Control Arms

Control Arms are one of the main pillars of the suspension component system. Depending on the control arm design of your vehicle, typically your spindle is attached to your control arm (or arms if you have an upper and lower) with a ball joint. The ball joint allows the spindle/knuckles and front wheels to rotate left or right while allowing them to move up and down in unison with the chassis while the vehicle is in motion. 

Additionally, and depending on the design, control arms will have mounting provisions for your sway bars. 

Control arms also host some of the most vital bushings in the suspension system. You have your ball joint that attaches to the apex of the wishbone, and on the other two ends, you will have the main bushings that attach to the subframe. When these bushings wear, it causes all sorts of issues such as a rough ride, excessive clunking, and noises, along with overall terrible ride quality.

 

WHY WOULD ONE NEED TO REPLACE CONTROL ARMS?

So there are a few reasons. With some control arm designs, it is easier just to replace the entire control arm with factory pre-installed bushings rather than trying to press or torch out worn bushings or ball joints. Additionally, you could have simply damaged your control arms due to an accident. But the main reason is that the aftermarket options have been designed to provide users with a wider alignment range to allow you to gain more aggressive settings for your particular driving style. For the Subaru WRX, STI, and BRZ, we carry a large selection that is hard to beat with aftermarket control arms, and here are some examples to choose from:

 

• ADJUSTABLE CONTROL ARMS: The available adjustments in aftermarket control arms will differ depending on the control arm location. You have upper and lower control arms, and you have control arms for the front and rear locations. But generally, you will have extra camber settings, as well as caster and toe settings to adjust depending on the design and on the manufacturer. These are highly beneficial for those of you with lowered vehicles where the extra toe settings will allow you to maintain a proper suspension geometry. All of these will help set up your specified geometry for race use, or for the rest of your custom suspension and wheel setup on show cars. 

 

• CAMBER ADJUSTABLE CONTROL ARMS: These particular control arms allow for additional camber settings, and are ideal for those of you who have an aggressive wheel and wider tire setup and need to make the most of your tire's footprint. There are examples available for the front and the rear of your Subaru WRX and STI models, as well as the BRZ models to improve the handling and driver feedback.

 

Also, note that many of the available options will include spherical rod bearing ends that are much stronger and durable when compared to traditional control arm ends. 

 

ARE THERE OTHER SUSPENSION LINKAGE PARTS TO MODIFY? SAY NO MORE

 

• SWAY BARS: Again one of the most popular suspension modifications as larger sway bars reduce body by spreading the lateral loads across the entire suspension setup. The typical recipe for an all-wheel-drive setup is a larger front sway bar with a smaller diameter rear sway bar. Now vehicles that have fully modified suspension will have the same size upgraded front and rear sway bars to assist when you're driving 1/1ths on a race track, and you are throwing the weight of your car around right on the edge and you need your suspension to be as stiff as possible. But a street setup with a larger front and larger rear setup will drastically improve the handling for daily driving use but for especially spirited canyon drives and track use. We carry fine examples from the most familiar names in the suspension industry that include but are limited to Whiteline, Faction Fab, PERRIN Performance, Eibach, and Cusco among many others. Many examples are also adjustable to suit your driving style and comfort levels as well. However, something to consider about sway bars, especially in Subaru models, is that these vehicles have end links that are prone to becoming weak over time, and will affect the overall efficiency of your sway bars. 

 

• END LINKS: When the factory end links do wear out, you will lose the efficiency of your sway bars which can affect your overall handling. The examples we carry all feature much stronger construction as the factory units are made using weak materials. Even if you want to keep your factory sway bars, upgraded end links will improve the handling by strengthening your sway bars which will improve the chassis, suspension, and steering response. And when combined with upgraded larger sway bars, you have another level of handling and performance. We carry several options brought to you by Whiteline, PERRIN, Kartboy, and Cusco among many others that will include long-lasting urethane bushings, and in some cases, FK bearings for those who need the highest load capacity. Many of which are also adjustable to work with a variety of different sway bar sizes. 

 

• SWAY BAR MOUNTS: If your sway bar mounts break, then you will lose pretty much all functionality of your sway bar. There are a few instances where you would need to replace your sway bar mounts. You may have an older model where the factory mounts could be rusted and have lost their hardware and may have broken. Or your mount bushings have worn allowing for excessive sway bar movement. We carry many stronger examples that are required especially if you have upgraded to a stronger sway bar. Now, most aftermarket sway bar examples will include their own mounts, but we have replacements. We have forged aluminum units, billet aluminum units, urethane bushing kits, locks to prevent your sway bar from moving side to side, and mount support braces so that your sway bars have full support to operate as they were intended. 

 

• LATERAL LINKS: These are especially beneficial for those of you with purpose-built race cars that need special alignment settings, and they are also ideal for enthusiasts with lowered street cars or weekend show cars and need more camber and toe so you're not chewing away your tires. Lateral links with a proper alignment will also make sure that you are getting the most contact patch out of your tires for better grip. We carry both front and rear lateral links, and we carry lateral link kits to help you get that suspension geometry back in range to maximize the suspension performance while improving the handling.