which aftermarket UCA

[wfo9]

I think I need UCAs. Truck is lifted 3" via OME and I want to level out the front a tad more with a small top spacer. I will also be adding wider wheels shortly.

The truck will be driven on long overland trips, so I need to get the alignment in spec.

It looks like the choices are.

Camburg 1.24 UniBall
Light Racing OE Style Ball joint
Total Chaos UniBall
Icon Uniball


My main requirements are low maintenance and good on road manners. The truck will be driven off road, but nothing too crazy for now. I also want to make sure the alignment is easy to adjust....

Thoughts?

 

[sandcrawler]

I think I need UCAs. Truck is lifted 3" via OME and I want to level out the front a tad more with a small top spacer. I will also be adding wider wheels shortly.

The truck will be driven on long overland trips, so I need to get the alignment in spec.

It looks like the choices are.

Camburg 1.24 UniBall
Light Racing OE Style Ball joint
Total Chaos UniBall
Icon Uniball


My main requirements are low maintenance and good on road manners. The truck will be driven off road, but nothing too crazy for now. I also want to make sure the alignment is easy to adjust....

Thoughts?

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/147049-uca-comparison.html

 

[mfregeau20]

I think I need UCAs. Truck is lifted 3" via OME and I want to level out the front a tad more with a small top spacer. I will also be adding wider wheels shortly.

The truck will be driven on long overland trips, so I need to get the alignment in spec.

It looks like the choices are.

Camburg 1.24 UniBall
Light Racing OE Style Ball joint
Total Chaos UniBall
Icon Uniball


My main requirements are low maintenance and good on road manners. The truck will be driven off road, but nothing too crazy for now. I also want to make sure the alignment is easy to adjust....

Thoughts?

IMO all would be low maintenance, uni-balls will go for thousands of miles depending on the abuse to they all will last. For my TC's it is not much work to loosen the nut and re-grease eve so often. Now I went with the TC's because the Icon was out of stock and they were cheaper and still had a good reputation for quality. I did not use the LR because IMO id introduces to many adjusting options and for an untrained alignment tech it could be challenging. With a the others there is no adjustments made on the USC that I know of so an alignment tech will just go about his normal business. Less to worry about in my mind/preference.

My 2 cents

 

[wfo9]

OK, so lets say I can't get the camber and caster both in spec with the stock UCAs.

Will I be able to get it in spec if I go with, say Total Chaos UCAs.

I know the standard cam adjustments for camber and caster are on the LCAs, but I'm trying to understand how the aftermarket UCAs impact the alignment. Are they just biased towards having a lift?

 

[Jeremy556]

OK, so lets say I can't get the camber and caster both in spec with the stock UCAs.

Will I be able to get it in spec if I go with, say Total Chaos UCAs.

I know the standard cam adjustments for camber and caster are on the LCAs, but I'm trying to understand how the aftermarket UCAs impact the alignment. Are they just biased towards having a lift?

Very unlikely you will get caster in spec, and if so, it will be the minimum end, which is too low anyway. The aftermarket UCAs have extra caster "built in" by having the upper uniball or ball joint closer to the rear of the vehicle.

 

[wfo9]

Thanks, I just did some more reading and found that most have about +2 to 3 caster built in.

I'm still not sure which one is the best choice for me. I think I have ruled out the Light Racing ones.

 

[Nyc-Runner]

Here is one more option from Camburg that you can re use the stock BJ or you can get them with a Moog BJ already pressed

Camburg UCA - 310040 "Ball-Joint" Upper Control Arm Set with Moog Ball Joints Pre-installed

 

[JMG73072]

Very happy with my total chaos UCA's. One of the best additions I made after my lift, +4 Caster makes it feel very tight and how it should be. Plus they are easy to swap out.

 

[Falls]

Why did you rule out LR's ?

 

[thebwlife]

Why did you rule out LR's ?

Probably because all the reported problems..

 

[wfo9]

I think the Camburg ball joint arms would meet my needs well. The price is decent @ $379 and I can just keep my existing ball joints (which look to be in great shape).

 

[wfo9]

Probably because all the reported problems..

Yea,

Two reasons. 1 - lots of reported problems and failures (I realized some of this is due to popularity...) and most have probably been resolved.

2 - I don't see the need for the added adjustment if the other aftermarket UCAs all have caster and camber curves for a lift designed in. I just don't trust most techs and I don't have access to a machine to do my own alignment.

 

[KCcarguy]

I think I need UCAs. Truck is lifted 3" via OME and I want to level out the front a tad more with a small top spacer. I will also be adding wider wheels shortly.

The truck will be driven on long overland trips, so I need to get the alignment in spec.

It looks like the choices are.

Camburg 1.24 UniBall
Light Racing OE Style Ball joint
Total Chaos UniBall
Icon Uniball



My main requirements are low maintenance and good on road manners. The truck will be driven off road, but nothing too crazy for now. I also want to make sure the alignment is easy to adjust....

Thoughts?

Can I offer some advice? I have very much the same goal as you for my rig and I'm dealing with some issues with my aftermarket UCAs. Hopefully you can benefit from my mistakes.

If you're truly looking for reliability and low maintenance, skip the aftermarket UCAs entirely. You should be able to get within spec as long as you don't add a spacer and they (OEM) with be your most reliable/ durable option. They will also be the easiest to repair when traveling.

Also, I would skip the top plate spacer. There is no practical advantage to this mod. Assuming you're lifting to add larger tires, even 3" is more than you need to fit 285s (2" is plenty) and all you're doing by adding more height is adding complexity/ diminishing reliability. You are also not adding any usable ground clearance by doing this because your rear diff is still the same height. By maxing out front lift, you're also diminishing suspension down-travel.

I know you're trying to level the ride....have you considered how low the back will ride when hauling a full expedition load? I would be surprised if a spacer is still required.

Just my $0.02. Lots of guys are running aftermarket UCAs with good results, but they're not low-maintenance vs stock.

The 10 Commandments of Modifying an Overland Vehicle - Resources - ExPo: Adventure and Overland Travel Enthusiasts

 

[blk-4runner]

I wouldn't go with SPC LR UCA although they have great CS, the failure on my UCA were cause by the weak sheet metal around the bushing area.

 

[Ghost.]

I wouldn't go with SPC LR UCA although they have great CS, the failure on my UCA were cause by the weak sheet metal around the bushing area.

Holy cow.

 

[blk-4runner]

hellaflush.

 

[Jono.ful]

I wouldn't go with SPC LR UCA although they have great CS, the failure on my UCA were cause by the weak sheet metal around the bushing area.

that's a scary sight. I had a similar looking failure with my Total Chaos units, but it was caused by losing the nut off the sheer bolt and the bolt pulling out due to improper torquing.

@OP - that said, I still highly recommend the TC UCA's. they are very easy to maintain, and I have ~40,000km on mine with no issues (other than the above mentioned one, but that was the result of poor workmanship on the part of the installer (aka. me)). The uniballs can get squeaky, but that is easily remedied with regular lubrication, and is a known issue with all uniball designs.

 

[Intruder]

hellaflush.

That made me lol. Sick looking 4th gen btw.

 

[wfo9]

Can I offer some advice? I have very much the same goal as you for my rig and I'm dealing with some issues with my aftermarket UCAs. Hopefully you can benefit from my mistakes.

If you're truly looking for reliability and low maintenance, skip the aftermarket UCAs entirely. You should be able to get within spec as long as you don't add a spacer and they (OEM) with be your most reliable/ durable option. They will also be the easiest to repair when traveling.

Also, I would skip the top plate spacer. There is no practical advantage to this mod. Assuming you're lifting to add larger tires, even 3" is more than you need to fit 285s (2" is plenty) and all you're doing by adding more height is adding complexity/ diminishing reliability. You are also not adding any usable ground clearance by doing this because your rear diff is still the same height. By maxing out front lift, you're also diminishing suspension down-travel.

I know you're trying to level the ride....have you considered how low the back will ride when hauling a full expedition load? I would be surprised if a spacer is still required.

Just my $0.02. Lots of guys are running aftermarket UCAs with good results, but they're not low-maintenance vs stock.

The 10 Commandments of Modifying an Overland Vehicle - Resources - ExPo: Adventure and Overland Travel Enthusiasts

I was only considering a small top plate spacer. This would have minimal impact to ride height ~3/4", but I think you are correct about the non daily load vs the expidition load. Once loaded, it should be near level. so no compelling reason to mess with it at the moment.

You may be correct about about the UCAs. However, It seems there is plenty of evidence that it is hard to get caster at ideal settings with stock UCAs and a 3" lift. My truck is currently tolerable on the Hwy@75mph, but it is not ideal. I'm not sure what the alignment number are currently (the lift was done by the previous owner). I'm shooting for ideal and don't want to blow money on an alignment that will yield nothing. Since I'm putting on new wheels anyway, I'm trying to pay for one alignment.

I guess I could do one of the lifetime alignment deals and see what it yields before getting UCAs. But those shops are real crap shoot.

 

[KCcarguy]

I was only considering a small top plate spacer. This would have minimal impact to ride height ~3/4", but I think you are correct about the non daily load vs the expidition load. Once loaded, it should be near level. so no compelling reason to mess with it at the moment.

You may be correct about about the UCAs. However, It seems there is plenty of evidence that it is hard to get caster at ideal settings with stock UCAs and a 3" lift. My truck is currently tolerable on the Hwy@75mph, but it is not ideal. I'm not sure what the alignment number are currently (the lift was done by the previous owner). I'm shooting for ideal and don't want to blow money on an alignment that will yield nothing. Since I'm putting on new wheels anyway, I'm trying to pay for one alignment.

I guess I could do one of the lifetime alignment deals and see what it yields before getting UCAs. But those shops are real crap shoot.

Getting aftermarket UCAs won't hurt, and will get you better numbers. But you will have some additional upkeep with aftermarkets, thats all I'm saying. It's not a "add it and forget it" type mod. Good luck....look forward to following your build.