I would say that it was the rotors and pads that you used were the problem. Auto zone and advance auto are really bad about having the cheapest quality on the market. Also 165 is not a bad price to replace the control arm and realign it. You should repalce the pad and rotors from some where like carquest or napa. The front brakes do about 60-70% of the braking any way so they will wear faster. I had the same problem with both of my navigators, i switched to a good quality pad and rotor and did not see the problem again.