Just replaced both upper control arms in my 2002 ford explorer , I went with the drive works ones from advance auto that come with the ball joints , they were easy to install , i did use the factory shims also ive seen that they might effect it , but now i have negative camber i know i need an alignment but it seems pretty far off i also did the outer tie rod ends and adjusted to what the stock ones were. any help is appreciated thanks.
some pics of the broken parts <a href="http://s29.photobucket.com/user/danallen33/media/Picture003_zps0a5eb73c.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c270/danallen33/Picture003_zps0a5eb73c.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Picture003_zps0a5eb73c.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s29.photobucket.com/user/danallen33/media/Picture001_zps241464d9.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c270/danallen33/Picture001_zps241464d9.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Picture001_zps241464d9.jpg"/></a>

 

My experience with replacing tie rod ends is that you can never get the new ones back on and preserve your alignment. There's always a trip to the alignment shop afterwards. That being said, it's usually the toe that's messed up when replacing the tie rod ends, not the camber.

I'm guessing your camber is off for one or two reasons (or a combination or both). First, the dimensions of the replacement don't match the original. Second, the bushings in the old control arm were probably worn or took a set. If you had an alignment done with worn/set bushings, then it will be out of alignment when the new control arms are installed.

 

Thanks for the reply , just dropped it off at a shop today.

 

just got the explorer back today everything went fine they aligned it with out any issues , drives great now the steering is a lot more responsive with the new parts.

 

Good job. It's always nice when things are restored to the way they should be. Most people who don't work on their cars or trucks don't appreciate it.

 

yeah i like fixing as much as can at home before going to a shop , i also did the lower control arm , and steering knuckle drivers side , the knuckle was cracked and lower control arm was bent.

 

Can I ask what you did to crack the knuckle and bend the lower control arm? How badly do you have to beat on it to break these things?

The reason I'm asking is because I'm contemplating picking up another 1998 Explorer that has a broken lower control arm, or a broken knuckle, depending on which posting you believe. If I can get a decent deal on it, I just might pick it up. This deal is not without risk as I won't be able to drive the car to check the engine and transmission so one or the other could be in bad shape and I won't know until I get it driveable. But, if I can get it for close to scrap value, then I can take parts off of it to use for my other '98 and send the rest to the scrapyard if it turns out the tranny or motor is shot.

 

my mom was driving it when we had a snow storm , she said she was going 20 on a not plowed road and slid into a curb i was suprised my self that the knuckle cracked like it did. the wheel and tire are fine. the lower control arm was pretty tweaked at the mount closer to back i had it towed and the driver was suprised too , i actually looked up recalls for it because the tie rod was not that bad , i would think that would break or be really bent before the mounting point broke on the knuckle

 

if you get it cheap why not , and you could part it out and use what you need of it

 

That's my thinking. So far, the guy who posted the ad has yet to respond to both of my inquires.

I would have either had a flatbed tow truck deliver it or rent a truck and trailer from UHaul to get it home. Then, the challenge would be getting it into the garage to work on it. I was thinking that if I couldn't drive it the short distance from the driveway into the garage, I would need to put the front end on a car dolly and back it in.

Were you able to move it around short distances under its own power? How did you get it into the garage after the tow truck dropped it off?

 

once the tow truck dropped it off it was hard to get it straight , it was not possible to drive it more than 1 foot without manually making the bad side wheel even with the good side tie rod was not connected so i had too get the wheel straight with a breaker bar i was lucky they dropped it off where i was going to work on it free towing to my house AAA

 

I just replaced the upper control arms, with the ones with the ball joints already in them in my wife's 01 explorer this past weekend. What a pain. Thoes bolts on the drivers side with the fuel lines and brake lines in the way was a poor design by for to say the least but I managed to get it. I also replace in the inner and outer tie rods, lower ball joints, sway bar end links and the hubs. Once I have everything thing back together it was WAY OFF. lol I thought I had totally screwed it up. A friend help me get things as close as possible and then a slow very wild ride to the alignment shop. They got everything right and i also got 2 new tires and now she ride like a brand new one. Plus the wife is happy too...that always helps.

 

yeah the brake lines are in the way using hand tools took a long time , the shop i took it to ended up changing the factory shims for the camber

 

next i have to do the 4x4 control module its a factory part only from what i hear

 

picture of the explorer