cinobyte

I need to get alignment bad. the car hasn't been pulling but all 4 tires are eat up on the insides... anyway

Can i get alignment done with the upper control arm failing? i have a rattle that just started. i understand i would have to get it aligned after the control arm is replaced but can i go ahead and get it aligned now until i replace the ctrl arm?

any suggestions on where to get control arm assembly and maybe the part number i need?
tia

cinobyte

after looking around i am not sure if upper ctrl arm rattling or not. how can i test ctrl arms ?

NJAcura2004

Securely Jack the vehicle and check for up and down and left and ride play in the steering/suspension. Basically put your hands at 12 and 6 and 9 and 3 on the wheel and shake up down left and right respectively. you want to look and feel for anything that is loose. you will notice parts moving and twisting. you want to look for parts popping in and out of place or making noise. a normal suspension will be almost silent . and 3g tl's have a steering lock so best to put the key in on "I" position.(key on engine off). (and don't forget about the parking brake).
you can use a prybar to CAREFULLY apply pressure on the upper control arm to check for looseness. typically (especially with Honda products) ball joints will not make noise when jacked up, or unloaded. pry up and down on the control arm by placing the prybar overtop or under the arm and through the coil spring. prying up or down respectively with light to moderate pressure will load and unload the balljoint. If the joint is bad you will most likely see it "pop" in and out of place.

also bad ball joints will give you alignment problems and premature or irregular tire wear. if you're not sure or have any safety fear take it to a professional.. Good luck!


also our cars are known for excessive camber wear in the rear, which is an offset to having negative camber to gain handling performance so your tires are usually gonna end up choppy on the inside. You can prolong tire life by regularly rotating them (every other oil change or 6,000 miles) or installing aftermarket rear control arms to change the camber angle and really prolong tire life; but you might loose so cornering performance.

Comptechtl2367

I would obviously not get an alignment until this issue is fixed... It would be a waste of money. The alignment would be bad before the car even got off the rack, and that assuming someone would even align it like that.