Ironman Pro UCA Safety Recall

Anyone else got any more update?
I was going to install my FCP tomorrow with the UCAs…

Anyone have exact part number for the UCA they got with their part #?
Mine is saying UCA001FA, not UCA001FAT,
does that not matter and they are the same?

 

@Majora

 

I have a FCP stage 2 kit for my 2nd gen sitting in my garage right now. I was going to install it this week, but then saw the recall and decided to wait a little bit to see how this plays out.

Does anyone know if OEM Toyota ball joints will work in these UCAs? I’m contemplating replacing them just to be safe. I’ve tried contacting Ironman via email, phone, website chat, and IG to get this answer but have been unable to get through to anyone. The lack of response has been a little disappointing and frustrating.

 

Freals. They used to have stellar support. Their radio silence is disappointing and unprofessional.

 

https://youtu.be/InQnp42pfts

You can refer to this. I’ve learned a lot from this guy. I think he mentions what is replaceable on Ironman UCA.
I was in the exact same boat with you, but ended up installing mine yesterday at home.
To me, there are plenty of testaments of Ironman FCP & UCA that I felt comfortable riding them right now. If they do end up recalling, if/when they need to be replaced, I’ll just need to replace UCA only.
I have a camper I am picking up next week, so my truck is not going to fit in my garage after, which led to me to pulling the trigger on install.

 

I feel you.
But I called them Saturday, and
they said they will be making an official announcement this week. So, I’m gonna give them another week and see.

 

Just received this

 

That's odd. Supposed to be factory style ball joints right? That is one of the selling points to me. I can't imagine the geometry is so of that it causes failure of the joint but maybe I'm just being hopeful

 

Maybe factory style doesn't mean OEM Toyota? And their ball joint source was the issue?

 

I wish they fully disclose in detail what the issue is to clarify why the recall is being made…

 

Ive been speaking with Head Office in Melbourne. The sales manager told me the ball joints are getting excessive wear and some have separated resulting in accidents. (To be clear - they told me the ball coming out from its socket... so not arm related at all). They wouldnt tell me how many have separated, but said its some small percentage of the thousands of arms they have sold worldwide. Its clear its a fastly evolving situation and they said they we developing the plan, whilst also obtaining a Tier 1 supplier of appropriate BJs.

In Australia there are serious regulations for safety recalls. A friend took his FJ in last week and they found his LHS BJ had some play, so they replaced with new set of arms and told him he will need to come back when they can fit the new BJs. Or we could sort it ourselves - I was told they will reimburse 2 hrs labour + cost of BJs + wheel alignment (In Aus).

I was told that the FJ/Prado/Hilux arms (UCA001FA - also 4runner) use the Hilux factory size ballpoint - OEM equivalent 43310-09017, which has a slightly smaller diameter than the FJ/Prado/4runner OEM sized balljoint.

Ironman need to publish part numbers for replacement ball joints, as fitting an eg MOOG (or other aftermarket compatible) FJ balljoint into the UCA001FA would likely crack the UCA as in the photo at the start of this thread.

 

I got the same message today as a follow up to my almost 2 hour wait on their website chat last week, glad they’re taking care of it.

I’m with drwormy, they need to publish a list of balljoints that they recommend as replacements, I’d like to stick to genuine toyota balljoints but want to hear from them that they are ok to use and won’t cause damage.

 

Saw this on the Instagram this morning... Gotta say I'm glad they stand behind their product.

 

More useful details in this PDF from the NHTSA: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2023/RCLRPT-23E051-8251.PDF

It seems the fix will be replacement ball joints with zerk fittings that will be greaseable. The stated issue is ingress of water and dirt was causing premature failure.


:

 

Has anyone gotten a response from Ironman4x4USA about a replacement ball joint? My guess is those affected have filled out the online recall form including myself, but since the above safety recall states Ironman will contact by mail on/before Sept 1st, I gave up on hearing back before that time.
I had set up an appointment with a shop, but most likely will push it back…

 

No, not really. I heard back from them after expressing my displeasure with service and responses on another matter. The response was essentially, we'll try to do better with the UCAs. No mention of timeline or additional details though.

 

Update- I received a letter in the mail from Ironman. It restates that the issue is the ball joint; now the remedy is complete upper control arm replacement. To be clear it says verbatim "We will ship your replacement upper control arms free of charge when the part becomes available, which we anticipate to be in October." It goes on to say that the parts should be installed at the local dealer and that receipts will need to be submitted for full reimbursement, though it does not state whether there is an upper limit to the dollar amount covered.

 

Yep. I got the same letter today.

It says the affected SKU# are UCA001FA, UCA048FA, UCA056FA and UCA075FA.

 

How do we know what the SKU# is? I have the stage 2 foam cell kit from Nov 2021. The form ask for a SKU# but I have no idea.

I have a real funny story and funny I got this notice in the mail today. Yesterday, I had to get a tow because the RH UCA came loose at the long mount bolt. The nut is probably in another state and I never noticed until I skidded off the road doing 40 yesterday. No damage to the truck, new bolt and nut on the way from Toyota. Hopefully won't find any other damage but I expect I will.

Something very weird I noticed while ordering a new replacement nut from Toyota. It says on the website, "Part cannot be reused/reinstalled." Apparently this nut has loctite or some component as a locking feature and is one-time use only. We should probably get a couple of new nuts included in the kit.

Oh well though, I blame myself for not checking the torque on all these parts more often and using loctite!

Edit:, Ah, the recall says it applies to me, and gives the SKU's. Ha. Disregard.

 

The letter gives the SKUs. I couldn't find which one is for my UCAs in my Ironman account. I did find the order# though and I figure with your name, addy, vehicle info and order number they can find the SKU themselves. I left that part blank on the online form.