400,000 front end rebuild BEST current deal on parts????

2002 4x4 Creeping up on 400k and the front end needs some love. Not to mention one CV just started leaking a lil grease. So as the saying goes "While in there"....... Going with tubular UPCs w/ different sryle upper ball joints. Other than that sticking with OEM or close. Need to source:

-KOYO front wheel bearings & seals
-CV axle rebuild boot/ clamp kits (both sides)
-Lower ball joints (555 or ?)
-"Afordable" Unloaded NEW or USED/ rebuildable Lower control arms
-Whiteline LCA bushings

Previously addresed: Bilstein 5100 struts/ Eibach springs, top hats/ spring bushings, Eurethane sway bar and rack & pinion bushings along with end-links. I also just did Bosch front rotors and pads 2k miles ago. Everything else done within the last 30-35k miles.

Anything else I might be forgeting?

Only have a long ass day to do ALL of the above at the shop I work at so would like to swap in ready to mount rebuilt LCAs to save on time. 55 ton press ready to knock the bearings off the hub at work so no sweat on those.

Any tips and help much apreciated!!!!

 

Ourisman Toyota Parts (previously McGeorge Toyota) or ToyotaPartsDeal.com are my two go-to vendors for OEM parts. And I'd suggest going OEM Toyota parts for all the parts you've listed.

Front Wheel Bearings:
McGeorge should have these so long as you can find the part #.

Lower Ball Joints:
So skip the 555 ball joints and go OEM.

LCAs/LCA Bushings:
Lower control arms come preloaded with bushings if you buy them from Toyota (or most other aftermarket companies) unless you go with improved LCAs like what a LT Kit would provide. You could post a want to buy ad in the 1st Gen buy sell trade section here on TacomaWorld and see if anyone has some spare used LCAs to sell you. Alternatively you could check any local pick and pull yards for lower control arms from a 1st gen Tacoma or 3rd gen 4runner too.

Personally I'd just press the bushings out of yours and press in new OEM bushings as part of your long day of work. It'll save some coin on new LCAs, and it's really not difficult. If you place the lower control arm in a vice, and then place a bottle jack in between the arms and press the bushing out of the bottom arm (bottle jack is oriented upside down), and apply a tad bit of heat at the same time these bushings usually come out like butter, unless they're really rusty (yours don't appear to be).

I'd skip the whiteline bushings because it requires you to reuse the outer metal sleeve from your OEM bushings, and having to carefully remove those bushings to do that could slow you down quite a bit.

CV axle reboot kits:
McGeorge has these for about $55 a piece last I saw. You'll need one for each CV axle. You could do the CV axle reboot job before the rest of the front end work (just use jackstands at home or something) if you're really worried about having enough time, because this job can be a bit time consuming and messy (especially if it your first time rebooting CV axles).

I've done all the work your listing (+ a steering rack replacement) on jackstands in my driveway in a long ass day. So I really think you can get this done in a shop with a lift, in one day, with time to spare.

 

You will pay shipping so choose a supplier as close as possible with good prices. Camelback Toyota in Phoenix is competitive on prices.

 

Speaking of that. I just got back from my local Toyota Dealer parts counter and asked if they'd price match the air and oil filter I needed, based on Ourisman Toyota's website's advertised prices and they did.

Ourisman Toyota Parts Website:

https://toyotaparts.ourismantoyotao...w__59BCCgVOa4o8m1_uevpCP-yyqmBEgaAjrjEALw_wcB

Doubt you'll find lower advertised prices for OEM Toyota parts then Ourisman. So I'd try pulling them up on your phone and then visiting your local dealer and asking for a price match. Then they foot the shipping fees not you and you get the parts lickety split.

 

Hit up Joe Joe, he beats all dealer prices on OEM parts.

 

Oh, miles.

I was about to be like "Get a quote from a different shop."

 

So Whiteline LCA bushings aren't worth the trouble? Reason I'd like to swap in rebuilt arms is cause i can sand blast em and send em to powder coat on shop dime prior and i'm already planning on blasting/ painting the spindles when doing the bearings. Eventually i need to wire wheel/ POR15 the whole chasis. Pressing out LCA bushings is no sweat since i have access to a 55 ton press. But if there isn't a huge difference in OEM/ aftermarket/ whiteline bushings it would be easier to just buy loaded arms and call it done!

What's wrong with 555 stuff thought it was japanese? I did inner/ outter tie rods from them a while back and everything still good after 30k.

On that note what about Upper control arms? Tubulars in the $200-350 range better than getting OEM ball joints/ bushings and rebuilding my own?!

I don't really "wheel" the rig and usually just do offroad camping/ forest service roads and blue/ intermidiate trails. Nothing crazy. Front is only 2.25" lift with the bilsteins. So not sure I actually "Need" Tubular UCAs....

Much thanks for all the input guys!

 

The attached OEM price comparison was current as of May '23 or so, when I did mine, '03.

 

I don't have direct experience with whiteline bushings, but OEM LCA bushings are really solid, and less trouble to install (as you don't have to save the metal outer sleeve from the OEM bushing you're removing). The original bushings on my truck made it nearly 275k miles. I also hear whitelines squeak a lot. People usually opt for poly bushings (like whitelines) when they wheel their trucks hard. I think OEM makes more sense for your use case. I didn't realize you had access to sandblasting and powder coating, and so buying some used LCAs ahead of time now makes a lot of sense (but I'd still advocate for OEM bushings to go in those). You should know that you can buy new lower control arms from Toyota for ~$250 each that already have the bushings in them (thats just a lot of coin to spend in my mind).

I put Moog LCA bushings into my truck one time (when the original OEMs needed replacement), and they failed and started clunking really bad after 3 weeks. So I'd steer clear of Moog. I had to tear apart the whole front end again a month later to redo the job and wised up and put OEM bushings in there. A couple years later and they're totally fine. I use my truck similarly to yours, but come hunting season she sees some pretty gnarly trails, and the OEM bushings have been more than sufficient.

Regarding UCAs, I'm rocking OEM uppers with a 3" lift and would prefer tubular uniball style (preferably Icon Delta Joint ones), but just can't afford to blow $900 on those yet. The OEM uppers are ok, but tubular uniballs can make the truck feel more stable at speeds, due to increased castor, and can give an overall better alignment on lifted trucks.

 

So I work at a hot rod / classic resto shop so have access do lifts, blast cabinet and the works. Anything employes need powder coated just gets tossed in with customer stuff so no charge. at least as long as it's satin black lol. I hear you on moog stuff, it along with a ton of offshore manufacturing has gone to shit.

yeah I'm totally surprised the oem control arm bushings, O.G CVs and most jaw dropping the front wheel bearings have gone 400k. The only thing the truck is doing is a clunk on speed bumps/ pot holes which I've already isolated to control arm bushings and the recent grease weap from one CV. the LBJs were done at Toyota by previous owner at some point but can't really tell about the uppers. Either way I'm one of those guys especially on my own rig who does not cut corners. The "while in there" saying totally sums it up. I REALLY do not want to go through what you did and do this all twice or cheap out on replacing the one thing which would cause me to rip all apart again. I'm working with a $1,000 budget for parts to rebuild the front end. She also needs a transfer case re-seal, manual trans rebuild, a New steering rack (oem still going but has play), and a new cat-back exhaust due to rust. Needles to say I gotta budget my funds in order off critical to can wait a lil longer and the front end is up.

 

I gotcha. Sounds like you've got a good list. But honestly not bad for a truck with 400k miles. A couple thousand bucks now and she'll be ready for another 400k