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View Full Version : What are the advantages of tubular control arms



aero993
03-25-2008, 05:23 PM
Hello,

The title says it all. What does running tubular control arm buy you?


Thanks

ProdigyCustoms
03-25-2008, 06:01 PM
They look cool! And that is important!

The uppers also will offer more caster adjustability.

The lowers, Well........... They Look cool!

zbugger
03-25-2008, 06:49 PM
In some cases they also offer better wheel/tire clearance to run a wider tire.

oestek
03-25-2008, 07:06 PM
In my opinion, we have tires to blame on the need for beefed up suspension parts... here's a vid of my thought process if you feel like checking it out. The thoughts on the arms come in around 2 minutes in.

http://v8tvshow.com/content/view/164/71/

CHILI442
03-25-2008, 08:08 PM
Very well put.

rob07002
03-26-2008, 12:43 PM
I also believe the are less prone to deflection under hard steering and are most likely lighter which will certainly help unsprung weight.

Oh, and they look cool...

68Formula
03-26-2008, 01:05 PM
Depending on the vendor...

Upper:

More caster
Better bushing choices (delrin, del-a-lum)
Clearance on modified UCA mounting points (Gulstrand Mod and similar)
Easier caster adjustment (Hotchkis, DSE, SC&C)
Additional static chamber w/o shims (Hotchkis, SC&C)
Pretty


Lower:

More caster (centers the wheel instead of using all UCA for adjustment)
Lower vehicle (spring pocket drop - DSE)
Pretty


And then some don't do anything but look pretty.

Sorry vendors if I didn't spell out everyones specific qualities, but I wanted to give at least a couple examples.

I've heard claims of more clearance for tires, but in my case my limits on tire width are the stock subframe (under full lock).

Marcus SC&C
03-26-2008, 02:31 PM
I pretty much agree.
1) They do look cool!
2) Many offer no caster advantage so check before you buy!
3) Some are shorter to allow proper camber adj. at lowered ride heights on 1st Gens,A bodys etc. Again caution,some are not.
4) They`re usually heavier than stock,sometimes a lot heavier (especially lowers). Actually weigh some and you`ll be suprised. :) SPC and a few others are actually lighter though.
5) Lowers can more properly mount coil overs. Factory shock mounts are usually raised and can cause jounce travel issues.
6) SPC`s new lowers have adj. ride height (spring shims) and center the wheels at increased caster settings. Most models also offer alternative sway bar end link holes to tweak the front bars motion ratio/rate.
7) While arms of any type can really only affect static alignment and not geometry per se you can alter the geometry in other ways (different spindles,tall ball joints etc.) and then use tubular arms (especially adj. ones) to give the proper travel and alignment with that new geometry. If you`ve made any worthwhile changes the original upper arms simply won`t fit the car properly anymore.
8) They replace cheap stamped parts with 40 or so years of fatigue wear on them.
9) Did I mention they look cool too? :)
Mark SC&C

David Pozzi
03-26-2008, 02:41 PM
This topic has been discussed many times before, do a search of the posts here in the Suspension section to read them.
I also made this thread a sticky: https://www.pro-touring.com/forum/showthread.php?t=18789