Help me pick some LCA's for DD

[bleda2002]

So I'm looking for a set of adjustable control arms for my JTR. I'm in florida so rock crawling isnt really a thing and this is my DD so i'm prioritizing low nvh over flex as pretty much any of the joints i'm considering should flex enough.

I was thinking of going with the core 4x4 tier 3 that has a JJ on the frame side and poly bushing on the axle side. I was wondering how much extra nvh will that give over the stock lca's? Also how would that compare to the clayton overland lca's that have dual giiro joints. Obviously the claytons will probably have less nvh given the double bushing, but is it a substantial difference with 1 JJ and a bushing vs double bushing or is it mostly a wash?

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[LostWoods]

Poly bushings and Johnny Joints are diametrically opposed to good NVH. Poly firms up the joint and will transfer most all NVH into the frame. Johnny Joints are focused on re-buildability and articulation so if you don't need those it's an unnecessary expense that isn't going to be as firm as a traditional bushing.

If you don't need to flex, standard rubber bushings are the way to go for the best ride quality. If you want an upgraded joint, Metalcloak's duro or Clayton's Giiro are both very close to stock in ride quality and better performing.

 

[darkhorse13]

Synergy Mfg is my reco. Maintenance free dual durometer bushings at both ends and most of all they don't need to be removed in order to adjust length.

 

[brianinca]

How much of a lift have you added? If it's not 3"+ you might look into the Mopar fixed length LCA's from the 2" lift kit. Factory ride comfort and super inexpensive.

Else for a daily driver, I'd look to AEV.

So I'm looking for a set of adjustable control arms for my JTR. I'm in florida so rock crawling isnt really a thing and this is my DD so i'm prioritizing low nvh over flex as pretty much any of the joints i'm considering should flex enough.

I was thinking of going with the core 4x4 tier 3 that has a JJ on the frame side and poly bushing on the axle side. I was wondering how much extra nvh will that give over the stock lca's? Also how would that compare to the clayton overland lca's that have dual giiro joints. Obviously the claytons will probably have less nvh given the double bushing, but is it a substantial difference with 1 JJ and a bushing vs double bushing or is it mostly a wash?

 

[Aonarch]

How much of a lift have you added? If it's not 3"+ you might look into the Mopar fixed length LCA's from the 2" lift kit. Factory ride comfort and super inexpensive.

Else for a daily driver, I'd look to AEV.

This, I have a 2" lift up front and run the Mopar LCAs.

 

[bleda2002]

This, I have a 2" lift up front and run the Mopar LCAs.

What's your caster at? I've got a Rubicon that I'm adding the 1.5 level upfront and 3/4 Daystar in the rear. I'm trying to get my caster up to 6-6.4 from the current mid 4 prelift

 

[Aonarch]

What's your caster at? I've got a Rubicon that I'm adding the 1.5 level upfront and 3/4 Daystar in the rear. I'm trying to get my caster up to 6-6.4 from the current mid 4 prelift

Not sure. I have never measured. I set toe and straightened the wheel myself.

It drives great though. Steering feels normal.

 

[brianinca]

With NO lift the Mopar LCA's bumped me to 5.9/6 deg of caster. My suspension shop said factory caster was inadequate when I took it in first week for wandering and all the other aluminum box issues. They didn't have a fix, but the JL people mentioned it. I liked they were cheap and identical down to the bushings to factory (since they are). Ride quality is unchanged and the steering was tolerable until the steering box fix came along. After that steering has been EXCELLENT.

With any additional lift, you're not going to get close to 6 deg without full boogie adjustable LCA's. With 1.5" you might get 5.0-ish? The Mopar LCA's are only .25" longer than stock height and get back into the 4's. One reason I'd never do the Mopar lift is lack of adjustable LCA's.

What's your caster at? I've got a Rubicon that I'm adding the 1.5 level upfront and 3/4 Daystar in the rear. I'm trying to get my caster up to 6-6.4 from the current mid 4 prelift

 

[bleda2002]

With NO lift the Mopar LCA's bumped me to 5.9/6 deg of caster. My suspension shop said factory caster was inadequate when I took it in first week for wandering and all the other aluminum box issues. They didn't have a fix, but the JL people mentioned it. I liked they were cheap and identical down to the bushings to factory (since they are). Ride quality is unchanged and the steering was tolerable until the steering box fix came along. After that steering has been EXCELLENT.

With any additional lift, you're not going to get close to 6 deg without full boogie adjustable LCA's. With 1.5" you might get 5.0-ish? The Mopar LCA's are only .25" longer than stock height and get back into the 4's. One reason I'd never do the Mopar lift is lack of adjustable LCA's.

Thanks! I hadnt found a lot of hard data on where the mopar arms left people versus stock on the rubicons.

I eventually want to go for a 2.5 inch lift so I'll probably end up going with the metalcloak arms as they seem to have great reviews and the price is right. I cant honestly say i'm a huge fan of the gold, but it seems they are the benchmark for no maintenance joints with great nvh characteristics.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

With NO lift the Mopar LCA's bumped me to 5.9/6 deg of caster. My suspension shop said factory caster was inadequate when I took it in first week for wandering and all the other aluminum box issues. They didn't have a fix, but the JL people mentioned it. I liked they were cheap and identical down to the bushings to factory (since they are). Ride quality is unchanged and the steering was tolerable until the steering box fix came along. After that steering has been EXCELLENT.

With any additional lift, you're not going to get close to 6 deg without full boogie adjustable LCA's. With 1.5" you might get 5.0-ish? The Mopar LCA's are only .25" longer than stock height and get back into the 4's. One reason I'd never do the Mopar lift is lack of adjustable LCA's.

OK, let me toss this into the mix -
Overland.
Put in a couple of the lighter of the various Rubicon front springs and got roughly 1" "lift".
Put on steel bumper, steel skid plate, winch, dropped it .5"
So after that, it was .5" higher than stock.
Put .75" Daystar spacer kit all the way around, raised the front back up .75" for a total of roughly 1.25" higher than stock (and listen to my wife complain about how hard it is getting in - glad I didn't do the 2" mopar lift LOL)

So in the end, my Overland ended up about 1.25" higher in front than the stock measurements.
I don't have complaints but at times I do wish it fought a bit harder to deviate from straight ahead or even self-center or return to straight a bit more deliberately. It's actually fine as it is, but I've wondered, as a former auto mechanic who used to do alignments on cars, if caster may firm things up even more.
I'm quite happy with the truck as it is, like my comments about the trip to CO, Pike's Peak, etc. but am curious about how others feel about caster and the effects on THESE trucks specifically.

 

[brianinca]

The additional caster made a sloppy steering box very tolerable, and safe to drive. My wife thought I walked on water for a week after that fix. The turn in is slightly slower, but it's not like a manual steering box is going to make you grunt.

The inherent lack of caster on a Rubicon vs a Sport/Overland was a conscious decision on the part of the bean counters to keep the parts count as low as possible. The fact the Mopar 2" lift came with those fixed extended LCA's at the same price point other lifts have adjustable LCA's makes it clear where their priorities were. My suspension shop is the retail outlet for Hellwig and they are pro's, they thought the factory spec range for caster was too low PERIOD and the problem was exacerbated by the sloppy steering box. That helped me understand how to address the issue before the TSB for the steering box.

When/if I lift my truck, given my towing requirements, I'll be changing to adjustable LCA's to preserve the 6 deg of caster.

am curious about how others feel about caster and the effects on THESE trucks specifically.

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