Suspension Failure....You guys should see this

[pufferfish]

I have no real opinion on the quality of the arm but what I do see is that it looks like the arm was installed improperly. I am not sure if I can word this correctly, but here you go. The bolt on the axle housing side looks like it was tightened with the axle housing hanging down, such as the position the axle would be with the car on a lift. That bolt should be tightened down with the axle housing at normal ride height. If tightened down with the axle extended down, the UCA gets clamp to the axle bushing in the extended position. Once the axle collapses to proper ride height, it will try and twist the UCA downward, putting a load on the axle end.

the control arm better articulate with the suspension unloaded as well as loaded! The failure does seem strange to me though. Whiteline has sold a ton of these since their release and this is the only issue I have ever heard of. I am interested to see what Whiteline's Engineering comes up with.

 

[2012YellowBoss]

There is a reason why some of us stick with Ford Racing parts. Are they perfect, no but they have been race tested and need to meet a higher standard then any other vendor. Plus they really stand behind their product.

When I see what is put on a race car I follow it, most of the time is it a FR part.

 

[captdistraction]

two failures now in that thread. same sort of failure.

I have a set of new W/L LCA brackets in box waiting on the return of my car, they look incredibly beefy, but I'm going to get some measurements if anyone could check that against their brackets.

 

[mycroft]

two failures now in that thread. same sort of failure.

I have a set of new W/L LCA brackets in box waiting on the return of my car, they look incredibly beefy, but I'm going to get some measurements if anyone could check that against their brackets.

The LCA and relocation brackets are stout and very good pieces. It's just the upper that might potentially have an issue.

 

[captdistraction]

for sure. I err on the side of caution as I've been bitten by manufacturers before.

Back in the early 00's, I had a major failure in a lower control arm set. I bought the whiteline relocation kit after reading lots of positive reviews pertaining to their construction and design.

I'm sure it will be fine, just being cautious

 

[Jayman33]

From what I remember, the Kenny brown thickness in metal and the Whiteline thickness are identical. The picture taken by that person is very misleading. First and foremost for one company to try and completely smear the reputation of a company is uncalled for. Last I checked Van doesn't sell WL and when other individuals presented convincing arguments from the breakage of BMR and others he merely whipped it off. This is the first known break by a WL UCA. We are running this in a 750HP Shelby, 650 Roush GT, 650 whippled GT and our Boss with no signs of wear and yes WL doesn't use the typical DOM steel.

Now a little story behind this situation. The individual buys this UCA USED off an individual who originally installed it wrong on a 2013 Shelby, the reason I know is because the original buyer bought the UCA new from me. After install the original buyer calls me and tells me he thinks his shop installed it wrong... they did which I thought was impossible. After a few thousand miles he attempts to return the product as he thinks something is wrong with it however is able to sell it first on the forums before I even respond.

After the UCA broke this individual called me asking if there was anything my business could do, I immediately asked him to contact WL due to the seriousness of the matter. Even though he bought it used WL still shipped him out a new one within 24 hours of his first phone call. He may have installed it wrong... who knows but WL has handled the situation very well.

This is me defending WL, I sell their product because the products they offer are very well made and their customer service is one of the best.
Like I said, we run this exact UCA on multiple high HP cars without a single problem. We've actually had one car go airborne with no issue..... guy didn't go airborne on purpose....

Its unfortunate that a company tries to smear another company's image without knowing the entire story.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Back by popular demand. Please keep this thread as factual as possible and keep the speculation to a minimum.

 

[Brandon302]

It would be interesting to see what Whiteline does now since it looks like a total of 3 people have come up with pictures of possible failing UCA's.

 

[Champale]

And it looks like Whiteline has suspended sales of the UCA for the time being (see page 5 of the SVT thread). I emailed WL last night and am waiting to hear back.

I only installed my UCA a few weeks ago so hopefully it isn't about to fail but I already have ordered a Steeda UCA and bracket and my car won't be driven until I can replace it. Am I being foolish/impatient/wimpy/stupid/etc? Maybe, but I don't care. The last thing I want is a failure that I can avoid. I like WL products in general and they have such a great reputation with cars (Evos, for instance) so I hope that they figure this out and make it right.

 

[Justin]

And it looks like Whiteline has suspended sales of the UCA for the time being (see page 5 of the SVT thread). I emailed WL last night and am waiting to hear back.

I only installed my UCA a few weeks ago so hopefully it isn't about to fail but I already have ordered a Steeda UCA and bracket and my car won't be driven until I can replace it. Am I being foolish/impatient/wimpy/stupid/etc? Maybe, but I don't care. The last thing I want is a failure that I can avoid. I like WL products in general and they have such a great reputation with cars (Evos, for instance) so I hope that they figure this out and make it right.

i am very happy with my steeda uca and bracket

 

[Grant 302]

two failures now in that thread. same sort of failure.

I have a set of new W/L LCA brackets in box waiting on the return of my car, they look incredibly beefy, but I'm going to get some measurements if anyone could check that against their brackets.

The FRPP units measure at ~0.16" and are only double plate at the lower joint holes.

Chris, I wouldn't worry about the Whiteline LCA brackets. The main reason I didn't go with those is that they only had one position to use.


For those with the UCA arm/bracket, I'd check your arm, and contact your vendor. I believe the issue to be work hardening of the material in the plate welded to the tube in the arm section.

For those with other brands of race parts on your cars, don't think that a 'beefy' appearance means that they're better or that you don't need to check your parts for signs of fatigue or failure either. Aftermarket parts wear and fail regardless of brand.

 

[Grant 302]

Thought of one more reason for possible failure...perhaps not enough clearance at the lower side of the 'box' to the pumpkin/upper bushing ear.

 

[Brandon302]

It is looking like, from the pictures and from one of the posters explanations, that the metal may be too thin where the arm is welded on the side where it bolts to the pumpkin, so when the arm moves horizontally it flexes and eventually snaps.

 

[Champale]

Here is Whiteline's answer to my email wondering what I should do:

Hi John,

We have recently become aware of this issue with the upper control arm. We are currently in the process of examining the failures and have contingency plan in motion including a redesign of the arm. We expect to have an answer within the next 10 days. If you would like to return the arm to your vendor at this time you are free to do so. Please let us know if you have any questions.

Thank you for your support,

Daniel Tong

Technical Service & Customer Service

Redranger USA/ Whiteline USA

9469 Richmond Place

 

[Champale]

Update: yanked off my WL UCA and it definitely had already started to flex in the same location that others have broken (it is slightly bowed and the powdercoat has started to crack). I had it on my car for less than 100 miles but I did do plenty of launches and hard cornering while it was on so thank goodness it didn't crack or break.

Replaced it with Steeda upper bracket and non-adjustable UCA (which is offered in different lengths depending on if you are at OE ride height or lowered). Less NVH than the WL, which is nice.

Steeda on the left and WL on the right.

 

[ORANGE CRUSH]

Wow. Big difference in thickness.

 

[mycroft]

Wow. Big difference in thickness.

Different materials (chromoly vs mild steel - in theory you can get the same strength with less wall thickness). Regardless the whiteline unit is TOO thin. Someone did some armchair engineering.

 

[Jimmy Pribble]

Found this stuck in the Internet tube leading into my house.

I'm sure chromoly has its uses, but every time I hear the word chromoly, I think to myself, oh...that's the metal that nobody is allowed to make roll cages out of anymore (except NHRA). I wonder what they didn't like about it.

I'm piling-on with another picture, because I think the most important thing that can come out of this thread is the idea that we all need to perform even cursury inspections of our suspensions. That is a line item on every pre-race checklist I have ever seen. In fact, if I have an issue with WL, it isn't the design, it's the testing. By all accounts, the defects are appearing almost immediately, even with ordinary street driving. I wonder what the WL test cycle looks like. But I'm a QA, so of course I would wonder that.

It sounds like WL is handling this correctly, which I am happy to hear. They are a reputable company that is been in business a long time and I hope that they revise the product, make their customers happy and continue to move forward. I'm looking forward to seeing their new design.

 

[thebull]

I don't think that's Chromoly....look at the weld on the bushing end...ever see a TIG weld look like that...I sure hope not.

 

[mycroft]

I don't think that's Chromoly....look at the weld on the bushing end...ever see a TIG weld look like that...I sure hope not.

According to Whiteline, it's 4130 Chromoly, and supposedly it's TIG welded (according to their rep on another forum).