anthony1

On Rockauto site, under the suspension for the 2008 LS 460, they didn't have the lower ball joint listed. I found the part no. for Movetech MS86524 an MS86525 as ball joints for 2008 LS460.
Can someone confirm that those are the right part no.?
Oh, do I need ball joint boot?

Thanks

Medstar

I am not sure if control arms or bushings are worn out and I have read and heard on youtube about the squeaky sounds but all I hear in my car is a creaky sound in the front something similar to the sound one may hear when you open a car door that is not greased?? specially on bumps or uneven roads when driving at low speed and when i try to press on the front or back don't hear any sounds at all. there is been some abnormal wear and tear of front tires as well. Took it to a local mechanic and he felt the ca's and bushings have to be changed. I am not a DIY guy but any recommendations would help. Live in South bay area and need a reliable mechanic who would not charge a huge amount. What would be a reasonable cost for labor and parts in south bay area. Thnx guys.

anthony1

South Bay as in No. Cal or Torrance area?

eastside21

Take note of this website: https://www.febest.us

The upper control arms are the least expensive I have found and they make all the bushings for the arms. This includes the rear arms too! I am doing the eight control arm install myself this weekend. The parts appear to be of high quality. They did not have the lower control arms. Those arms were sourced through Rock Auto. For the lower arms I went with Beck Arnley, manufactured in Taiwan!

roadfrog

Not sure what your point is...Febest are made in China. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but if you were expecting Febest to be still made in Germany, that hasn't been the case forever.

While my Febest parts are holding up just fine, there are some that call Febest, "Feworst".

eastside21

Perhaps I should be clearer with my post. Beck Arnley control arms are priced higher than most, other than OEM Quality and Lexus/Toyota. Immediately upon opening the Beck Arnley control arms box there is a label saying made in Taiwan. This was somewhat surprising. The Febest control arms were significantly less than the Beck Arnley but appear to be of equal quality. The point being, price and company source may not dictate the quality of the part. My choice for the Febest control arms was because of price and that they supply the bushings for these arms if your are replacing only the bushings. My only objective was to seek a cost effective quality replacement part alternative to OEM, regardless of where it is manufactured.

Craiger

I read most of this thread but maybe I missed it...

Why are you guys replacing control arms? Why not do just the bushings? Is there something wrong with the stock arms? Seems like you're adding cost for unnecessary aftermarket parts that may be of lower quality.


Another question:
For the rear, is it possible to replace just the bushings, without replacing the arms?

johnnyg66

Finding all the bushings and ball joints can be an issue. And its possible the cost will equal new complete parts versus just bushings. Than add in install cost unless you own a good press to do all the bushings. The rears i don't think anyone just sells the bushings.

johnnyg66

Check out these prices. I have used them for the lower front ball joints. But the prices are they the whole unit or just the bushings???

​​​​​​https://www.febest.us/catalog?body=U...&p=1&year=2007

Craiger

Sounds too good to be true. What are they made of, tin?

roadfrog

As JohhnyG66 pointed out, by the time you remove the arms, and press out/in new bushings, you may as well just replace the arms. The cost difference is minimal.

steedls400

Love that "pure v8 hum" hahaha. way to go, I'd love to perform this on my 97.

eastside21

Just as a follow up, the upper control arms were relatively easy to replace. But when replacing the lower control arms, the lower ball joint needed replacement also. The febest.us website were out of stock on the ball joint. I had to source the part from febest.eu., delivered in three days from Germany. A local shop replaced the lower control arms and ball joints. I agree with steedls400, "car rides like a charm" and roadfrog "highly recommend changing the ball joints if replacing the lower control arms". Also, I recommend changing the complete upper control arms not just the bushings because the new joints on the uppers were "nice and tight" compared to the "looseness" of the old joint arm.

Craiger

Those dealer/car history reports suck. It makes me not want to take my car to them.

Doublebase

I can probably answer this for you because I've done both and I must say if I had to do it over again I wouldn't press the bushings in again...I'd just buy the entire arm. It's a hell of a lot easier, plus you have to realize that the uppers have a ball joint on the end of the arm, to just replace the bushing would leave you with a ball joint that is probably worn out anyway.

As for pressing the bushings out, I did that with my lower rearward facing arms because those arms do not have the ball joints on the end, however I thought they were a little tough to press out. Halfway through it and I was kicking myself for not just buying the entire arm. The outer casting of the bushings are thin and I found it tough to keep something from moving off of them while I was operating the press. I probably saved $100 bucks by just buying the bushings...not worth it to me.

And I ended up buying ball joints that go into the steering knuckle but I never used them, I couldn't believe how good the originals felt even after 165,000 miles...so I just kept them in there. I'll probably sell the ones I bought on eBay, I have no use for them.