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Why did the previous owner weld my control arms?

3K views 31 replies 10 participants last post by  Dan216 
#1 ·
I went into Les Schwab the other day to get a front end alignment because my Jeep is dogging to the right a bit when I drive it. The guys in the shop said the previous owner of the Wrangler welded the control arms.

So.. I can't get the alignment done until I get new control arms. Just curious, why would someone do this? He didn't even make sure the Jeep was straight before he did it.
 
#5 ·
Probably an ill-conceived repair attempt. Cracked suspension arms should be replaced rather than welded.

I know someone who bought a used CJ. He got about 5 miles from the DMV after doing the paperwork, and a rear wheel and brake drum came off. The PO had welded a broken axle back together. He had to pay for a ramp truck to get the Jeep to his house. The PO had sold it "as-is".
 
#16 ·
I'm thinking Golden Sahara nailed it. I don't see why the alignment couldn't be sorted around the known limitation, unless they just didn't want to mess with a rig that had been altered like that.

Anyhow, good luck.
 
#17 ·
The only thing I can think of is that the arms were welded at different lengths, which would take a pretty big moron to do. Looks like they did weld the aftermarket arms like I was thinking. x2 on UFO. You can't adjust caster anymore.... But the rest should still be able to be set and a basic alignment done.
 
#18 ·
Yea my father in law took his to get it aligned and they said they couldn't do it because of his lift bunch of bull since he has a currie lift with fully adjustable arms, I just think they didn't wanna mess with it
 
#22 ·
You'd need someone that really understands suspension and alignments, not just someone that adjusts something because the computer on the alignment machine tells him to.

Those individuals are becoming more and more rare, hence my "parts monkey" analogy.
 
#26 ·
I had a great tech who did my track car alignment at Les Schwab, but they are a rare find. I know what many are thinking, but the guy really knows alignment and not just factory spec bs. He was the only guy I let touch anything on my suspension setup. His name is Chaz and he's at the 82nd ave. location between Foster rd. and Johnson Creek blvd. in Portland Oregon.
 
#27 ·
These guys seemed to know what they were talking about. I had them order me new control arms and everything. They quoted me a little bit over a grand, but I guess it's worth it. New adjustable control arms would give me a less bumpy ride right?
 
#29 ·
Yea for that price u could have got a full set of 8 currie arms
 
#30 ·
Les Schwab deals mostly in Rancho. I personally would go with the aforementioned savvy/currie jj setup and NOT drop a grand to have someone put in inferior product. Good luck with your rig though.
 
#31 ·
Did they tell u what kind of arms they were puttin on
 
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