Kronik

I am currently looking for suspension parts and the 2 most talked about on mustang forums is BMR and CHE. I’m Looking at getting adjustable LCA’s, UCA, Panhard Bar, K member with engine torque limiters, all from CHE is there any reason I should get these products from BMR instead of CHE or is it just Personal brand preference. Is one really better then the other.

CrazyAl

If you want the K-member brace with Torque Limiters, then CHE is your only choice becasue BMR doesn't make that.

Regarding the other parts, I would recommend BMR instead of CHE. Specifically, the BMR UCA is significantly sturdier than any other UCA on the market right now, including CHE's part. The BMR piece is made of formed flat plate and is fully boxed, whereas the other brands are typically just a piece of tubing with a bracket welded to it.

A lot of people are using the CHE LCAs with no problems, so they definatley work. However, I personally do not trust their claim that they are lubrication free. I had similar (delrin/poly) control arms on my Buick and they did squeak and weareven though they supposedly would not. I like the BMR LCAs becasue they come with grease fittings, which makes maintenance easy. A lot of other brands (CHE included) leave these off.

06GT4RAD

Hey Al on the BMR UCA do you suggest the BMR mount to go with it or stick with the stock piece?

Richard

CrazyAl

The BMR UCA mount is great, but I wouldn't buy one for a typical daily driver.

I'd get one if you had a high HP setup (FI or nitrous),if you drag raced a lot, or if you could afford it and you simply wanted to get the best suspension possible.

On a common street caron a budget, I wouldn't get one. You have to draw the line somewhere.

torch red

I figured since i am changing everything under there anyway, i decided and just yesterday to buy the UCA mount..Found one on E-bay for 99 bucks..in Red which is what i wanted like the rest of my pieces..
Needed no, but i figure why not, this way its totally done..When i start increasing HP..

Timmay!!!

I've been running CHE LCAs, LCA relocation brackets,UCA andK-member brace for 4 months now, no issues. As for the torque limiters BEWARE, the instructions I got said to torque the bellhousing bolts to 85 ft-lbs...SNAP, thats what happened to me so now I have to find a way to drill out that bolt or pull my tranny. The proper torque for the bellhousing bolts is 33-35 ft-lbs.Until then I can't really step into the gas. Plus there is the issue of getting the adjustment of the T-limiters just right or they will rattle. But when they work they work. I have one installed since I'm scared that I might snap the other bellhousing bolt trying to remove it, but even one made a bit of a difference. BMR makes some great pieces and I wouldn't hesitate to use them even though I'm not convinced that their Poly/rod end LCAs are completely quiet.

CrazyAl

Another option for those people who are concerned about engine/trans movement and that making shifting difficult is simply to get stiffer motor mounts. That acheives the same goal as the CHE "torque brace" except there is no danger of snapping bolts. I am wary of the CHE part also becasue you are putting a lot of shear load on what is actually a fairly small bolt. I suggest the motor mounts instead--they are a lot stronger and the installation is a lot more hassle-free.

It's good to hear that the CHE LCAs and so forth don't squeak though!

GrabberOrange07

What vendors are offering the best prices and service for these parts?

CrazyAl

A quick comment about suspension parts and noise:

If you hear a "clunking", "banging" or "rattling" sound then something is either broken or installed wrong. NO suspension parts, even the full-on race parts with nothing other than rod-ends will do this when properly installed. These kind of sounds mean that something is dreadfully amiss--either a part has failed or there is a loose bolt or some other installation error.

What you WILL hear from suspension parts is an increase in road noise. Road noise isn't clunking or banging. Road noise is a constant, steady, "static" or "hiss" type of sound. You know the sound that any car makes when you drive over gravel on the road? THAT is the kind of sound that stiffer suspension parts will make. It shouldn't be as loud as driving over a gravel road, but that is a good example of the type of sound involved.

In this case, there is a DIRECT correlaction between the firmness of the suspension and the degree of sound that is made. The firmer (better) the suspension parts are, the louder they are. This is becuse stiffness of the suspension parts is what allows road noise to be transmitted. The firmer the parts are, the more noise is conducted into the body of the car. Parts like LCAs do not make road noise. They do, however, allow it to be transmitted from the rear axle into the body of the car.

If Car A is quieter than Car B, and there are no failed parts or improper installs on either car, then Car B will have a stiffer suspension.

I hesitate to use the word "Better" suspension becasue this depends on what your goals are. On a daily driver, a stiffer suspension isn't always "better" because it may be too loud for comfort. However, firmer (louder) parts are better from a performance point of view.

That being said, BMR--like many other brands--make different grades of parts for different applications.

The poly-poly control armsare a little stiffer than stock, and consequently they are only a little louder than stock. Most people wouldn't even notice the increased road noise.

The poly-heim combo parts are stiffer still, and they are also a little louder. I recommend these becasue most people won't find the extra noise objectionable--and at the same time they are a lot stiffer than OEM, and the heim joints offer much better pivoting than poly bushings. These parts are great because while they are only slightly louder than the above type, they offer much better performance.

The double-heim type (rod ends on both ends) are of course the stiffest possible, they have the best pivoting, but they are also very loud becasue there is no damping material at all in them. These would be used whenver the extra noise is not a problem.

Timmay!!!

I can attest to this as I swore that a rattle I had was coming from my LCAs when infact it was just a loose swaybar.