Everything you need to know about Upper Control Arms (UCA)

Had the alignment done Thursday. Numbers came out good

 

New JBAs installed - 3/3.4 caster

 

I dig the red on red.

 

This is a great thread. I'm learning a ton.

I have an OME lift of about 3 inches max. with stock UCA's. As far as I know my alignment is fine.

The only reason I would want to replace my stock UCA's would be for something more rugged and beefier. I do a fair amount of driving on rocky rough roads, mainly by myself, and I don't want to get stranded.

Or, are there other parts of my stock suspension that are more prone to breakage that I should think about upgrading first.

Thanks so much, I'm a complete noob on this stuff.

Cheers, Rick

 

I have Fabtech uppers and love them. Makes alignments easy for the guys at the garage too.

I see plenty of talk about uppers but very little on lowers. In my mind, they’re both equally important...what options are available on lower upgrades?

 

If you held a stock upper in your hands then picked up an upgraded version, you’d wonder how toyota even thought it was a good idea to use such a wimpy upper on these trucks.

The lift changes the angle the ball joint articulates on so it can add stress to the limited range of movement OEM arms have. Not to mention harder to maintain alignment. 3” probably isn’t anything to worry about but it can still wear that ball joint out prematurely imo. I’d definitely upgrade the UCAs.

 

Thanks so much for your reply.

This is precisely what I wanted to know.

Now which one should I get?...JK.

 

I’m partial to the Uni-ball design

 

Like Texas already said, replacing the upper at 3" of lift is probably a good idea. You'll clear the uniball/balljoint better and avoid possible bind. Which one you want is kind of a crapshoot. If you want to run tires in the 37" range, stay away from the Camburg as they induce quite a bit of caster and that pushes the tire closer to the body mount

I don't know anyone who has broken or bent a lower on a Tundra - they're beef as fuck. We jump our Tundra almost every time we go off road and we're still on stock lowers. Here's the upper half for reference.



We did however weld in spindle gussets and cam tabs since those are known to bend or snap off.

 

Any pointers on installing these BDS UCA's?????? I've put the 7" 2.5 fox coilovers front and rear just wanted to do i t myself hoping I don't run into any suprising stuff in the process

 

I wanna say or believe the battery has to come out for driver side, for the bolt to come out, I could be wrong, someone else will chime in to assist

 

Just got this in!

 

How do you think your tire clearance compares with other UCAs? It looks like the JBAs protrude a bit more past the centerline of the ball joint post than some of the more conventional designs (TC, Camburg, Icon, etc. )

 

I have stock wheels with 1.5" wheel spacers. clearance is only about an inch at full droop.

This will be different for all setups. But I know mine would be really close, or touching, without the wheel spacers.

 

How do ya like em, and what alignment figures are ya seeing? Kinda wondering about those, would like to upgrade from stock UCA’s sometime in the near future.

 

They are super nice!!! Look amazing ! Alignment is good!!!

 

@csuviper I didn’t see True Travel Dynamics on your list of UGA manufacturers, do you know who makes it?

 

Excellent write up! Thanks for the education. Any idea who makes the UCA for Slee Offroad? I have them and am waiting to have them installed next Friday. How do they compare?

 

Kirk1963 - specs on your wheel tire combo? Looking at the JBA’s but haven’t seen them with anyone running 35”+

 

Installed now

 

The best stock length UCA in my opinion. The on-truck adjustable heims make them a game changer.

 

Sheesh, such a ton of info and I think I’m more lost now than before lol. If anyone wants to chime in, I plan on doing a fox 2.5 for 3” up front. I have rebounds that are 17x8.5 with I think 5.75 backspace (or close to it). Looking at getting 34-35”s x 11.5-12.5” on. 90% pavement driving right now but have plans for increasing the off-road %. Was leaning between Camburg, bds, or spc for the UCA. Mcm fab has entered my realm of thought now as well. Any suggestions on which route to go for this setup? I’ve seen most on here talking about 6”+ lifts and that is def not my style.

 

MCM or Total Chaos are gonna yield the best alignment #s IMO. That's for non-heim. I've had several sets of UCAs and currently have MCM. It's important to note that alignment #s for a lifted truck are not the same as for a stock height truck.

 

Totally get it. I just want to get the best results out of the gate, although I know our trucks are a never ending money pit and I’m sure things will change as we go. I’m going to eye hard the MCM.

 

Old thread but didn’t see an answer. Most UCA’s show applications for 2-3”. What can be used in that grey area of 3-4”? Can I still grab the total chaos on the group buy? Or will they not work?

 

Hi everyone. New member here. I have a 2008 Tundra Limited 4WD. I bought it in 2017. When I got it, it already had what I believe is a 2" spacer in the front. I believe the spacers were the only additions. The alignment was not great when I bought it. It had pretty bad positive camber. The naked eye could see that the front tires were angled in. It also would get squirrely on the road with any rain or snow. Five months later it had worn the outside of the tires pretty bad. I replaced the tires with BF Goodrich AT KO2's. When I got the tires replaced I also got an alignment. It drove much better. But now after a year of having the new tires, they are beginning to wear on the outsides again. And you can still see that it has too much positive camber. Too boot, the upper ball joints are beginning to squeak really bad when I turn. I believe the angle of the ball joint after the alignment has caused them to wear faster. I am in the market for aftermarket control arms. I want the camber issue fixed. I'm not too worried about the caster. It drives pretty smooth. I only drive on the road. It's my daily driver. My question is, do I have to get adjustable UCA's to fix this issue? Will I be ok getting the SPC UCA's? If I do get the SPC's, will they have enough camber adjustment to fix the issue? Also, the non-adjustable UCA's, do they do anything to the camber (add or subtract from), or are they set to the factory camber? Thank you for any and all help.

 

I just installed the SPC adjustables with my 4” lift up front. They can be had for around $475 online. Can’t Beat the price and I couldn’t be happier with my alignment.

 

Thanks LT75. If you don't mind me asking, where did you find them for $475? I will most likely be getting a set.