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AC upper control arm


Coucoui6
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i searched last night and did not find much opinon on this topic. i have my T bars cranked up with a 1/2" ball joint spacer for alignment. i just got back from the huge San Diego's 47th Desert Safari run, and i 've decided to lift my front more and do rear locker.

 

so i need help. the AC upper control arms are going for $205.00 are they worth the money? ps... i also have some homemade coilovers on my front shocks for increase spring rate. i like the ride comfort. i just want more ground clearence.

 

thanks.

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Though I like AC, after reading about their arms, I wouldn't buy theirs. Get Rough Country arms, about $60 more. Search the forum for info.

 

 

BTW, share a pic of your front shock setup.

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a body lift and bigger tires will net you more ground clearance

 

yes... but will 33" change my stock gearing ratio... i think yes...i like the gearing now (not the best but works just fine for me)... i don't want to loose any more torque on the 4low.

Edited by Coucoui6
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I did the AC lift too, didn't get bigger tires either cos I didn't want to loose power or gas mileage. When I get the chance I'm going to buy some rough country UCA's though, as I don't like the angles the ball-joints are at right now. Therefore I would suggest getting the Rough Country's in the first place, lol.

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okay...

i was just chating with my certified mechanic buddy.... and he know me truck pretty well. he mentioned that i may not want to lift my front too much than what i have now because of the stress on my weak CV joint. the additional angle may break it. now, his is not a nissan guy but rather a toyota guy. and that was his advice from a toyota IFS point of view.

 

he was suggesting that i can only get another 1" max on new UCA. so what do you guys think....

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Driving around in 2hi shouldn't hurt the CV axles with the extreme angle since they don't turn. It's using the 4 wheel drive that puts stress on them with the extreme angle. That's a difference between a Toyota and Nissan IFS (I think).

 

I'd imagine that after enough time and stress from the increase angle the boots will rip and your CVs will eat themselves up.

 

:shrug:

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he was suggesting that i can only get another 1" max on new UCA. so what do you guys think....

 

 

you can install diff drop bushings to lower your diff slightly and thus reduce some of that angle. the diff will still be out of harms way after the bushings are installed.

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you can install diff drop bushings to lower your diff slightly and thus reduce some of that angle. the diff will still be out of harms way after the bushings are installed.

 

i've never seen that bushing for sale for our trucks...

i will do a search...

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just put the control arms on and don't crank the torsion bars too much. leave an inch between the UCA and the upper bumpstop and you should be fine. most people wreck cv's because they don't replace torn boots

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That's a difference between a Toyota and Nissan IFS (I think).

 

Main difference between Toy and Nissan IFS is the T-bar mounts to the UCA on the Toys, and LCA on Nissans.

 

As for the max lift in the front, best rule of thumb is to not have less than 1 inch between the UCA and the upper bumpstop. The front is engineered in a way that even sitting with the UCA touching the bumpstop you shouldn't bind, but prolonged use at that position can cause the CV to wear fast since it is continuously at it's max operational angle. In addition to saving some CV wear, keeping that inch gap helps keep you from having such a jar when you hit a minor dip or pothole since you still have a little down travel left.

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just put the control arms on and don't crank the torsion bars too much. leave an inch between the UCA and the upper bumpstop and you should be fine. most people wreck cv's because they don't replace torn boots

 

 

i understand not cranking up the T bars and leaving 1" gap... with those safety measures in place, is it still worth getting the UCA? am i going to get a noticable gain from my current setup? i hate to do all that work if its only just .5- .75" gain from now.

 

my curiousity started by reading AC's site about their UCA gaining a full 3" over stock. i think i have 1.5-2" gain over stock now with my stock t-bars cranked up and .5" ball joint spacers. i also have .5" gap from my bumpstop.

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you can install diff drop bushings to lower your diff slightly and thus reduce some of that angle. the diff will still be out of harms way after the bushings are installed.

 

I've never heard of these either... hmmm time for me to :search:

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Wasn't Energy Suspension going to make diff drop bushings for Nissans? Was it Steve at Rugged Rocks that had them? I forget.

 

i just spoke to steve at rugged rocks yesterday... he just told me to forget about the upper control arms. the result would not be what i was looking for over my current set up.

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  • 1 month later...
yes... but will 33" change my stock gearing ratio... i think yes...i like the gearing now (not the best but works just fine for me)..

 

if ground clearance is what you are looking for a susp or body lift won't get you any additional clearance...the increase in tire radius is what gives you more clearance...just thought i'd throw that out there...granted a susp lift will get the frame rails a lil higher but your low points (rear differential) will have the same clearance...

 

and the control arm won't give you any additional lift but correct the BJ angle

 

just thought i'd throw that out there for food for thought

Edited by unccpathfinder
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Doesn't the Trailmaster lift include a diff drop?

 

Kind of, it drops the entire front crossmembers and diff 4". So the LCA mount and all that is also dropped, not just the diff a slight amount.

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  • 1 month later...

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