MarkTutone Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Recently my upper control arm came off of its ball joint when I was driving. I had towed to my home and the next day I looked at the ball joint and it looked like 3 bolts came out and one broke off in the ball joint. I noticed it had #7 bolts holding it in. I went to the junk yard to get another ball joint and I snapped a bolt like butter. I ended up getting another ball joint off another truck and I stopped at a hardware store and bought some #12 bolts to put it back in. The only #12 bolts they had, were allen wrench heads. Now it all seemed to go together real easy. I took it for a short drive but I wanted to get some tips or hints about this procedure. I just bought and installed 3' lift springs in the rear and I know the upper control arms are the wrong angle. I will be buying the aftermarket control arms from 4x4 parts .com. Does anyone have suggestions. How tight should the bolts be that hold the upper control arm to the ball joint? I am a Biomedical Equipment technician and have never worked on cars before. I want to do all my own work now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MY1PATH Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Look around before you buy the 4x4 parts arms, some of them do not correct the ball joint angle just the alignment angle of the wheel. On the other hand some of them have installed fine and do their job. I'd chuck it up to poor quality control. Calmini is BEEFIEST you can buy but they do poor cleanup job before powder coating. Their customer service is poor but if you get them through Steevo He will go to bat for you if you have any issues. Rough Country and Super Lift (same arms I think) provide the best value in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 (edited) Look around before you buy the 4x4 parts arms, some of them do not correct the ball joint angle just the alignment angle of the wheel. On the other hand some of them have installed fine and do their job. I'd chuck it up to poor quality control. Calmini is BEEFIEST you can buy but they do poor cleanup job before powder coating. Their customer service is poor but if you get them through Steevo He will go to bat for you if you have any issues. Rough Country and Super Lift (same arms I think) provide the best value in my opinion. I went to the Rough Country and Super Lift websites and I did not see 1992 Pathfinder parts. I did find several other sites that had the Calmini control arm. I am not a heavy duty 4 wheeler and my biggest problem is money. My wife doesn't work and my little one goes to private school. The arm at 4x4 parts is $205.00 and the cheapest I could find the Calmini was $385.00. I have heard pros and cons about both. In two weeks I have vacation coming up so I need to make a decision on which one to buy. As far as tightening down the arm should I just get it good and tight? Any tips? Edited September 7, 2011 by MarkTutone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 I forget which company off hand it was (but would proably work with most) but people had luck saying they had a wrecked Hardbody P/U and just needed the front arms (not the whole lift). As for your ball joint issue, I would maby suggest just getting some new ones when you do get arms. New cokes with new bolts 99% of the time and are like 20-30 bucks a pop. Personally worth it to me than putting used ones in on new arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 I forget which company off hand it was (but would proably work with most) but people had luck saying they had a wrecked Hardbody P/U and just needed the front arms (not the whole lift). As for your ball joint issue, I would maby suggest just getting some new ones when you do get arms. New cokes with new bolts 99% of the time and are like 20-30 bucks a pop. Personally worth it to me than putting used ones in on new arms. You know I was thinking the same thing about the ball joints. Now for sure I am going to get new ball joints. Think I should do the lowers also? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dowser Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Rough Country was the brand. I paid $50.00 each UCA,the bushings/hardware, and shipping for a grand total of $126. and some change USD. Called them direct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 Rough Country was the brand. I paid $50.00 each UCA,the bushings/hardware, and shipping for a grand total of $126. and some change USD. Called them direct. WOW! I will give them a call. Is there a picture of the UCA's I could look up on the web? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dowser Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Here's a link to my Vehicle thread. I have pictures of them loaded and Even their Part Numbers and Cost's I paid. Scroll down to the UCA's and after a few more pictures the info is listed. Good luck. Dowser's Link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewebster Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 The ball joint bolts aren't super huge if I recall correctly, so don't go too crazy on them. The proper torque should be in the FSM, which is available for download... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trogdor636 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Rough Country was the brand. I paid $50.00 each UCA,the bushings/hardware, and shipping for a grand total of $126. and some change USD. Called them direct. According to this thread http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=23006 You cant get them from Rough Country anymore because they said they no longer carried them. However, last time I checked on their site they showed them again. Let me know how it goes when you call, I am about a month away from ordering a set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 The Rough Country were made by SuperLift, just finished differently. I don't think Rough Country carries them any more but I haven't checked myself. I believe SuperLift still carries their 'brand' though. I can't remember what years Hardbody pickup to ask for though so I'll have to look that up. Here is a thread that shows all the Upper Control Arms (UCA) that have been available... http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=30104&st=0&p=570012&hl=control&fromsearch=1entry570012 B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 The Rough Country were made by SuperLift, just finished differently. I don't think Rough Country carries them any more but I haven't checked myself. I believe SuperLift still carries their 'brand' though. I can't remember what years Hardbody pickup to ask for though so I'll have to look that up. Here is a thread that shows all the Upper Control Arms (UCA) that have been available... http://npora.ipbhost...=1 B I called Rough Country and they have 11 in stock @ $50.00 a piece. I am going to buy upper and lower ball joints also. Rough Country shocks are $30.00 each. I am glad I received this info, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dowser Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 That's what we're here for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 That's what we're here for. Exactly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 I called Rough Country and they have 11 in stock @ $50.00 a piece. I am going to buy upper and lower ball joints also. Rough Country shocks are $30.00 each. I am glad I received this info, Great! What exactly did you ask for, part number or vehicle fitment?? Just helps to flesh out the threads for future reference. Thanks. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trogdor636 Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Great! What exactly did you ask for, part number or vehicle fitment?? Just helps to flesh out the threads for future reference. Thanks. B Yea, what he said. Did you just ask for Pathfinder, or say you had a wrecked Hardbody? I just sold a few things on EBay so I think the time to order is here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 (edited) Yea, what he said. Did you just ask for Pathfinder, or say you had a wrecked Hardbody? I just sold a few things on EBay so I think the time to order is here. I gave him the part numbers that were on the earlier post. I copied it. See below. Did not really know where to put this, so mods can move it to an appropriate place if need be. Many of the people on here hold the belief that Rough Country UCA's are the way to go when planning on doing a basic three inch lift. It used to be that you could call Rough Country and they would sell you just the Hardbody arms and bushings for about $150 or so. But then they got wise and demanded people buy not only the arms, but the whole Hardbody Kit, for $300 plus!! So it seemed the only reasonable way to go was to get second hand UCAs that people would sell occasionally. Well, do not despair, for there is another way... I stopped by a local 4x4 shop today called Off Road Unlimited. Never been in before, and out of curiosity asked if they could get me the UCAs by themselves. They called Rough Country, proceded to tell them that they had a customer who had been in a car wreck and just needed replacement arms. He explained that my "Hardbody" still had the shackles etc, so I didnt need the whole kit. No Problem! Each UCA came to $45.65, and shipping was $30! Grand Total of: $128.56!!!! Including bushings. They also gave me the part numbers, thought they might be useful for people on here. Controll Arm Passenger Side: 94026065 Controll Arm Driver Side: 94016065 So everyone should just tell them you have a Hardbody and have been in an accident. Haha. Edited September 8, 2011 by MarkTutone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MY1PATH Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 Best value right there ^ If I were to lift the 94 I would use those arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 20, 2011 Author Share Posted September 20, 2011 Best value right there ^ If I were to lift the 94 I would use those arms. Update: Those part numbers were bad on previous post. The person I talked to was not a regular guy who took calls. I tried a few other places and the cheapest was $345.00. I ended up buying the UCA from 4x4parts. I bought UCA, 4 new shocks, steering dampner. I bought upper and lower ball joints from a local parts store... I had already purchased the idler arm brace. When I get the parts and install them I will take some pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dowser Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 Did you go to the link of my Build I provided? I had my Part Numbers listed on there, which were from the Rough Country Factory Receipt. Just saying, perhaps you got Hosed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trogdor636 Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 Did you go to the link of my Build I provided? I had my Part Numbers listed on there, which were from the Rough Country Factory Receipt. Just saying, perhaps you got Hosed. I cant find the post, but somewhere along the line somebody stated that Rough Country was no longer selling them. Superlift was, but at a highly inflated price over what you paid through Rough Country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 21, 2011 Author Share Posted September 21, 2011 Did you go to the link of my Build I provided? I had my Part Numbers listed on there, which were from the Rough Country Factory Receipt. Just saying, perhaps you got Hosed. Yep, The person said they were for a later model vehicle and that they no longer carried UCA's for the hard body or pathfinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dowser Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 (edited) Well it wouldn't matter what year so long as you're not driving a 96+ which I see you're not. And as for the fact they no longer carry them, that could be true. Interesting. Edited September 21, 2011 by Dowser Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trogdor636 Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Here is this on the Rough Country website, clearly stating they have them in stock to ship the same day. Hardbody Lift Kit Maybe they are just trying to get out of selling the arms by themselves cheap. Unless someone beats me to it, I'm gonna call tomorrow and try to order the whole kit and see what they say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkTutone Posted September 21, 2011 Author Share Posted September 21, 2011 Here is this on the Rough Country website, clearly stating they have them in stock to ship the same day. Hardbody Lift Kit Maybe they are just trying to get out of selling the arms by themselves cheap. Unless someone beats me to it, I'm gonna call tomorrow and try to order the whole kit and see what they say. Wow the dood I talked with said they did not carry them anymore. The first time I called they said they had them. I guess it is a matter of who you talk to. Here is what I bought, 2 x Rancho RS5000 Rear Shock (SPRS500095PFLIFTRR) = $90.00USD 2 x Rancho RS5000 Front Shock (SPRS500095PFLIFTFT) = $90.00USD 1 x Pathfinder Upper Control Arms (SPAC0110) = $205.00USD 1 x Pathfinder Steering Stabilizer (SPRL7268b) = $75.00USD $460.00 If I bought the same stuff kind of from rough country I would have paid $390,00 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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