Front End Rebuild

Hello everyone! I am looking to do a front end rebuild on my truck pretty much everything but my lower control arms. I came across Detroit axles 17 piece suspension kit and was just wondering if it is something that would be worth it, ill post the link to the kit. I don't wanna cut corners and put cheaper parts on the truck if it just isn't worth it, so I wanted to see what other peoples thoughts and options where like. Any help would be cool! https://www.detroitaxle.com/part/19...ion-kit/17csw1700187/?submodel_name=Silverado

that is a good kit I would ad a rag joint to the list as well and maybe a reman or new steering gear box as well I would think about replacing the cv axles while it is all a part if you have not done brakes in some it would also be a good opportunity to do so if they need it

I would be suspicious of a $300 complete 'kit' with wheel bearings, control arms and everything.

On Rock Auto, the TTX inner and outer tie rod 'kit' is $300.

If your going to keep the truck, piece together the better stuff individually.

RichLo said:

I would be suspicious of a $300 complete 'kit' with wheel bearings, control arms and everything.

On Rock Auto, the TTX inner and outer tie rod 'kit' is $300.

If your going to keep the truck, piece together the better stuff individually.

Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more. You get what you pay for. Given the price of this kit, I wouldn't expect these components to reasonably last more than 2 years/24,000 miles.

It all comes down to your budget and why you need the front end rebuilt. Maybe it's not drivable/safe and/or it doesn't pass NYS inspection. If it's your only means of transportation with a very tight budget by all means buy the cheaper kit to stay on the road. If that's not the case, step up the quality and build it for the long-term - it's a lot of labor and alignments otherwise. Either way coat the living poo on that underbody/frame or you'll hear it rust at night in NYS during the winter months.

Get ready for a wall of text.

I’m getting ready to do the same thing to my son’s 98 c3500. I’ve used Detroit Axle parts a fair amount in the last two years for several different makes and models of vehicles. Some of their stuff is *almost* as good as OEM. Some of their stuff is absolute trash, it’s hit and miss on what is going to be good and what isn’t. I used their wheel bearings, front lower control arms, outer tie rods ends, end links, and front CV axles on my girlfriend’s 2017 Forester a few weeks ago. Keep in mind she plans to trade this car next year.

The wheel bearings looked like they came from the same factory in Japan that the OEM Subaru bearings came from. Proper heat treating and everything. Same goes for the lower control arms, they even had Subaru part numbers stamped into them in the right place. The tie rod ends and end links are greaseable with zerks, that’s an improvement in my opinion over the “maintenance free” parts I replaced.

The CV axles on the other hand. Absolute garbage. They looked like they had been pulled out of a wreck, dipped in a barrel of gray paint, and thrown in a box. The splines and machined surfaces were caked with paint. The rubber boots were wrong, the dust shields weren’t there, and they were 1/4” shorter than the OEM units I pulled out. Needless to say I was not happy. They weren’t someone’s junk parts they returned for a refund in the new part box, the boxes had never been opened. They were packed like they came off an assembly line.

I get it if you can only afford that kit and you need to keep the truck on the road to get to work and pay your bills. @Laredo is right, it’s only going to last you about two years of daily driving. YMMV but be prepared to do the job again.

If you do buy that kit, get it on Amazon. It will be a lot easier to get your money back if it turns out to be trash.

I did the front end on mine using a mevotech kit i got froom rockauto. This is after i blew a couplehundred bucks on a chinesium kit from amazon(never again). Happy w the mevotech. Nice quality an decent price ,happily recommend.

I guess I should add that I’m piecing a rebuild kit together on Rock Auto for the c3500. There is a good chance my kid will be in this rig at least 3 more years, and after all of the work and blood I’ve put into it I’ll probably buy it from him because he won’t get anything trading it instead. I’m kicking around LS swapping for a LQ9 if I buy it along with chopping the frame to make it a short bed and dropping it an inch or two. I have a 2020 Silverado 2500 that will be paid off next year and I’m not impressed with the new truck interiors so I want to keep the miles down if i keep my 2020. So the c3500 would become my daily/project truck.