Adjustable upper a-arm or ball joint

[Randy2400h]

After completing my install of thr BDS 2” leveling kit and my alignment today I’m still left with .48 degrees of positive camber so I’m searching for solution.

The guy at the alignment shop said my best bet would be an adjustable (or shorter) upper a-arm or more simply an adjustable upper ball joint (which he said was common for Tacomas).

I called around and I may have a solution from a Colorado company that is potentially going to use my Ranger to measure and test fit an adjustable upper a-arm they already produce for the T6 Ranger. I’ll provide updates if that goes through.

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[j0shm1lls]

Icon makes one.

http://iconvehicledynamics.com/shop...ger-0-35-suspension-system-stage2-billet.html

 

[Randy2400h]

Icon makes one.

http://iconvehicledynamics.com/shop...ger-0-35-suspension-system-stage2-billet.html

I guess I can call to see if they’ll be piecing out their kits.

 

[HoosierT]

Stage3 sells them separately.

https://www.stage3motorsports.com/2019-Ford-Ranger-Upper-Control-Arms.html

 

[earsmccoy]

That's strange because my Rough Country is a 2.5" level (although I haven't actually measured it) and it fell into alignment. Now this might be a dumb question but I did notice that you print out shows "2008-2011 ranger", are they possibly using the wrong specs? I know alignment is alignment but like I said, mine aligned with the Rough Country. Does the "BDS" use a different set up? Maybe different spacers?

 

[earsmccoy]

Stage3 sells them separately.

https://www.stage3motorsports.com/2019-Ford-Ranger-Upper-Control-Arms.html

I actually ordered the Icon stage 1 kit through one company and then ordered the Icon control arms through "Stage 3 Motorsports" and it came out cheaper than ordering the Stage 2 as a complete kit.

 

[j0shm1lls]

Stage3 sells them separately.

https://www.stage3motorsports.com/2019-Ford-Ranger-Upper-Control-Arms.html

Jeez... $1400 for some UCAs.

 

[Randy2400h]

That's strange because my Rough Country is a 2.5" level (although I haven't actually measured it) and it fell into alignment. Now this might be a dumb question but I did notice that you print out shows "2008-2011 ranger", are they possibly using the wrong specs? I know alignment is alignment but like I said, mine aligned with the Rough Country. Does the "BDS" use a different set up? Maybe different spacers?

The BDS kit didn’t come with alignment specs, but I did provide them with the Rough Country specs after they indicated they were having issues. This is a top-rated shop in the Colorado Springs for alignments on 4x4s, so my first inclination wouldn’t be to blame the shop. The BDS kit does accomplish its lift differently, it a thin (maybe 1/4 to 3/8”) spacer on the top of the strut and significant sized preload spacer (nearly 2”).

 

[Randy2400h]

Jeez... $1400 for some UCAs.

I reached out to ICON, they only sell the kits on their site. But as you can already tell, the individual pieces are available through dealers. First place I called was 4wheelparts and they wanted $1355 (with free shipping).

I agree, that’s damn pricey.

 

[HoosierT]

I reached out to ICON, they only sell the kits on their site. But as you can already tell, the individual pieces are available through dealers. First place I called was 4wheelparts and they wanted $1355 (with free shipping).

I agree, that’s damn pricey.

Well, the billet are totally unnecessary so why not consider the tubular for $839?

 

[Randy2400h]

I actually ordered the Icon stage 1 kit through one company and then ordered the Icon control arms through "Stage 3 Motorsports" and it came out cheaper than ordering the Stage 2 as a complete kit.

Did you get the tubular a-arms or the billet adjustable? If you got the tubular, can you confirm they are shorter or perhaps engineered to kill the positive camber from the lift? I’d pay $800 for the tubular arms but $1355 for the billet is just ridiculous unless I plan on going crazy with the suspension at a later date.

 

[Randy2400h]

Well, the billet are totally unnecessary so why not consider the tubular for $839?

Yeah maybe, let’s see what earsmccoy has to say since he might already have them.

 

[j0shm1lls]

These are the specs from the RC instructions.

 

[earsmccoy]

I ordered the tubular style $839.95. Don't get me wrong, the billet is neat to look at and I wouldn't fault anyone from going that route but it was too pricey for me. Since we are all on the subject, I decided to give "Stage 3" a call and check on my order. They still don't have an ETA on them. They are getting dropped shipped to me but I would imagine that the kits will take priority over the control arms separately. I will/should have the stage 1 kit next week sometime so at least I have that going for me?!?!

 

[Randy2400h]

So I just got off the phone with Scott in Tech at ICON. He said undoubtedly that the tubular upper a-arms would remedy my situation, because the their a-arms specifically address the caster issue, which apparently causes you to chase your camber adjustment to the end of the Ranger’s adjustment limits. With the new caster alignment of ICON’s tubular arms, it should put the camber adjustments back with the acceptable range (plenty of adjustment plus or minus) for the Ranger.

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