johnmota

Hey Honda tech members,

I was searching through the forums but couldn't find anything on this.

I'm going to change the front chassis parts (lower ball joints, lower control arm bushings, outer and inner tie rods, and comp upper control arm) on my 97 Honda Civic. I am currently using a itr sway bar and function form type 2, I haven't touched chassis parts since I got the car so everything is old and probably aftermarket cheap junk. The car is pretty low but i do plan on raising it up a bit when I change the chassis parts.

My question is what's a good choice to go with on these parts? I was thinking oem but i know thats for stock height and ride , not for lowered cars or for performance ride.

I'm looking for performance options and good quality. I was reading up on these extended ball joints by buddy club. They are supposed to help if your car if it's low by moving the roll center up and restoring the cars center of gravity, I'm not too familiar with this but i read alot of great reviews on them and the price isn't that far from OEM price, i found them at 136 for the pair.

For the rest of the chassis parts I was also thinking OEM or MOOG as an aftermarket alternative but i know these arent performance , so is there any performance brand you guys would recommend? Is it even worth it for the tie rods and other chassis parts to go with something performance?
I use my car as a daily but I do plan on taking it on the weekend to a circuit track once I replace the chassis parts so I am looking for performance parts.

Thanks in advance Honda fam!

oneheadlight

I know I don't post a lot, but have been lurking while I rebuild my 96 civic. I just went through all this due to rust/deterioration of my lower control arms. I would stay away from the Moog control arms. Google the R and K series moog arms and you'll see that Moog has gotten rid of the good stuff and replaced it with some generic china stuff. Sad that a good company is going cheap just to make a buck and take a name that was known for quality into the mud.. They're doing this on the control arm parts from Moog. The moog springs for the suspension I got from them were still made in USA and excellent quality, but not the control arms.

My advice is spend a little more and get the OEM part. Like I was saying, I went through this a month ago and found a lot of junk out there that did not match up to the OEM quality. yeah I held the aftermarket and the OEM in my hands. I'm one to save money, and not one to say Honda is always the best, but in this case they're the best part for this application. The honda part was thicker, heavier, stronger in my opinion. For the springs/shocks aftermarket was clearly better performance and quality. But even the outer tie rods were better from Honda. You just have to see the parts and compare. You'll know cheap junk when you see it! hope that helps!

www.collegehillshondaparts.com majestic honda at Majestic Honda - The Internet's #1 Honda Automotive Parts Store are a couple of honda dealers that sell online..

johnmota

Thanks for the reply! That's what I thought; MOOG was made in US but their parts are now china. Oem is what I was planning to go with but I was thinking of going with something performance if it makes a difference.

TomCat39

I'm wondering if you are concerned about weight at all?

For the bushings for performance, I've heard nothing but good things about Hard Race bushings if you don't want to have to continually lubricate them like you do with polyurethane bushings like Energy Suspension's.

As for the upper control arms, I've personally been eye balling Truhart front UCA's for my 95 civic and I'm sure they make them for the 6th gen civics too. They use Hard Race Upper ball joints and use bottom side fasteners so can be adjusted properly without your alignment shop cursing you out for a shitty impossible design.

The other option seems to be the Skunk2 UCA's but I'm not sure they are quite as strong off the top of my head. The Truhart's have a closed ball joint box which I believe to be stronger. I also like the tube arm design for strength over the pressed flat sheet steel design of OEM or Skunk2. But I haven't actually gotten my hands on them, however, that is the path I believe I'm going to go for the front.

I can't answer about tie rods as I have done zero research in that department.

Here is the UCA for your car:

Truhart Camber Kit Honda Civic EK [Front] (96-00) TH-H204



http://www.truhartusa.com/aboutus.asp

johnmota

Honestly I haven't thought about it when looking for these parts.

I'm going to look into those hardrace bushings thanks!

Those Truhart's look very good but I don't want to spend the extra money on camber adjustable, unless necessary to keep the wheels aligned?

Do you have any experience with those Extended ball joints?

TomCat39

I do not have experience, but I believe if your car is lowered, camber can be a bit of an issue.

I am not sure at what point but I do know camber isn't available with stock but the ride height is also at a set point, not lowered as people do for performance (lower center of gravity, better performance).

johnmota

Right that's a good point. I'm going to look into it more. Thanks for recommending Hardrace bushings I've been looking at the reviews on them and they sound good!

eghatch9295

iTrader: (1)

hardrace or oem. energy suck (imo), especially if you live somewhere with an actual winter. a conservative drop will not require adjustable uca's, oem will do just fine

TomCat39

johnmota

Thank you sir!

johnmota

Have you had a noticeable difference with hard race over oem?

eghatch9295

iTrader: (1)

daily driver? oem.

Jimi Hondrix

Why would you spend money to replace parts that may be functioning properly.. OEM or OE?
Try it out at the track as is. Most likely there will Hondorks there that you can buddy up with and steer (pun intended) you in the right direction, along with members here.
If your '97 is stock SOHC..it's a ball-less, torque-less turd anyway.

johnmota

Daily driver but weekend warrior haha I do plan on hitting the track and since I'm doing all the work already I wouldn't mind paying a few extra bucks to get some performance parts in there as long as it is worth it.

Have you had a noticeable difference with hardrace over oem?

johnmota

I'm not just shooting money in the dark here Jimi. I have taken a look under my car. My bushing are worn and torn. Upper, lower ball joints are torn and are fake china brand (they don't even have the opening for the cotter pin). Outer Tie rods are torn as well , one side has a lot of play might be coming from inner tie rod or rack itself. So I decided to change everything down there and I'm looking for a good quality brand that also supports performance applications.
Do you have experience with any?

No my car is not a stock sohc and definitely not "ball-less". Thanks but I'm not looking for some kids to tell me to get the flashiest brand out there, which is why I'm on this page looking to get honest opinions and past experiences by adults on a good quality part.

Jimi Hondrix

OEM is always good. Moog seems to have went down hill (according to a lot of internet chatter).
Beck Arnley is noted for selling some re-branded OEM parts at lower prices. From what I have read .. poly mounts help stiffen but increase vibration and NVH. I'm sure other members will get you on the right..wait for it...(pun intended)..track.

tony_2018

Extended ball joints? Lost on that one...

TomCat39

The front lower ball joints on the knuckle.

They make extended length ones for lowered cars.

I believe the Buddy Club ones are most likely some of the best quality ones.

They fix some center of gravity issue or steering issue when you slam the car to the ground.

Buddy Club Extended Ball Joints Review - Team Integra Forums - Team Integra

Busta16

iTrader: (1)

I'm planning on doing the exact same thing to my car. 97 Civic with a rather old and beat up chassis but I want to increase performance without sacrificing too much comfort. I have looked into Hardrace and will probably purchase their kit by the end of the year. For steering parts I would look into OEM companies that Honda tends to use or companies that make their part in Japan, IF you want OEM quality without the big price tag. So if you want OEM quality but slightly cheaper try Sankei or Beck Arnely. But like Eghatch said if the drop isn't drastic I don't think extended lower ball joints or aftermarket UCA are necessary. OEM UCA are slightly adjustable but if you decided to change because they are worn out I would give Skunk2 pro series a shot. I have them on and the car felt better (probably because the OEM UCA wer worn out) once they were installed. This is the kit I'm referring to Hardrace Suspension Bushing Kit US Spec 96-00 Civic CX DX HX LX EX - 7202 - BuyHardRace.com. They also make lower ball joints.

eghatch9295

iTrader: (1)

yeah, there is a difference. it is hard to say how much of it is the actual bushings, and how much of it was replacing old worn out parts.

johnmota

Haha you got those pun's on point. Yea i have read beck arnley is a great alternative to oem, been seeing the same comments about polyurethane also. The hard race look like a good option too but are a little pricey gonna see if I can find any deals. Thanks man!

johnmota

same thing I have been reading on them. And the price isn't too bad theyre like 140$ for the pair , oem are list of about 60$ each. Strongly thinking of trying those out since my car is pretty low. Will post results if I do.

johnmota

Nice same here , yea the hardrace looks good it's a little pricey but I've heard nothing but good things from them most likely going to go with them unless the difference in price is substantial compared to oem or beck arnley.
Well right now I can barely fit 1 finger in the gap, I do plan on raising it but not too much I like it lowered. I am probably going to go with those Extended ball joints by buddy club since I found them at a good deal less than 20$ over oem. Do you know if those will lower or raise the car anymore ? I know they are about 3/4 longer than oem but I'm not sure if it will affect ride height?

Yea well the reason I don't want to spend extra on adjustable UCA is because I'm not planning to do any camber to it I just want it as aligned and straight as possible. But if it isn't such a price difference between non adjustable and those skunk2 I might give them a shot.

I was on their website also and saw this kit it looks good but I have to see how far I can stretch my budget. Have you heard anything on the "pillow ball" bushigns hardrace sells? They are very pricey

johnmota

Haha right I'm pretty sure I'm gonna feel a nice difference replacing with new oem or hardrace since these bushings I'm rolling are done.
Hey you know anything about those pillow ball bushings by hardrace? They are alot more money but curious as to why they have such a high price difference.

TomCat39

Pillow ball bushings are far superior for performance but at a cost of longevity. You have to replace them often.

Pillow ball is designed around a track car where the dollars are consistently being dropped on the car for massive maintenance routines, such as rebuilds every X amount of hours etc.

Not worth the extra cost on a DD, weekend warrior setup.