MythicLionMan
Advanced Member
I have a '96 Dodge B3500 Roadtrek 190V. According to a Dodge dealer it has the 4000lb front axle (the sticker under the hood isn't legible). The front suspension is pretty much worn out, squeaks, and one of the ball joints has no boot. Whenever the weight shifts forward the van pulls to one side. I want to replace the ball joints and all bushings, pretty much everything except for the springs, sway bar, and steering linkages.
Finding parts for this van is always a challenge, and I've heard lots of horror stories about new parts being of poor quality.
These are the parts I was thinking of getting and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with them in these old vans?
Upper control arm:
Just before we bought the van 11 years ago the dealer installed new upper control arms. One of the ball joints already has a torn boot and visible rust. There was a squeaking when we test drove the van, so I suspect that the new joint had already started to fail. They installed the following control arms:
Doorman 520-317 and 520-318
I was initially thinking of replacing the entire control arms to get new bushings and ball joints. Something like these:
Moog RK620369 and RK620370
Mevotch CMS25135 and CMS25136
But the bushings in the control arms should be ok since they're so new. So maybe I should just replace the ball joints and leave the upper control arms alone. In that case I could just get these, but I don't know if they'd fit the Doorman control arm. These also look like better parts since they're K series:
Moog K7082
Lower control arm:
I can't find the lower control arm for the 4000lb axle, so I think I'll have to rebuild the old one with new bushings and ball joints. There's a fair amount of rust on my control arms so I'd rather replace them if I can.
Moog ball joint K7053T
Moog bushing K7117
Shock Absorbers:
Monroe 34831
Bilstein 24-014014
I don't think the following parts are specific to one axle or another. None of them specify a preference:
Strut Rod Bushings:
Moog bushing kit K7090
Spring Insulators:
Moog K160037
Finding parts for this van is always a challenge, and I've heard lots of horror stories about new parts being of poor quality.
These are the parts I was thinking of getting and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with them in these old vans?
Upper control arm:
Just before we bought the van 11 years ago the dealer installed new upper control arms. One of the ball joints already has a torn boot and visible rust. There was a squeaking when we test drove the van, so I suspect that the new joint had already started to fail. They installed the following control arms:
Doorman 520-317 and 520-318
I was initially thinking of replacing the entire control arms to get new bushings and ball joints. Something like these:
Moog RK620369 and RK620370
Mevotch CMS25135 and CMS25136
But the bushings in the control arms should be ok since they're so new. So maybe I should just replace the ball joints and leave the upper control arms alone. In that case I could just get these, but I don't know if they'd fit the Doorman control arm. These also look like better parts since they're K series:
Moog K7082
Lower control arm:
I can't find the lower control arm for the 4000lb axle, so I think I'll have to rebuild the old one with new bushings and ball joints. There's a fair amount of rust on my control arms so I'd rather replace them if I can.
Moog ball joint K7053T
Moog bushing K7117
Shock Absorbers:
Monroe 34831
Bilstein 24-014014
I don't think the following parts are specific to one axle or another. None of them specify a preference:
Strut Rod Bushings:
Moog bushing kit K7090
Spring Insulators:
Moog K160037