Front suspension

Discussion in 'General Automotive Tech' started by Grizz, Feb 27, 2020.

  1. Grizz

    Grizz Are we there yet???

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    I have a Chevy avalanche that needs some front suspension. Tie rods pitman and idler arms. I can buy a suspension kit from moog for like $450 I think? It has all the tie rods, arms I need plus upper and lower ball joints. All their products are about double in price of the standard brands. I believe you get what you pay for but is it worth it in this instance? Figured I’d ask y’all before I made any purchases.
     
  2. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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    If the tierods are still okay, I'd only buy name brand parts to replace only those which are worn out. If you could still get them with grease zerks, that would be the best bet.
    In any event, I'd avoid cheap parts from places unknow. I once went cheap on a balljoint for my Super Beetle and it ended up popping out of its socket. Loosing control of the steering without not being able to control the vehicle whatsoever was quite an experience and on that car, there wasn't that much weight up front. It was made south of the border and when I went back to the parts store to show the owner, he looked scares of getting sued, before giving me a German one off of the shelf without charging me extra for it. Because he also stocked parts for Rabbits made there where the first balljoint was produced, he must have suffered a sleepless night.
    If J.C. Whitney's still around, they've always used to be reliable, depite their brands being somewhat unknown.
    Those prices over there seem quite high. Here's what I get:


    https://www.ebay.de/sch/i.html?_fro...&_nkw=traggelenk+chevrolet+avalanche&_sacat=0

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2020
  3. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Do you intend to keep the truck, or trade it in? If you keep it, spend the lucre. If not, don't.
     
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  4. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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    That seems like plenty of lucre for only 4 tierod ends 4 balljoints and 2 arms. The dealer can't want even more for just these. Even so, why unnecessarilly replace parts which aren't even worn, unless money, unnecessary work and time aren't important?
     
  5. Grizz

    Grizz Are we there yet???

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    I guess I should have said steering instead of suspension? The tie rod ends and arm bushings are toast. The stabilizer bar twists maybe 1/8-1/4 turn when I move the wheels side to side. Ball joints are fine. but I think buying one moog outer tie rod was $50-80? Lesser brands were like $18 or something. So the $450 seems like I’d be saving a little bit in the long run
     
  6. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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    Yeah, $18 sounds like cheap import. I guess, it's safer and sound buying parts which are legally backed up, instead of unknown. Safety first, in any case. I just can't figure, where they get these prices. Maybe, I'm just stuck in a time warp
     
  7. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    We all are.
     
  8. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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    Otherwise, we wouldn't be here at this site :cheers: Oh, well. It's better that way. Isn't it.
    I tell Germans here that real inflation isn't that what the media tells you it is. Rather, the price rise of domestic products is the authentic unit of measurement. Over here, domestic-fabricated tools and beer betray the true inflation rate. For example, when the Deutsche Mark was replaced by the EURO (€) currency, a case of name-brand beer costed around 14 Marks. Today, that same case costs around 14 EUROs. People who still have Deutsche Mark coins and bills and take them to a central bank to convert over will get 1€ for 2 Deutsche Marks which is the official exchange rate. Many debate this, getting the impression that even this exchange rate is disfavorable to Mark holders. In any event, my case of beer has suffered at least 100% inflation, since they abolished the Deutsche Mark. The same goes for name brand tools like the Hazets I bought nearly 40 years ago. I wouldn't be able to touch them now with even Grizz's money :bigsmile:
    The illusion that one still has the same purchasing power as in 1971 originates from flooding the market with cheap imports and disguising Chinesium into gadgets installed into domestic products and foodstuffs. I'm convinced that taking the Dollar off of the Gold Standard simultaneously opening the trade market to once Red China is the agenda behind these moves and subsequent outsourcing
     
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  9. KevinVarnes

    KevinVarnes Well-Known Member

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    I don't cheap out on steering, suspension, or brakes unless somebody requests it. Even if you aren't driving it, you might be next to it in traffic one day. I generally stick with Moog for all steering and suspension parts. Have you priced the parts out on RockAuto?
     
  10. HotRodRacer

    HotRodRacer Moderator Staff Member Moderator

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    ^^^^ Same here, plus I don't cheap out on electrical either. I like my stuff too much to risk a fire.
     
  11. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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  12. Grizz

    Grizz Are we there yet???

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    So I made a chart of all the parts I need and all the possible places to get them. Was going to look at all the local parts stores plus rock auto. I looked at Oreilly’s first, then NAPA. Got half way before I crossed Napa off the list. Next I checked rock auto. I have to admit, I’ve only ordered parts online one other time from parts geek for the 67 c-30. I prefer brick and mortar stores where I can shop for and possibly return purchases without the guessing game. Plus Rock Auto always left a bad taste in my mouth from customers at the old shop constantly complaining that they could get parts cheaper from there. Boy should I have listened. Sure y’all already know but the selection is great and they’re about half the price. Got all four tie rods, pitman and idler arm for $250.
     
  13. KevinVarnes

    KevinVarnes Well-Known Member

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    I purchase around $10k worth of car parts a year and probably 90% comes from RockAuto. I also try to support the local (chain) stores, but most cannot compete even with RockAuto's shipping costs (which are ridiculously cheap BTW). NAPA can compete on some stuff, but they are usually one of the most expensive. They do tend to carry relatively high quality parts and the people working there are generally more astute than the average parts store. I usually don't even bother with O'Reilly or Autozone unless I cannot get the part elsewhere. Most of my local money goes to Advance. They can sometimes compete with RockAuto prices if I have a good discount code to use. Amazon is usually higher on price and I'm always suspect if the part I am getting is what I actually ordered. There seems to be a lot of knock off crap sold on Amazon and little done to regulate it.

    Most electrical stuff like starters/alternators/etc I will buy local because the failure rate is high and quick exchanges are usually easy. The warranty return process for RockAuto is a little more cumbersome, but I've never had a problem with it. Any time I've had a problem with an order (wrong or missing parts) they've been quick to correct it.
     
  14. Doghead

    Doghead Well-Known Member

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    Over here, Amazon is higher on some stuff and cheaper on others. What I did get from them were often real oddball items. For example, Bosch plugs made in Russia. I was somewhat worried about the rough thread machining eventually chewing up my aluminum head threads, at first. But, they seem to work fine, since my ignition system is still just a simple electronic one independent from the simple fuel injection. I stopped ordering from them, as soon as they billed me for shipment on an item of which was included in an order where the shipment was to be a freebie, if I ordered a number of items exceeding a certain minimum value. I doubt that the mistake was deliberate. The money lost wasn't as important as the impossibility of finding any on-line or even physical customer complaint center.
    I hate internet shopping altogether, because I more than often spend more time comparing prices and trying to fill minimum value for free shipping orders than the time I spend replacing the parts themselves. Because of the brand I drive, local parts stores don't have availability of most parts which don't cross over with those of other brands. If they could get everything, it would be feasable for me just to stop paying for my internet connection which has gone up double in monthly service charges after the first 6 months (They used to give you a year, until they all got together and started a cartel between service companies. Once you've gotten close to the 12th month, it used to be that the other service company would take over your contract and start you out on a cheap 12 month contract of their own). In that case, I could just drive to some hotspot with my laptop and do my stuff there, while using my double-SIM cellphone for other communication. The money saved could be put to use getting more expensive quality parts from the local parts store and I'd have plenty of change left over.
    As far as electrical stuff goes, I could take starters and alternators to the parts store and then get these items back rebuilt, if not exchanged. When I used to drive domestic cars, back then, I'd often end up as the test facility for rebuilds. When the starter fried on the old Chevy, I'd be going back and forth, until I ended up with a starter that functioned right. I guess, I could have visited NAPA and have replaced the starter only once thereafter. But, I never tried them, because they wanted more. Back then, I wasn't thinking that time was money.
    When my sister bought her used '76 Toyota Mark II wagon, she ended up needing a starter, after a while. The local Toyota dealer used to offer new ones and factory rebuilds for about half of what new ones went for. The clerk explained that the rebuilds were just as good. Well, he was right for the entire time my sister owned the car
     
  15. annap01gt

    annap01gt Blue Safari

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    Back then, I wasn't thinking that time was money.

    My maternal grandfather gave me several pieces of advice that I fortunately listened to. He spent his working life in the paint business and told me more than once that "cheap paint was expensive" because you often had to use two coats to get the same result that a single coat of high end paint would provide. Don't buy the cheap paint.
     
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