Didn't want to spend $400 plus for tubular arms especially cause I'm valuing ride quality on this build(want to stick to rubber bushings and stay as close to oem as possible). There are also no direct replacement parts for 3rd gen Fbody control arms. I also want to avoid pressing out the bushings myself as I have nothing but terrbile experiences trying to do this.

I have read in a few different places that the S-10 Front lowers are the same as the Fbody ones.. Some people reported that the steering stops/bushing might be differnet.

I ordered a set of Moog front lowers for a 1991 S-10 2wd. They're a very reasonable 70 bucks a pop on rockauto. After taking out the stock ones and comparing, they are exactly the same geometrically. The steering stop looks the same as well as far as placement and size..

I can confirm the front side bushing is different than the FBody ones. You should almost certainly not use the stock control arm front bolt with an S10 arm. There is about 2mm of play. The bushing sleeve is about 14.2mm for the front bushing and the Fbody bolt and frame hole is for a 12mm bolt. The back bolt will work fine, both are 12mm sleeve size.

Rather than replacing the bushing on the new arm, I sourced a set of S10 control arm bolts. UMI part number 3801. My plan is to bore the front hold a bit larger so I can use it with the new control arm. I'll report back with any updates.

 

what brand did you get? i just buy the $90 ebay set. the bump stops are different than the fbody but i didnt notice any difference in the bushing

 

do you have a link by any chance? I bought the Moog set.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/356222817234

 

Did you install them yet?, really wanting to go this route to just avoid doing bushings and painting the old camaro arms

 

Not yet.

I got the new bolts in for the larger bushing size:
Nuts:
They are a PERFECT fit for the front bushing.

The rearward bushing is the same size at the OEM bolt so I am just going to reuse that.

The new 14mm bolt is too large for the control arm holes in the k-member so I am getting a step bit to punch the hole a littler bigger. Going for 14mm or 9/16ths of an inch(14.3mm)

 

Interesting discussion guys. On that Moog control arm, does this mean the front bushing has less rubber in it? Or is the bushing also bigger? In otherwords, did they take the same bushing from a 3rd gen, but make the bolt hold bigger, which would mean less rubber?

BTW - if you check the OEM part number of the ebay item vs the Moog, they are different. ebay lines up with moog RK620251 and 1991 S10 pickup with V6 is Moog 620261 / 620260

 

Do the bump stops work, or do you have to alter them?

 

the bump stops are the same i ment the steering stops are different you can cut the old one off and bolt it to the new one

 

Great, def going this route, i dont see any ride altering problems, w whole 2mm less of rubber wont cause anything

 

I can't really appreciate the difference from that angle. Does the 3rd Gen steering stop sit up higher? It also looks like they don't have the same valley (lack of better word) in the casting that leads up to the ball joint.

 

I’ll check tonight if the actual bushing is a different size or just the inner sleeve.

the part number in my Moog arms that I got from rockauto is RK620251

 

I think there might be a few versions of these with the same Moog part numbers. I don't remember the bolts sizes being any different and my steering stops are welded on which I did not expect. I ordered these directly from Summit.

 

That is odd. The ebay one has same part number, yet you both are saying front bearing bolt hole is different. I was looking at the Pontiac parts book to see what the GM part number was for these and there are actually different part numbers based on car and year. Its confusing and I haven't figured it out yet. For example, they specify 15" wheels but don't make mention of 16". There is also a 1LE part number for 91 and 92. Didn't get a chance to look at bushing part number yet, but perhaps you both have different year cars and different a-arm part number and maybe Lotus just happens to have the right bolt size based on that, and Lotus old bolt and the new bolt you just bought are the same size. Would be interesting to know. Will also look at the GM bolt part numbers.

 

Are you saying the same Moog part number can vary? Did the steering stops work or did you alter them?

 

the 3rd gen steering stops are higher and come out more away from the control arm that the s10. i ordered another set from eBay ill measure more and compare to a stock arm. should be in Monday

 

the steering stops are non-issue, that can be moved. i want to know if the arm is the same shape, we can always hog out the hole an extra 2mm and move a stop if it means i can have smooth arms and not have to blast and paint old ones.

 

yes the arms are exactly the same.

 

Maybe...The original part picture when I ordered mine had the steering stop mounted with bolts. However, when they arrived, the steering stops were welded to the a-arms with no bolts. Had I not purchased from Summit I probably would've assumed they were knock-offs. The a-arms look identical and and I didn't move my steering stops.

 

on this set i received as OP mentioned one bushing hole is bigger than the other

 

 

Great replies, thatll do, just gonna hog out the hole 2mm

 

Yes, they look identical. Looks like even the steering stops will work, am I seeing that right? In the S10 arm with the bigger hole, is the bushing also bigger?

 

I keep forgetting to check this. Hopefully my brain will work tonight.

I drilled out the hole in the Kmember a bit larger with a 15 dollar step bit from Harbor Freight. I used 9/16in. Took 20 seconds. New 14mm bolts fit in perfectly.

 

howd it end up working out, any issues?

 

the inner and outer diameter of the bushings are the same
they come with 2 different sized steel sleeves to suit what vehicle/bolt sizer you are installing
Most S10/g body arms are like this.

 

worked out no problem. The control arm was the only non problematic part! Aside from the bushing sleeve size of course.

I used a 9/16th inch step bit. Took 20 seconds. Then I put in the 14mm 10.9 bolts I bought and it was perfect. If your steering is still attached, you’ll have to either remove the center link, or get an impact extension in order to bore then hole larger. I also recommend removing the sway bar to give you more space.

the coil spring gave me a good scare. They popped out of the compressor I was using and it really psyched me out for a few days. I ended up buying a really expensive compressor and it made a HUGE difference in how easy/safe it was to compress. It was 250 bucks but well worth the piece of mind. I still have a bruise on my hand from when the first one popped.

Another tip, make sure the spring is actually fully in its pocket at the top before bolting everything back together… ask me how I know…

OTC 7045B Front Coil Spring...

 

Oh man, sounds like you got lucky. Those coil springs freak me out just thinking about them. If I ever do this job, it will be with engine out or probably just pay someone to do it. my health ins is not very good.

Thanks for the tip on the spring compressor. Did you feel extra confident with it?

 

Sure did. That thing was rock solid and idiot proof. I could have compressed it till the coils were touching and dropped it. It wouldn't have budged.