Control Arm Bracket Split & Broken from Front Diff Housing (1 Viewer)

[BajaCruiser94]

I've been using my 80 quite heavily in the last months, almost every single weekend, and I also did the complete Baja peninsula on early December (~2000miles) 70% OffRoad.
On Sunday, while driving back from the San Pedro Martir Mountains, I felt a metal clunk while driving around 65mph on the road; no futher noise detected nor change in handling felt.
Yesterday, while unloading the rig, I noticed oil dripping from the control arm, after detail inspecting I found the bracket that holds the control arm to the diff housing cracked, and some how the crack propagated to the housing deep enough to create a leak.

Im planning on having the axle removed, clean old welds, add a support sleeve on the housing and reattach a new fabbed braket, while removing the poly caster correction bushings and adding the metal brackets for caster correction.
I do have a partster 80 with the front axle, but its not locked as the injured 80, so a transplant isnt straightforward.

Any opinions and/or experience with this kind of failure?

Here are some pictures.

 

[george_tlc]

Are the bushings in the control arms OEM rubber - given the non-centered look (at least in your pics) I'm guessing they are poly bushings maybe - or have the OEM bushings chopped out?

cheers,
george.

 

[NLXTACY]

Those look like OME yellow 2deg bushings.

 

[Locked79]

Poly bushes will cause these cracks

 

[NLXTACY]

Poly bushings with high durometer value don’t flex much. That flex needs to go somewhere.

 

[george_tlc]

The flex went into the steel until it transformed into cracked steel - no stress anymore

80 front control arms + poly bushes + lots of offroad & corrugated roads = bad news...

cheers,
george.

 

[Tools R Us]

Kinda common on rigs that get wheeled a lot. We repair the bracket, weld it up and grind smooth, then weld a plate inside.

Make plates to reinforce and drill to move the bolt holes. Pretty much do a washer mod, build the caster correction into the repair.

Carefully inspect all around the brackets, likely to find other cracks, especially at the factory welds.

 

[NLXTACY]

Or repair/weld the factory plates and grind smooth. Throw away the pile of crap poly bushings and press in OEM rubber. Then slap on a set of LANDTANK’s 2.5” Caster plates. Problem solved and Caster corrected

 

[bugsnbikes]

20+ year old rigs DO actually break at times if used appropriately. and furthermore Baja regularly chews up and spits out trophy trucks.

Personally I’d drop the coin for a Diamond or Ruffstuff housing if you plan a lot of regular abuse and have the coins.

And maybe it’s an optical illusion.....but that axle may be bent.?

 

[inkpot]

Check the swaybar mounts on the axle end for cracks also. Have seen a lot of those.

 

[landtank]

One of the benefits of my plates is that the rear hole through bolts and the front hole pins to my plate. Basically linking the two factory holes while adding more strength to where the factory mount thins out where it passes under the housing.

Where your mount is already cracked and distorted my plates would ensure everything goes back in place with correct spacing.

 

[concretejungle]

you know, mine cracked kind of like that a few years ago, but not through the axle housing to where the oil leaked out. I just welded the crack back on the bracket, but, i feel like i might need to examine it closer to make sure the housing isn't also cracked.

 

[Corbet]

Yup, been there done that. I repaired my axle housing back in 2012. Removed the caster correction bushings and installed plates. Gusteted the thing up and it's been fine for 80K now. Not that hard of a job just time consuming.

Details here: Broken 80 series radius arm hanger - Rising Sun Member Forums

 

[BajaCruiser94]

Yes, those are OME Yellow Poly Caster Correction Bushings - Another bites the dust!!

Thanks for your input, I will start with the repairs.

48702-60050 is still the correct PN for OEM Rubber? 34.99ea on CruiserParts.net; any other source with a better price?

Thanks
-Emerson

 

[NLXTACY]

Yes, those are OME Yellow Poly Caster Correction Bushings - Another bites the dust!!

Thanks for your input, I will start with the repairs.

48702-60050 is still the correct PN for OEM Rubber? 34.99ea on CruiserParts.net; any other source with a better price?

Thanks
-Emerson

Price or not, stay far away from CruiserParts. Go literally anywhere else.

 

[BILT4ME]

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