Ok guys. My 2001 2wd 1500 has had the same crappy coopers on for 10 years.

I have also needed to get an alignment and replace the ball joints for probably 8 of those years.

it’s not my daily driver, so I’ve been putting it off. However, one of the tires has a nice deep weather crack in the sidewall, another won’t hold air, and the front two have definitely had the corners worn off due to the bad alignment/ball joints.

so it’s time to give some love to the truck.

Rock Auto has Moog parts and a Mevotech kit that includes the whole control arms... and cost like $600 - $700.

Ebay and Amazon have kits that are just the ball joints instead of the riveted arms, plus tie rod ends, etc, for between $80 and $150. But they’re either Detroit Axle or no-name parts.

for a 20 year old truck that I drive around town for yard waste and occasional furniture moving, no more than 3,000 miles a year... are the ebay parts going to be substantial enough? Or should I skip them altogether?

im guessing enough of you have tried them and can weigh in.

 

I don't like Moog parts. I prefer Spicer, XRF, or AC Delco for suspension parts. KYB has good quality shocks at a reasonable price. Get the gas-a-just or monomax.

 

I second on Moog is junk. Mevotech makes a good time rods but I concur on the other brands.

 

What about the Detroit axle/ebay Chinese specials? Anyone have good luck with them?

it’s sometimes hard justifying spending hundreds of dollars in parts alone when the truck isn’t driven daily...

 

I've used Detroit Axle wheel bearings on my '96 Ram 2500 4x4 without issue. As for ball joint replacements on your 2WD truck, once you grind the rivets off the control arms, the joints are typically installed with bolts, so they are easier to deal with going forward. Reusing the existing control arms should save you some money as long as the bushings are in decent shape. When I replace the bushings, I usually use poly-urethane replacement bushings whenever possible, as I find the vehicles I install them on handle/track on the road better than rubber. I drive my truck about as much as you do (dump runs and hauling stuff from time-to-time), but when I jump in the truck, I want it to go and handle reliably, so I tend to buy good parts and do the front end rebuild work once. In addition, I installed 4 new Michelin tires on the truck after I rebuilt the front end and I didn't want to have those tires wear prematurely due to a bad front end parts/alignment.

 

The 4X4 1500's seem to be hard on ball joints. Seen all brands go bad rater soon(as per what others have said about them on the forums). I think keeping them greased is the key.

 

I've got a 96 2wd sport that I just rebuilt the entire front suspension on. All my parts came from detroit axle and are surprisingly good quality. Everything fit perfect. I drive my truck pretty hard and everything is holding up great. I think I paid 140 for the kit plus another 45 or so for the front 2 shocks. Moog is great but their prices are too high.