacers!? Was he just full of shit or what?
 
AlpineHigh said:
I took a picture of what I’m referencing to if there’s any confusion.

UCA — ImgBB

I would of thought JBA would have made them to give extra space for bigger tires not less... However someone who bought them (albeit for a 02 Tacoma not a 99 4runner) said they came a half inch closer to the tire and therefore he needed spacers!? Was he just full of shit or what?
Click to expand...
That tacoma person probably changed wheels or tires and that was the issue not the JBA upper control arm

Edit: Why are you wanting different upper control arms? If you're worried about the stock upper control arm rubbing the tire you have plenty of clearance in that photo.
 
AlpineHigh said:
I took a picture of what I’m referencing to if there’s any confusion.



UCA — ImgBB



I would of thought JBA would have made them to give extra space for bigger tires not less... However someone who bought them (albeit for a 02 Tacoma not a 99 4runner) said they came a half inch closer to the tire and therefore he needed spacers!? Was he just full of shit or what?
Click to expand...
With my JBAs I have more clearance between the tire and control arm than stock.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
Bad Luck said:
That tacoma person probably changed wheels or tires and that was the issue not the JBA upper control arm

Edit: Why are you wanting different upper control arms? If you're worried about the stock upper control arm rubbing the tire you have plenty of clearance in that photo.
Click to expand...

Great question! So for starters, I’m not worried about it rubbing now with the stock UCA, I’m worried about spending a bunch of money on new ones and them being different dimensions and interfering with the tire!

Now, I would like to replace mine because even though they look OK, I know they’re original going on 350,000km. The upper ball joints are also original and with my lift over the last 150,000km I notice they’re about to go, I’m not gonna spend all the money on a new stock UCA and ball joint if I can get a better aftermarket one that I can increase my suspension travel with.
Also, it’s the last piece of the front end I haven’t replaced in the last couple weeks besides the LCA (and I don’t have 4,000US right now to spend on a full long travel setup.)

Basically I just want to make sure I’m buying a part that will fit, because if I spend all that money and shipping to Canada, if there’s interference I’m gonna have a really hard time putting on spacers without fender trimming.
That said, I’ve looked at all the aftermarket options and personally and for where I live, the JBA’s are the best option for me.
 
89T4runner said:
With my JBAs I have more clearance between the tire and control arm than stock.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for the input!!! (:
Are you referring to your 89 runner? Or have you tried it in a 3rd gen as well?

Sorry for all the questions, I just really like to take the time to research things before I buy them and they don’t fit!
Have had that happen once and don’t want to make the same mistake ever again!
 
AlpineHigh said:
Thanks a lot for the input!!! (:

Are you referring to your 89 runner? Or have you tried it in a 3rd gen as well?



Sorry for all the questions, I just really like to take the time to research things before I buy them and they don’t fit!

Have had that happen once and don’t want to make the same mistake ever again!
Click to expand...
Yeah I have a 2000 4runner with the JBAs. You cant go wrong with them, I love them!

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
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