Hello all,

The car is a 1999 Acura TL3.2. It reportedly needs a new upper control arm on the front passenger side; it's cracked.

Here is what I'm thinking:
1) I'm concerned the mechanic may tell me the lower control arm may also need to be replaced.
2) I figure why not replace the lower control arm, since the mechanic has to replace the upper one and I don't want to pay more labor if the lower control has issues later on.

Now, having said all that, I figure I can save money and order the parts on Amazon. My question is what parts do I need to order for the upper control arm and what parts do I need to for the lower control arm? The upper one seems logical enough; it's a U-shaped part with a ball joint. The lower control arm puzzles me because I don't see any U-shaped parts. They are all long arm-shaped objects and come with no ball joint.

Again, this is for the front passenger side of the car.

Thank you for your help.

 

Welcome AcuraTL321999 !!!
For replacement parts, ya can check the various online Acura parts stores for OEM components. They have detailed diagrams showing individual parts and pricing. An alternative would be to consider aftermarket parts available at your local auto parts supply store or online at places like Rockauto.

If your mechanic said that your upper control arm was cracked and didn't find any other issues.....why do ya want to have other unnecessary work done ? The lower arm would be an entirely different job and it's doubtful that there would be much of a total labor savings by doing it now.

But, if you're into preventative work....ya may want to consider having the opposite side parts replaced too ???
IDK, it depends on your budget and how long ya intend on keeping the car.

 

Unless there is really something wrong with the lower control arm, it's a better idea to spend the money on replacing the upper control arm on the driver's side of the car since it's probably not too far behind the passenger side in terms of wear and tear.

If you're looking into aftermarket control arms, the quality of Moog and other UCAs is hit or miss and unless you're working on a very tight budget or need the ability to adjust your camber via adjustable control arms, OEM ones are the most reliable way to go.

 

I see, thank you. I am on a budget, which is why I thought I could save money by doing both the upper and lower arms. The reason the passenger side is being replaced is that area was involved in an accident some time ago. The accident must have cracked and weakened the upper control arm. I'm thinking that once the mechanic gets in there to replace the upper arm, he'll see the lower one is also damaged -- maybe not as much to qualify as an emergency but enough where it'll have to be replaced at some point, too.

Concidentally, I was looking at the Moog upper control arm and read that Moog is a good brand of quality for this type of part. I thought they did sell an OEM replacement. What would be a good brand? ACDelco?

 

Also, thanks for your help 3.2TLc. I appreciate it. As I said in my last post, I'm concerned the mechanic could find that the lower arm may be damaged, but not terribly, and will eventually get worse and need replacement. Hopefully, all is well with it.

As far as the upper control arm, I really thought Moog was a quality brand for suspension parts. I'm surprised to hear their quality is suspicious. I found these two parts at Amazon and the prices are about the same. But I should go with the ACDelco one?

Moog RK620285 Control Arm/Ball Joint Assembly


ACDelco 45D1125 Professional Front Upper Control Armature

 

I would go with Moog suspension parts any day over most any other brand.

 

APDTY 631733 Control Arm Front Upper Right


What about this part? It's almost $15 more than the other two, but it claims to be a direct replacement. I'd rather not skimp on something like this. More is better in this case or not?

 

* Some general questions :

~ How hard was that front side hit during the accident ?
~ Where was the point of impact, high or low and was the wheel forced inward ?
~ At the time of the accident, was the car still driveable afterwards ?
~ What, if any repairs were previously done after the accident ?
~ Was the car's damage professionally evaluated at the time ?