Performance Control Arms

Control arms locate the wheels in relation to the body and allow them to move within a designed range in response to the road and the suspension. They may pivot on bushings at both ends, like rear suspension control arms, or they may have a ball joint at one end, to enable a front suspension knuckle/spindle to rotate and pivot. Your factory control arms are fine for everyday use, but they’re inadequate for spirited street driving and racing. Our performance control arms and links have the strength and adjustability you need, especially when you’ve fitted larger tires and made other suspension mods.

Factory control arms aren’t designed to withstand significant horsepower increases and aggressive driving at the limit. Your OE arms also may not have the clearance you need for wider wheels and tires, or allow the alignment angle adjustments required for high speed driving or when ride height is significantly altered, like on lowered cars or lifted trucks. Our performance control arms have the heavy-duty construction to handle the g-forces and power, the configuration to prevent tire rubbing, and the alignment angles you need for optimal handling and high speed stability.

OE front suspension upper and lower A-arms can reveal their weaknesses when cars are road raced or 4WD trucks are lifted and driven aggressively off-road. These control arms can flex under severe duty use, resulting in poor handling and steering control, and can ultimately fail, leaving you with a DNF or stranded out on the trail. We can offer you strong but lightweight control arms manufactured from thick DOM (Drawn Over Mandrel) tubular steel, billet aluminum or stout tubular 4130 chrome moly. Most come with premium standard or low-friction ball joints and performance polyurethane or Delrin bushings installed. We have A-arms specially designed for street performance, drag racing and road racing and some are built expressly for common mods like coilovers in place of coil springs.

Many vehicles like muscle cars with live rear axles have stamped steel U-section rear control arms that can bend and distort when a lot of horsepower is put to a set of big, sticky tires. We have thick DOM tubular steel and box section rear control arms that are much stronger, so the axle stays in its designed position and doesn’t deflect. You get traction and all that power gets to the ground. These control arms usually come with firm, durable polyurethane or Delrin bushings installed. Some applications feature spherical bearings instead of bushings to eliminate deflection and provide less friction and greater range of motion. Many of our rear control arms and links are adjustable, so critical dimensions like pinion angle and rear wheel alignment can be dialed in.

Besides inadequate strength, many OE control arms are simply the wrong shape for racing and performance use. Racing and performance driving require wider wheels and tires for traction, and these may not fit without rubbing and clearance issues. Such wheels and tires, and high speed driving, as well as altered ride heights, generally require different suspension alignment angles for precise handling and control, and stock control arms may not have the range of adjustment necessary. Our performance control arms provide the clearance and geometry you need. Some have enhanced adjustment features built right in to the control arm, and a number of arms have the optimal caster and camber needed by particular applications for improved stability and steering response designed into the control arm.

In addition to the above, you’ll also find an extensive selection of control arm bushings, mounts, and hardware on our digital shelves. Our polyurethane and Delrin bushings don’t deflect like rubber, so you get precise handling and direct steering response. We have bushings to upgrade your OE control arms as well as replacement bushings for our performance control arms. Sometimes control arms must be relocated to optimize alignment angles, especially when ride height is changed, and in some cases, particularly for racing, the control arm mounting points require strengthening. We offer a comprehensive selection of custom relocation brackets and beefed-up mounts and braces, along with the necessary hardware, for off-road use and all types of competition.