FAQ: Lower Control Arms & Bushings 1995/1996/1997/1998/1999

rk0ehn wrote:

Does the 1997 Regal's control arm fits the 1996 Riviera?

On the rockauto.com site they seem to be pretty much the same as the 96 Riviera

I do remember seeing those listed under 1996 Riviera but they no longer list them, they were the MEVOTECH Part # MS20329 for the left side and the MEVOTECH Part # MS20328 for the right side.



I assume the 97 Riviera's control arm fits the 96's, but rockauto shows the control arm as being from the 1998

If you do get them Christian, and they do fit, can you please let us know?

That is really the best way to go, unless you enjoy doing the extra work. When you take the old arms off, you can remove the ball joints & bushings, repaint the arms, and replace with new parts (if you can find). Then resell to another Riv owner, or save for 5-10 years down the road and reuse. I've got one spare set on my shelf!

I just replaced mine last weekend and I wanted to let you know that the 1997 Buick Regal control arms DOES work on the 1996 Riviera, they are the same and are perfect fit now my car feels A LOT better now.

Ok I'm looking at stuff again and I'm pretty convinced that the zzp poly control arm bushing inserts will fit a riv control arm. (I'm talking about the one at the rear leg of the control arm which from what I can gather is the same as a w-body) I could easily replace those bushings at work. The question I have for everyone is would those poly bushings make any worthwhile difference? I vaguely remember some discussion about how it would reduce inward wheel toeing and vibration under throttle which would be good but I just wanted to discuss a little before I spend $60 on bushings

turtleman wrote:

Ok I'm looking at stuff again and I'm pretty convinced that the zzp poly control arm bushing inserts will fit a riv control arm. (I'm talking about the one at the rear leg of the control arm which from what I can gather is the same as a w-body) I could easily replace those bushings at work. The question I have for everyone is would those poly bushings make any worthwhile difference? I vaguely remember some discussion about how it would reduce inward wheel toeing and vibration under throttle which would be good but I just wanted to discuss a little before I spend $60 on bushings

I imagine it depends on the difference you are looking for.

"silent block' bushings are rubber molded in a steel sleeve, with a steel sleeve in the center. The point is that they take up torsional stresses as well as vibration and they are not supposed to move in the sleeves hence they are "silent" blocks rather than squeaking upon movement.

albertj wrote:

turtleman wrote:

Ok I'm looking at stuff again and I'm pretty convinced that the zzp poly control arm bushing inserts will fit a riv control arm. (I'm talking about the one at the rear leg of the control arm which from what I can gather is the same as a w-body) I could easily replace those bushings at work. The question I have for everyone is would those poly bushings make any worthwhile difference? I vaguely remember some discussion about how it would reduce inward wheel toeing and vibration under throttle which would be good but I just wanted to discuss a little before I spend $60 on bushings

I imagine it depends on the difference you are looking for.

"silent block' bushings are rubber molded in a steel sleeve, with a steel sleeve in the center. The point is that they take up torsional stresses as well as vibration and they are not supposed to move in the sleeves hence they are "silent" blocks rather than squeaking upon movement.

I thought that was exactly how the factory ones are? The rubber is bonded to the sleeve so it cannot twist all around inside, just stretches back and fourth which is why you're supposed to "trim" them upon install. So a poly version would actually be twisting freely huh?

Depends on how the poly bushings are done, that is whether they are bonded to the metal.

Albertj

the poly bushings sorta spin on each other. there is usually a inner steel sleeve that acts as a bushing too.it works as a system to promote free movement. check out a close up pic of the poly bushings and youll see what i mean.

rk0ehn wrote:

I just replaced mine last weekend and I wanted to let you know that the 1997 Buick Regal control arms DOES work on the 1996 Riviera, they are the same and are perfect fit now my car feels A LOT better now.

OK, I have to mention something about this, apparently the front tires slightly moved towards the front than before, I really didn't notice any "big" problems with this but thinking that if you have bigger rims they might not fit. I checked the control arm again and there are no damage or anything. I believe this could be because of a different wheel base.



I'll see if I can get a real picture of this.

Has anyone used the "Mevotech" arms and noted how well they were made and have held up over time?

Looks like they are the only brand available for the 95 control arms other than "Prime Choice" brand which quite a bit cheaper, and that doesn't build confidence   

Al

al_roethlisberger wrote:

Has anyone used the "Mevotech" arms and noted how well they were made and have held up over time?

Looks like they are the only brand available for the 95 control arms other than "Prime Choice" brand which quite a bit cheaper, and that doesn't build confidence    

Al

Hard to say.  Mevotech has been making a hard run at improving quality and I'd consider trying their parts.  However, their forte AFAIK is light passenger vehicles (Fiat 500 and that ilk).

That said I'd rather have MOOG.

Albertj

albertj wrote:

al_roethlisberger wrote:

Has anyone used the "Mevotech" arms and noted how well they were made and have held up over time?

Looks like they are the only brand available for the 95 control arms other than "Prime Choice" brand which quite a bit cheaper, and that doesn't build confidence    

Al

Hard to say.  Mevotech has been making a hard run at improving quality and I'd consider trying their parts.  However, their forte AFAIK is light passenger vehicles (Fiat 500 and that ilk).

That said I'd rather have MOOG.  

Albertj

Me too, but it doesn't appear anyone is making the front control for the 95 Riviera other than Mevotech and Prime Choice. Moog and others make replacement bushings, but this thread seems to suggest that is a huge headache unless one has a press (I do not).

But I'd probably replace the ball joint on Mevotech unit with a better one.

So I have a 97 riviera with aluminum control arms that have both horizontal and vertical control connections. On amazon and any auto parts site that I search on, they try to sell me the wrong part. They want to sell me control arms that have horizontal bolt holes in both locations.

Amazon shows a steel control arm titled "Prime Choice Auto Parts CAK606" as compatible with a 96 Riviera.
Beyond steel vs aluminum, are the 96 and 97 control arms interchangeable? Are they exactly the same dimensions?

Thanks.

vicr wrote:

So I have a 97 riviera with aluminum control arms that have both horizontal and vertical control connections. On amazon and any auto parts site that I search on, they try to sell me the wrong part. They want to sell me control arms that have horizontal bolt holes in both locations.

Amazon shows a steel control arm titled "Prime Choice Auto Parts CAK606" as compatible with a 96 Riviera.
Beyond steel vs aluminum, are the 96 and 97 control arms interchangeable? Are they exactly the same dimensions?

Thanks.

You have a 97 with 96 suspension?
So you need these bushings then I would think....
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=227260&cc=1022038

Abaddon wrote:

You have a 97 with 96 suspension?
So you need these bushings then I would think....
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=227260&cc=1022038

My control arm looks exactly like the one on the left (1997), in this photo from earlier in this thread

turtleman wrote:

Left - 1997            Right - 1998/1999

just posting the pic for reference

Yep. Those are the bushings you need to have replaced unless you can find a new control arm. You must have an early production '97 that got a '96 suspension under it.

HELP!!... I am new to this group.
I also have a 1997 with the aluminum arms with the one vertical mounts...which I need. the ball joints and horizontal mount are available everywhere- I got the ball joints from Moog and the horizontal bushings from Buick. I also have ordered and tried all the usual sources.. they all give me a 2 inch diameter vertical bushing which I think is the 95-96 version..or want to sell me an arm that looks like a 98-99.
my bushing is just shy of 2 3/8 inch diameter.
I see this thread goes back a few years... I already got a new sub-frame. due to rust.. I am not up to getting another -earlier or later and all the hardware that goes with it.
I am not up for fabbing the brackets for the newer dual horizontal arms...
soooo has anyone found a source for the correct bushing???
I was thinking about trying to call Rareparts.com on my next day off to see if they could make me one-- has anyone got a better idea or source?? If Rareparts will do a run of them is there enough interest out there for them... I see a few 1997's on this site... how have you guys maintained yours--up here in the northeast all rubber bushings get worn out from our roads

Can anyone verify that the Mevotech MS20328 and MS20329 work with the 96. Half the sources on the interwebs say it works and the other half says it doesn't. As you can see they are cheap through Amazon with free shipping on prime. Amazon says it will work....
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001NZATJ8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3OCTA7BWB60KH&coliid=I1S6KVWOP1V1GL

I contacted rare parts in CA and sent them one of my extra 1997 control arms. The Tech in the new part development dept should be getting it tomorrow.
The guy I talked with about this seemed pretty confident about being able to help but said to give an estimate on price he would have to have an arm.
I will let you guys know more as this progresses.
My thought is if this works, then anyone with a 1997 would at least be able to get this bushing. like I said in the earlier post the other parts on the front arm are available from many sources ,but I have not found anyone that supplies this apparently one year fitment bushing and Buick never offered it separately.

Thanks for the update, buickchaser. Let us know if Rare Parts is able to help. If there's a part number, please post it up!

Well I ordered just the ball joint, this weekend im going to tackle this PITA job. Luckily I work in a maintenance side of the Marine Corps so I not only have access to a angle grinder, but we also have a massive 20 ton press in our shop  

A follow up,

vicr wrote:

So I have a 97 riviera with aluminum control arms that have both horizontal and vertical control connections. On amazon and any auto parts site that I search on, they try to sell me the wrong part. They want to sell me control arms that have horizontal bolt holes in both locations.

Amazon shows a steel control arm titled "Prime Choice Auto Parts CAK606" as compatible with a 96 Riviera.
Beyond steel vs aluminum, are the 96 and 97 control arms interchangeable? Are they exactly the same dimensions?

I have installed the CAK606 on the front drivers side. The CAK606 control arm does bolt in, but it is not exactly the same. The CAK606 moves the wheel forward by about 5/8 inch.
I will be keeping my old control arm to try to find the correct bushings to rebuild it.

So for everyone's reference I can confirm that Mevotech MS20329 and MS20328 control arms DO indeed fit the 96' Riviera. Which is interesting because Mevotech does NOT list these for the Riviera. They are listed for the Century, Lacrosse, Regal, Impala and Monte Carlo. So I'm guessing this opens up a bunch or doors as far as options go when selecting a replacement for the 96'.

The only thing I notice different is the placement of the ball joint seems maybe 1/2" off, similar to what vicr mentioned. Either way I already have the passenger side mounted and I had no problems lining anything up. * Update* The Whale Shark is back together and everything works flawlessly. She feels solid

sooooo. i have been back and forth with the tech dept of Rarepartsinc.
their solution is to bore out the front hole larger to accept a bushing they can get from some other application. at approx $225 per side.
to me that is not a good idea, nor a good price. arm integrity-strength etc.
i asked about the similarities of the 95-96 bushing to the 97 bushing-- the 97 looks almost identical only larger---
he contacted a manufacturer and said we would need to make 500 piece minimum and also pay for tooling costs. but did not give a price and did not show much interest in going that route.
BUT--- I asked about who is currently supplying them with the 1995-96 bushing and he directed me to Moog
so that is where I am as of now.... still on the case
BIG QUESTION.... I am sure any supplier I do find will want to know a minimum count--- How much interest is there from you guys for permanent solution for this 1 year fitment problem. 500 pieces is 250 cars.... do you think we could get that many people to commit to this??
I hope the answer is yes