Lots of newbie Control Arm questions

[AudiMat]

A few questions about control arms... I am sure that this is not the first time someone has asked, but I couldnt find everything that I was looking for, so I'll just ask it all in one place.

First, about how long can these things go after they start knocking before they abolsolutly have to get replaced?
What is the worst that can actually happen?
Do they break or can your wheel fall off?
What is actually knocking around, is it a bushing that is worn or is something broken?
How difficult is it to DIY?
Are the kits that are out there that sell "everything" to replace all arms and tie rods the best route to go then replacing them?
Do I have to do anything with the rear when replacing the front?
Any suggestions for the best place to get the parts for between 5-6 hundred?

Sorry for all the newbie questions but I am honestly not sure about all this stuff. My front has been knocking around for about 4 months now and the car is going to have to wait another month before I have the time to DIY, but I also dont want the wheel to fall off or something like that while I am driving. I want to know what I am getting myself into before I DIY and need to decide if it might be better to just take it to someone. TIA!

[AudiMat]

oh... and what is the difference between a control arm and a tie-rod?

[SEXICÄN]

I don't relaly think there is a time limit but i would say try and get them replaced ASAP

The worst thing that could happen is that you will have your car out of line and uneven wear from your tires having to replace them. worse MPG and annoying noise. Besides that i'm not really sure what.

I had read a post on AW about a control arm recall and in that post, it said worst case senario, you would lose a wheel.

The knocking sound is coming from a broken or torn ball joints. The bushings will make a squeeking noise.

The DIY is not hard at all. I just replaced my uppers and getting the first one off was the worse but once i figured it out the other was a breeze. All together, if i had had all the parts and tools at the time, it would have taken me about 4 hours.

Yes, therea re kits you can buy. www.ecsruning.com sells a 8 piece control arm kit for i think $500 or so and i think it also includes the tie rods. Along with buying a kit you will also want to buy replacement bolts and nuts.

No, you can fix the front and leave the rear the same, even if you have a AWD. the front control arms don't affect the rears at all except possibly the alignment. I would say the best place is www.ecstuning.com, that is the place that i have found had the best deal for everything you need, all control arms and bults.

I hope this is somewhat of a help


when you say you want to know the difference between control arms and tie rods, areyou wanting to know what they look like or different functionalities?

[///s50]

Control arm helps maintain front end alignment and the tie rod adjusts the toe

[SEXICÄN]

off topic, didyou ever get the A4 ///s50?

[EnvyJK]

hmm... i might have to get on this diy maintenance

[SEXICÄN]

yeah man, doing things yourself saves a lot of money. If you want to save even more money, you could buy the bushings(for the lowers) for about $100 and get them machine pressed in. Which i know a guy and thats what im' doing. I talked to Achtuning and they said they could pop the balljoints(lowers) out and raplace them. So i might be saving myself about $100 going that route. If your car is newer, or plan on keeping your car for a while, i recommend getting some CPP upper control arms. unlike the OEM ones, these don't have rubber bushings, and the major thing, fully rebuildable balljoints.