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Front end rebuild - what would you do?

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Old 03-01-2013, 11:24 PM
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JR6424
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Done. Whoa... I spent the majority of day 2 tracking down the lower control arm cam bolts, there were only 3 left in the entire state of Washington and when I got to the one closest to me the guy pulls out the completely wrong part. When I show him the original and prove to him by showing him the parts fiche .pdf file he finally admits that he must have had it "in the wrong bin"... So 6 hours of driving later I finally got everything buttoned up and put away in about 3 more hours of work and the end result is fantastic. The truck rides and handles like it's brand new again, totally worth the time and money and if you have the right tools, some know-how and help from a friend with a blow torch and sawzall (not to mention the help of you all here on the interwebs) it's not that bad and easily saves $1,000 in labor. Total cost (not including gas for the roundtrip Seattle-Kirkland-Tacoma-Vancouver-Seattle fiasco in my friends wife's minivan...) ~$1,500 in parts, beer, pizza and a few odds and ends like sawzall blades, MAP fuel, anti-seize, etc. If anyone is thinking of doing this follow Alfons write up to a T and plan ahead, order the cam bolts from your Dealer so you have them in case they need to be cut off. The part # is 06508211AA, get at least 2, they're about $20 a piece. Here's the total list of parts I ordered off with their Rockauto.com parts # and price:

Front:

Moog outer tie rod ends ES3571 - 2@$33.79
Moog upper control arms (w ball jt) K620006 - 2@88.89
Moog left lower control arm RK620478 - 1@201.79
Moog right lower control arm RK620479 - 1@178.79
Moog lower ball joints K80605 - 2@32.79
Moog front stabilizer bar link K750263 - 2@15.68
Monroe Quick Struts 171100 - 2@150.99
Power Stop Pads and Rotors K2193 - 1@193.79

Rear:

Monroe Sensatrac Load Leveler shocks 58650 - 1@86.99
Moog Rear Stabilzer bar link K750379 - 2@16.67
Moog Rear Stabilzer bar bushing K7386 - 1@10.27
Moog Rear Stabilzer bar bushing K3160 - 1@6.94

Plus I ordered the front stabilizer bar bushing from Dodge - 520136978 - 1@~$50.

I got both rear bushing because I didn't know which size I had, I ended up with the larger, I'll probably just eat the $6 instead of trying to return such a small item. Also the Moog lower control arms from Rockauto do come with ball joints preinstalled, BUT, they're the cheap non-serviceable kind so I ordered the "Problem Solver" ones with the Zerk grease fittings and just pressed the cheap ones out and replaced them. All the other Moog parts are of the "Problem Solver" variety and have the grease fittings. I did the rear shocks and bushings because, why not, if you're already under there you might as well. The load levelers are great, definitely restored my ride height to the original "raked" look despite my Rhino liner, Leer Cap, and a couple hundred pounds of crap I keep back there. Before them I rode a little low in the back.
 



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