Most affordable UCA for 5th gen??

[Gnfanatic]

Hey guys, I am hearing mixed signals about the Eibach kit and using stock UCA's. Some say it is impossible to get factory alignment settings with the stockers and a lift and it will effect ride stability on highway. I really do not want to spend the money but I do not want to ruin my ride quality. I will be taking long highway trips in the near future. The eibach kit is coming in a week and want to be prepared. The prices for UCA's is all over the place. I am not rock crawling and going off cliff's. Who makes one that is built more for moderate offroad and costs less then $500?? I want to use std balljoints as well.

thanks!!

 

[kvincef]

how much lift are you going after?

i drove mine for a year after lifting 3". My caster was somethhing like 0.5-1* camber/toe was in spec. It wandered abit on the hwy every now and then but i wouldn't say it "ruined" the ride quality at all. I did a 4000km road trip that year too.

just try the stock UCAs and see if you like or hate how it drives after you can always just grab a set of UCAs afterward if you absolutely hate it.

 

[comtn4x4]

I think the only one that's available for under $500 and is from a reputable manufacturer is JBA:
Read the fine print with these. There are some reported issues with the UCA hitting the coil at full droop. May or may not be an issue in your situation

JBA STD High Caster Upper A-arms for 2005-14 Toyota Tacoma, 4Runner, FJ Cruiser


However for a bit more the Dobinson's look good too:


Dobinsons Front Upper Control Arm Kit (UCA's) for Toyota FJ Cruiser, 4 – Dobinsons Direct

 

[Chris In Milwaukee]

[MENTION=148378]Crikeymike[/MENTION] has one from Dobinsons for $580:

4Runner 5th Gen (2010+) Archives | Exit Offroad

He'll give you a forum discount, too, if you DM for the code.

~Chris

 

[Crikeymike]

I think the only one that's available for under $500 and is from a reputable manufacturer is JBA:
Read the fine print with these. There are some reported issues with the UCA hitting the coil at full droop. May or may not be an issue in your situation

JBA STD High Caster Upper A-arms for 2005-14 Toyota Tacoma, 4Runner, FJ Cruiser

Yeah, I only just found out about that 2 weeks ago when a customer sent in a photo, then I found out from some Tacoma guys that it can be an issue too with the JBA's and longer travel struts. Due to this, I can't recommend them for the long travel struts (GS59-574 or GS59-220) that we offer anymore.

First photo is Dobinsons GS59-574, 2nd photo is Bilstein 5100's, both at full extension. With standard length struts, they're probably ok.

 

[tacoyota]

freedom offroad has UCA's for $350. If you lift under 2.5 inches, you should be okay with stock ucas as long as the alignment tech knows what they are doing.

 

[Crikeymike]

Hey guys, I am hearing mixed signals about the Eibach kit and using stock UCA's. Some say it is impossible to get factory alignment settings with the stockers and a lift and it will effect ride stability on highway. I really do not want to spend the money but I do not want to ruin my ride quality. I will be taking long highway trips in the near future. The eibach kit is coming in a week and want to be prepared. The prices for UCA's is all over the place. I am not rock crawling and going off cliff's. Who makes one that is built more for moderate offroad and costs less then $500?? I want to use std balljoints as well.

thanks!!

Really depends on what lift height you end up with up front. With 2.5" or less, you should be able to get a decent alignment.

But so much comes down to alignment techs, and so many barely know how to adjust and set it to maximum caster. And for that reason, people report different alignment settings all the time. It's happened to me personally several times in the past few years where they say "caster is maxed out", and I look under and can see that it isn't.

 

[Gnfanatic]

Thanks for the reply guys. I want to level my truck with the eibach kit. So the 2.5in will be completely fine. I really would prefer not to got aftermarket on UCA. I hear to many issues like noise, breakage and coils getting hit

 

[kvincef]

Really depends on what lift height you end up with up front. With 2.5" or less, you should be able to get a decent alignment.

But so much comes down to alignment techs, and so many barely know how to adjust and set it to maximum caster. And for that reason, people report different alignment settings all the time. It's happened to me personally several times in the past few years where they say "caster is maxed out", and I look under and can see that it isn't.

this is bang on. so much relies on the alignment tech. try and find a good shop

i asked for "as much caster as you can get" when i first got my lift and alignment done.. they didn't touch it. just did a toe and go.

 

[Sundy]

I'm running a 2.5" lift (it's sitting at 2.7") and I went with the Freedom Offroad UCA's.

People don't like them because they are a "lesser quality arm". So far I haven't found issues with them, the welds were great, and the fit was perfect. Lots of reviews on Tacoma World.

I probably didn't need them but I'm happy I got them. Caster is at a 3.6 and the truck rides a bit smoother than on OEM arms. Between Ebay sales and other sales, you can sometimes find them for under $300 shipped.

 

[KWSRStorm]

Really depends on what lift height you end up with up front. With 2.5" or less, you should be able to get a decent alignment.



But so much comes down to alignment techs, and so many barely know how to adjust and set it to maximum caster. And for that reason, people report different alignment settings all the time. It's happened to me personally several times in the past few years where they say "caster is maxed out", and I look under and can see that it isn't.

Agreed. I should have added that to me earlier reply. You could have all the correct components and a lazy tech who just tries to convince you it cant be aligned.

I have the firestone life time and its paid for itself so far. But it can be VERY dependant on who actually touches the truck. Some locations are better than others.



Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[Jetboy]

Most affordable are probably the cheap Ebay ones. Don't. Let me tell you why... build quality of the arm was fine - actually pretty good. Quality of the hardware was not. The cheap uniball hardware failed on about day 2:

The Tough Country UCA's are the next cheapest I think along with the Freedom Offroad. Again - don't. For starters, they don't correct for caster angle that I'm aware of, the Tough Country ones for sure do not. They were one of the first to use a ball joint instead of a uniball so I ordered a set. They do not have any caster correction, I sent them back. Freecom Offroad are just chinese import junk. They (the reseller warehouse) doesn't even know what ball joint they use and literally could not provide any information on what it is or whether you can replace it and what you'd replace with. They don't even own a 4Runner or have any testing. They are just a different version of the cheap ebay model with a different sticker.

If you want cheap chinese ones, you can get them for about $150 per set ordering directly through alibaba. There's a dozen or more vendors.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...lleryofferlist.0.0.6c5a26bf8H9sEl&bypass=true

As for ones with decent quality - JBAs are pretty solid and only $450. You don't need the HD version. No one does. The UCA doesn't experience high loads. After that I think the Ironman forged ones are the next best. They should be the strongest of any of them from any vendor by a wide margin. And they're about the same price as most of the other ones.

They really shouldn't cost more than about $300 for a set. They're dead simple to manufacture. I'd guess they're around $100/set to build. Just a really high profit margin item and no one is really challenging that other than the cheap no-name ebay junk.

 

[TotalAutomotiveLV]

Another great option for Ball-Joint UCA is from Dirt King...

Part #DK-812901

MSRP: $549.00

_

 

[Gnfanatic]

Most affordable are probably the cheap Ebay ones. Don't. Let me tell you why... build quality of the arm was fine - actually pretty good. Quality of the hardware was not. The cheap uniball hardware failed on about day 2:

The Tough Country UCA's are the next cheapest I think along with the Freedom Offroad. Again - don't. For starters, they don't correct for caster angle that I'm aware of, the Tough Country ones for sure do not. They were one of the first to use a ball joint instead of a uniball so I ordered a set. They do not have any caster correction, I sent them back. Freecom Offroad are just chinese import junk. They (the reseller warehouse) doesn't even know what ball joint they use and literally could not provide any information on what it is or whether you can replace it and what you'd replace with. They don't even own a 4Runner or have any testing. They are just a different version of the cheap ebay model with a different sticker.

If you want cheap chinese ones, you can get them for about $150 per set ordering directly through alibaba. There's a dozen or more vendors.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...lleryofferlist.0.0.6c5a26bf8H9sEl&bypass=true

As for ones with decent quality - JBAs are pretty solid and only $450. You don't need the HD version. No one does. The UCA doesn't experience high loads. After that I think the Ironman forged ones are the next best. They should be the strongest of any of them from any vendor by a wide margin. And they're about the same price as most of the other ones.

They really shouldn't cost more than about $300 for a set. They're dead simple to manufacture. I'd guess they're around $100/set to build. Just a really high profit margin item and no one is really challenging that other than the cheap no-name ebay junk.

That is insane and downright scary. I am hoping no one was hurt and minimal damage?? There is a massive markup on all these parts, it is crazy. I love supporting this country as much as possible , especially family owned companies. But $1000 for UCA's and $2000 for aluminum skidplate is insane!

 

[Gnfanatic]

Thank you all for the quick replies and comments. I got the eibach kit coming and also the 1/2in spacers for the driver side. I have a really good alignment tech that I can trust and will see how it goes with the factory arms. If I can save that money, it will help me with getting new Fulken tires

 

[Jetboy]

That is insane and downright scary. I am hoping no one was hurt and minimal damage?? There is a massive markup on all these parts, it is crazy. I love supporting this country as much as possible , especially family owned companies. But $1000 for UCA's and $2000 for aluminum skidplate is insane!

No one was hurt. Happened at a Home Depot parking lot backing out of the parking stall. Actually did very little damage to anything. But not very fun. Could have been really dangerous.

 

[Sundy]

The Tough Country UCA's are the next cheapest I think along with the Freedom Offroad. Again - don't. For starters, they don't correct for caster angle that I'm aware of, the Tough Country ones for sure do not. They were one of the first to use a ball joint instead of a uniball so I ordered a set. They do not have any caster correction, I sent them back. Freecom Offroad are just chinese import junk. They (the reseller warehouse) doesn't even know what ball joint they use and literally could not provide any information on what it is or whether you can replace it and what you'd replace with. They don't even own a 4Runner or have any testing. They are just a different version of the cheap ebay model with a different sticker.

Couple of things I'd like to clarify from my research before buying the Freedom Offroad arms.

1. These are OEM style ball joints, not uniballs, so I'm a bit less concerned about a failure like your Uniball UCA's (glad there was no major damage or injuries BTW!). From my understanding, your uniballs actually pulled through the uniball due to the bolt being smaller than the hole in the uniball?
2. These are made in Taiwan, not China. Not saying that changes much/if anything with the long term quality one way or the other, but seems like manufacturing is usually a little better from Taiwan :shrug: I highly doubt they are the same as the Ebay junk/Alibaba arms as they don't even look the same (different gussets, weld quality in images alone is better etc.)
3. These do have built in caster correction. There is no way I was pulling a 3.6 caster with my lift at 2.7" (hub to fender measurements) on OEM arms. Also, you can see it in the attached image. It's not nearly the caster you can get from SPC's but it's also fixed.
4. I ordered based on multiple reviews from people running for years on Tacoma World without issue. Was there some hesitation since they aren't TC/SPC/JBA? Definitely. So far am I satisfied with them? Yup.
5. If I recall correctly (can't find the image anymore for the 4Runner UCA's, but did find one for Nissan Titan SPC's) the SPC arms are made in China but assembled here in Colorado.

So they might be Chinese junk, they might not be. What i do know is the build quality looks great, I've had no issues so far, they are a serviceable and replaceable ball joint, and have a lifetime warranty.

Not trying to start an argument, but to have some good conversation on these, as I appreciate the input and knowledge you provide to the forum, as seem recently in another thread. So far I've only got about 100 miles of bashing offroad on them, so they will be inspected, as they are new. Just trying to provide as much information as possible to people.

 

[Jetboy]

My issue with Freedom Offroad is the abject laziness of their owners. I asked about the ball joint they use and they gave a bullshit response about how it's proprietary and they never wear out. Of course that's total nonsense. Freedom is literally just a metal warehouse where they import and re-ship out stuff. And that's fine. They also originally said that they did not correct caster. But they just don't know anything at all about them and weren't willing to even ask the chinese manufacturer what the specs were on the ball joint. They don't have any vehicles to actually test them on and probably have never even opened a box to see what's inside. The importer (freedom offroad) can spec any ball joint they want or leave it up to the manufacturer. But to not even have a spec sheet or any information at all on what ball joint they're using - that is unacceptable to me - if you're going to pay double the price you can order them directly from China for. If you're buying blind, I'd go straight to the first reseller in China for a lot less. You can also buy the SPC ones for about $200/set direct from China.

They might be perfectly fine UCAs. Hope they work out for you.

If you did need a replacement ball joint - given that they don't tell you what size or model fits what would you do?

 

[Hans Moleman]

I was going to get Dirt King because they were $500. Then during last year's BF sale, a vendor messed up the BF pricing and honored the price for Icon Delta Joint UCAs for $500 so I got them instead.

 

[CMTAZ]

I have the Eibach kit and stock UCAs. I too was concerned about the UCAs, right to the point of Analysis / Paralysis.

Several calls to Eibach (sometimes to discuss the same things), eibach stated the 90% of their users run the stock UCAs. Several trips to the shop that installed the kit (before it was installed) revealed that "Unless you are going to drive long distances above 80mph, you probably will never know the difference".

In conclusion - they all were right, i was over thinking it. I use my 4Runner mostly around town, occasional trip out of the valley, commuting, etc. The ride & handling is so much better that if I were forced to go back to stock, I'd consider another vehicle (and I used to think the stock ride was fine). After my install I had a lifetime alignment done a Firestone. Caster is something like 0.5-1*, camber & toe are in spec.

I'd say try it and if you don't like it you can always add the UCAs at a later point.

G/L