Spohn Upper A-Arms Don't Fit
10-12-2010, 09:14 AM
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Spohn Upper A-Arms Don't Fit Anyone have trouble installing Spohn upper a-arms? I had my whole front end apart with the stock a-arm mount and the new Spohn a-arm on the bench and they were not even close to fitting together. I bent my stock a-arm mount to try and get the Spohn a-arm to slide in and it was clear that there was no way I could get them together without severely deforming the bushings and putting way too much pressure on them. The arms in the picture are the drivers side. Before someone says my car must have been in some horrific accident because my a-arm mounts are all bent, I bent them with vice grips to try and get the Spohn arms to fit.
Thank you for the question. I did call Spohn and they are telling me I should have loosened the pre-installed ball joint before I put the parts together.
Call me a skeptic, but I don't see how loosening this ball joint is going to relax the a-arm like a half inch so it fits correctly. If I pull this front end apart again and they don't fit I am going to lose my mind.
Before I pull my whole front end apart again I guess I just want to hear a victory story from someone. Tell me your Spohn a-arms didn't come close to fitting and you loosened the ball joints and they "dropped right in" and I will pull the car apart again this weekend. And before someone asks "WHY ARE YOU DOING UPPERS LOL!?!?!?!" Because I want my front end to have all new parts and I like shiny red things. Leave me alone. 
Here are some pictures :
Originally Posted by Fellow LS1Tech Member
But Bill, why are you airing this out on the forums? Why not just call Spohn?
Originally Posted by Spohn Tech Support
Bill, seriously, just loosen the ball joints and they will drop right in. This is known, that's why we have it in our online FAQ.
Originally Posted by Fellow LS1Tech Member
Wow why are you ranting about this? You e-mailed tech support and they told you it was in the FAQ. Stop being a baby and just try what they said.
Here are some pictures :
10-12-2010, 09:16 AM
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I would like to add that Spohn tech support has answered my calls, called me back and have been very prompt with their responses. The person I spoke with was very nice. Here are 4 more pics.
10-12-2010, 12:54 PM
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I just put a set in this past weekend, mine have the delrin bushings though.
I had to bend one corner to get them to fit but once you tighten them to the correct spec it bent right back to where it should be. No where near as bad as your pictures.
I had to bend one corner to get them to fit but once you tighten them to the correct spec it bent right back to where it should be. No where near as bad as your pictures.
10-12-2010, 04:00 PM
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Did your a-arms come pre-fitted with new ball joints from Spohn? Did you have to loosen the ball joint bolts to get it to fit? Am I the only one that seems to think this is a crazy idea that won't work? They are insistent that all I have to do is loosen that ball joint and it will *poof* pop into place, but it sounds like total bs to me. The thing is bent way out of shape and I just can't see that little ball join distorting the a-arm that much. I'm also worried that when I take the time to actually pull it apart and try it, it's still not going to work and they are just going to shrug and say I must be doing something wrong or my car was in an accident or something.
10-12-2010, 04:23 PM
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As far as I know of, no. Car was bought new by my ex-girlfriend and I bought it about 2 years ago. I ran into the same problem with both left and right mounts so I don't think that's the problem. I guess if I do decide to try and install these again I will grab a set of mounts from a junk yard. *sigh*
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10-12-2010, 05:04 PM
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Did your a-arms come pre-fitted with new ball joints from Spohn? Did you have to loosen the ball joint bolts to get it to fit? Am I the only one that seems to think this is a crazy idea that won't work? They are insistent that all I have to do is loosen that ball joint and it will *poof* pop into place, but it sounds like total bs to me. The thing is bent way out of shape and I just can't see that little ball join distorting the a-arm that much. I'm also worried that when I take the time to actually pull it apart and try it, it's still not going to work and they are just going to shrug and say I must be doing something wrong or my car was in an accident or something.
10-13-2010, 04:56 AM
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Here is my e-mail thread with Spohn after sending the pics :
Originally Posted by E-Mail Thread
Originally Posted by Giggity
The tech article does not have any relevance to my problem. I have the stock a-arm mounting plate out of the car on a bench, and the Spohn tubular a-arm on the bench and they don't fit together. I cannot fathom how loosening the bolts on the ball joint could effect the size of the a-arm. I attached a picture of your a-arm. I will try and shrink the pics and resend.
Thanks
Thanks
Originally Posted by Spohn Tech Support
It does. Loosen all the ball joint bolts. When you tighten the ball joint bolts it pulls the bushing ends in.
Originally Posted by Giggity
Look at the pictures. I am extremely skeptical that loosening the ball joint could correct this.
Originally Posted by Spohn Tech Support
Bill, seriously, just loosen the ball joints and they will drop right in. This is known, that's why we have it in our online FAQ.
Originally Posted by Giggity
If I pull my whole front end apart *again* and these do not "drop right in", I am am going to be extremely annoyed. Did you look at the pictures?
Originally Posted by Spohn Tech Support
Yes sir. That's all you need to do.
Originally Posted by Giggity
Hypothetically, If I loosen the ball joint and the part does not fit properly, what is the next step?
Also, thank you for your help. I don't have the instructions in front of me but is this tip about loosening the ball joint included with the a-arms?
Also, thank you for your help. I don't have the instructions in front of me but is this tip about loosening the ball joint included with the a-arms?
Originally Posted by Spohn Tech Support
Instructions are attached. They'll fit, this is always the issue.
10-13-2010, 03:55 PM
#13
Looking at your picture 004 and 005 I can see where if the ball joint were to put enough stress to curve that tiny piece of metal its on, it would bow the whole assembly. if it were to flatten out. it does seem like it would indeed go in. take a look for yourself, imagine if it wasnt trying to go in crooked but straight up and down. also in picture 008 they seem to be identical in width for the outter portions
just an observation while im bored here at work
just an observation while im bored here at work
10-14-2010, 07:59 AM
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I have not loosened the balljoint yet. I did the install last Saturday and Spohn was closed on Saturday. They are only open 9-5 Monday thru Friday, you know, when people work on their cars...[/sarcasm]
I re-assembled the car with the stock upper a-arms. I am very hesitant to pull the front end apart again just to try to see if this fixes it. I understand what they are saying about loosening the balljoint but that arm is thick steel and I just don't see it bending enough to make a difference.
I re-assembled the car with the stock upper a-arms. I am very hesitant to pull the front end apart again just to try to see if this fixes it. I understand what they are saying about loosening the balljoint but that arm is thick steel and I just don't see it bending enough to make a difference.
