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front end rebuild....from Kanter?
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Author:  kmccann09 [ Thu May 18, 2006 2:17 pm ]
Post subject:  front end rebuild....from Kanter?
Has anybody purchased any of the front end rebuild parts from them? and is the 231.00$ including shipping a good deal? In other words, since this is the only place I checked is there other places......internet searching....?
Author:  Patrick Devlin [ Thu May 18, 2006 2:29 pm ]
Post subject: 
It depends on what you get in the kit and what the quality of the parts are. The make/model and year of car is also a big factor in suspension parts price. Also, how complete of a rebuild do you want to do? It pays to shop around, and remember that cheapest isn't always best (and neither is the most expensive).

Some other places:

ESPO Springs & Things: www.espo.com

Just Suspension: www.justsuspension.com

PST: http://www.p-s-t.com/


Or if you want to buy parts individually, there's www.rockauto.com
Author:  kmccann09 [ Thu May 18, 2006 7:09 pm ]
Post subject:  all to most of the rubber.....is gone
especially on the front of and back of the "A" arms. the steering tie rods are quite gone also. Of course the "A" arms will be done also.... so thats a complete front end.........
and thanks for the other contacts..........
Author:  SlantSixDan [ Thu May 18, 2006 7:37 pm ]
Post subject: 
I recommend Espo. Friendly, knowledgeable, helpful, and they sell good quality parts.

I unrecommend Kanter (questionable parts quality—sometimes you get good stuff, other times you get garbage, and they can be a real pain to deal with if you're not happy) and this morning's experience shopping for a front-end kit for my '71 Dart cured me of ever wanting to spend a dime with PST.
Author:  Patrick Devlin [ Thu May 18, 2006 8:09 pm ]
Post subject: 
I wouldn't really recommend PST, either. I bought some suspension parts from them about 5 years ago, and I was not impressed with the quality of the ball joints supplied; however, their bushings seemed OK. I mentioned them just as another source because I did not know exactly what you wanted.

I agree with Dan on ESPO. The lower ball joints I got from them before were TRW brand, I believe.

Just a note on Moog suspension parts: The last time I replaced suspension parts, I pieced everything together with new Moog parts (bought at Rock Auto and the local NAPA), and they were high quality. I've heard some bad stuff about Moog recently on this board, though (I don't see any quality problems myself, so far). Most recently I bought Moog suspension parts for my Volvo, and to my surprise the origin of manufacture was mixed. Tie rod ends: USA; lower ball joint: Mexico; Upper strut mount/bearing: Taiwan (!), etc.
Author:  NewLancerMan [ Thu May 18, 2006 9:43 pm ]
Post subject: 
Honestly, if you're going to buy a kit, only buy from ESPO. They use TRW and Mcquay Norris. Its also just as easy to price it out yourself on Rockauto.com. If you have partsamerica partners near you, you can call them up, pricematch, and get free shipping. Not to mention easy returns to your local store.

None of the suspension places that have "kits" specify what brand parts you're getting. ESPO is straight up and will tell you what they sell.

Good luck! What parts are you replacing exactly?

MJ
Author:  SlantSixDan [ Fri May 19, 2006 5:57 am ]
Post subject: 
Quote:
Honestly, if you're going to buy a kit, only buy from ESPO. They use TRW and Mcquay Norris. ESPO is straight up and will tell you what they sell.
Yep. I was confused by their dual price listings on their website (example, front end kits with rubber bushings were priced at "$265 / $175". I asked what that meant, and she said "The lower price is for Taiwanese components. I don't like to sell them, but I price them on the site because other companies advertise low kit prices without telling the truth, or saying anything at all, about where the components are from."

Ding! I bought the $265 kit.
Author:  volaredon [ Fri May 19, 2006 6:09 am ]
Post subject: 
I have found McQuay Norris to be JUNK! Stick with Moog, or TRW. If you can find the older TRW parts like on Ebay (NOS of course, better yet.
18 yrs spent under an alignment rack kind of helps see whats good. Some of the Spicer stuff is OK, too. When I bought the front end stuff for the Volare I had 2 bushings that had to come from the dealer :roll: :?
(the torsion bar bushings on the K frame) got the ones at the control arms from Moog along with everything else from a friend's parts store along with new drums/rotors. $580. for the drums/rotors, and EVERYTHING that Moog makes for my car. I checked out the kits from the magazines and NONE were complete. Most had the rest of the parts that didn't come in the kit available seperately but none could get me everything. Besides if I DO ever have a problem, I can take care of it locally instead of over the phone, and having to wait for it to be shipped. My buddy runs a Bumper to Bumper store, had he not been a family friend so long, Id have gone to my Car Quest store, no Q's asked!Theyre the only ones in town that know what youre talking about when you walk in. (my buddys 30 mi away, a little far when you only need a couple things at $3/gallon)
Author:  slantvaliant [ Fri May 19, 2006 6:40 am ]
Post subject: 
We used a PST kit on a '77 Mercury Monarch, with no problems. But then, we just went standard rubber, with low expectations going in. My son actually ran that boat in an autocross - and didn't come in last!

For my '64 Valiant rebuild/brake swap, I got Moog parts from rockauto.com.

http://www.rockauto.com/

Mancini also has kits:

http://store.yahoo.com/chucker54/manciniracing10.html
Author:  SlantSixDan [ Wed May 24, 2006 9:12 pm ]
Post subject: 
Quote:
I have found McQuay Norris to be JUNK!
I'd like to know more about what you've seen, and when. I don't doubt what you've seen, but I don't trust Moog any longer, because they're Federal-Mogul, and I've had 2nd-row seats to watch the MBAs suck all the quality out of numerous other F-M product lines over the last 5-10 years. The parts I ordered for my '71 are all McQuay-Norris, and just from visual inspection, they seem to have been carefully made in the US. Now, here's the thing: Who made 'em? It might've been M-N, but I doubt it. At this late date, low-demand parts like undercar bits for old Chrysler A-bodies are almost certainly made by only one company and bought by all the others for inclusion in their product lines. I saw some Moog and/or TRW numbers on some of the parts, fresh out of their M-N boxes.

In the end, I'd rather trust my life to parts regarded as American garbage than parts made in Taiwan or China.
Author:  volaredon [ Thu May 25, 2006 6:38 am ]
Post subject: 
On finding M-N boxes with Moog/Spicer/TRW parts in them, I have often seen when a parts store changes suppliers the new company will send empty boxes with the new supplier's logo on them and instead of unstocking/restocking the shelves, just rebox the parts and hand write the number on the tab. This one place that I go, when they switched from Moog to M-N, ("People wanted 'cheaper' prices") theyd put a black dot on the M-N boxes that had Moog parts in them.
On the M-N parts being garbage, it was too often that it would be the only thing available so thats what we had to use to get the job done that day, usually when our Moog guy was out of stock, the customer would come back for the next alignment and that 6 mo- to a yr old M-N part would have play in it beyond allowable specs. Often, since we had a Useless Zone next door we'd see customers walk next door, estimate in hand, and get M-N cheaper than the list price that my boss made us quote jobs at (HAD to get that parts markup) then go home and put the stuff on, come back again for an alignment, same problem. Especially on parts like idler arms; not the ball-n-socket, but at the pivots, theyre supposed to swing side to side but not up and down. Often saw newly installed parts with as much or more play than what was replaced! About the only thing Id feel safe using from them would be bushings. Esp. on radius bushings for Ford trucks, their urethane outlasted everyone elses rubber and I never had squeak complaints.
Author:  SlantSixDan [ Thu May 25, 2006 12:22 pm ]
Post subject: 
And how recent/current/old is this experience?
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