Upper Control Arm Question

[peneumbra2]

Today, we receive our 2013 200 series. It has a Dobinson suspension, 2" lift, using stock UCAs.
Do these need to be upgraded to aftermarket units, in the opinion of the wise guys -- make that wise men -- who are familiar with 200s?

We are not going out and doing severe off-roading with this truck, so perhaps that usage make make a difference with the UCA applications.

 

[NikP]

Aftermarket extended controls arms will adjust the angles to be more in line with what was designed. That said, there lots of vehicles on the road with stock UCA's running a 2 inch lift and they do just fine. The lift puts you near the limits of being able to get your wheel alignment into the recommended range. I have a vehicle with a lift that's just a smidge outside the range, but I've run it for 100K miles and have had no issues.

It comes down to what you want to spend money on and if there's currently and issue your trying to solve.

 

[Heckraiser]

Get an alignment. That will tell you. If your alignment is in spec, or if it can be brought into spec by adjusting the lower control arm cams, then there is no need for aftermarket uppers. Or the more "seat of the pants" version: if you like the way it drives, leave it alone.

The main purpose of aftermarket upper control arms on lifted IFS rigs is to gain positive caster by moving the upper ball joint back. But there are some negatives to this method if you plan to run larger tire sizes (35's and up). If you're happy with your alignment numbers, there is no need for them.

 

[bloc]

Keep in mind lift height is often not quite what was advertised. So if you end up at 2.5” due to rig weight or whatever other reason you may need the arms when you thought you wouldn’t.

I also like that the arms put your adjusters back in the middle of their useful range. This makes it much easier to fine tune alignment if you really want to dial things in for road crown or towing or whatever.