sammicurr86

Looking at these two listing to replace my worn out front end suspension.
What do you guys think?
1) http://www.ebay.com/itm/68-70-A-BODY...ZSTbs3&vxp=mtr

2) https://www.performanceonline.com/19...LD-KIT-SFKP64/

I just want to replace the whole thing and be done with it.
Do you guys have any recommendations on who sells a high quality kit for a 70 442?
Also what do you think of the two links, good purchase?

oddball

Well, one has bushings and the other doesn't. One has the center link, the other doesn't. No brand names anywhere, but they are cheap!

I have a very strong preference for Moog (or special purpose, like Howe) ball joints. The lower ball joint has a pretty tough job, so cheap units tend to fail quickly. Most failures are just of the "rough and gritty" kind, but there's also "catastrophic failure" as an option. Moog also makes theirs slightly oversize to compensate for original, worn out control arms.

I'm a bit more forgiving on steering linkage, but not to no-name. Steering linkage will get sloppy as it ages, but usually won't downright break as long as it's installed correctly. The pitman should not need to be replaced unless it's been damaged - it doesn't have a joint on it.
I used ProForged on my '72. Cheaper than Moog, but seem very good. You can get them at Summit and Amazon. Here's an interesting thread with a ProForged rep:
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/16-b...proforged.html

And here's Marc acknowledging that they're not terrible:
http://www.pro-touring.com/threads/9...parts-Good-bad

As for bushings, pick what kind of material you want and go to town. They're all comparable as long as they're made correctly. Poly is generally similar, although each company advertises their own anti-squeak additive.


I would recommend sticking with name brand parts, especially if you want them to last.

Charlie Jones

X2 on Oddball's suggestion.
I shopped E-Bay for a while and came up with NOS and NORS stuff that was USA made .
And it was cheaper than the "chinesium" kits I had seen advertised.

oldcutlass

My car was one of a few used to test and fit the Proforged steering parts. They have been installed for sometime now with no issues. I used Moog ball joints, bushings, and springs, so cannot give an opinion on Proforged version of these parts.

Original thread:
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...etup-free.html

joe_padavano

^^^THIS. You'll be amazed at the NOS or brand name (Moog, TRW) parts you can find for these cars. For that matter, you can still get just about everything in the Moog brand from RockAuto. It isn't worth using Chinesium parts.

lemoldsnut

I'm with Joe on this. Moog is very tried and tested and if you just buy the parts individually from Rockauto you will get a good deal and great parts.

joe_padavano

Also be aware that your car may have round or oval bushings in the lower control arms. Be sure you know which ones you need.

Olds64

I've bought parts from this company in the past:

http://p-s-t.com/

Their customer service was good and the price was decent. Their parts were probably Chinese but they were better than the original suspension parts in my car for 40+ years.

sammicurr86

Noticed Summit sells Moog kits but for chevy and other models.

Will the Chevy kit fit as it's am A-body as well? See kit here: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sum-cmog005

oldcutlass

Check rockauto.com as their prices for the same parts is probably considerably less.

oddball

Yes, all A-body stuff will swap around, within the same year, EXCEPT:
tie rods switched between a small diameter and a large diameter around '70. If you're replacing all of it then you're getting a matched set, but may not be precisely correct for future replacement as I'm not sure if Chevelle changed at the same time as Cutlass (and the others).
Oval vs round rear lower control arm bushing varied, and maybe also by model (I'm not sure). So need to watch that.
Otherwise, things like tapers, overall dimensions, mount points, lengths, etc, were identical across all body styles.

Partagas

Original Parts Group (OPGI) lists complete Moog kits for Cutlass, both round and oval bushing, in both poly and rubber. On sale now in the $370 - $380 range and free shipping.

joe_padavano

Moog doesn't make polyurethane bushings.

joe_padavano

I just priced those parts on RockAuto. The same "kit", when purchased individually, is $283 at RockAuto, not including shipping, but also not including the normal 5% RA discount. Shipping to my zip code is $18. Your money, your call, but I'd rather keep that $75 in my wallet.