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Front End Suspension, Moog, Master Pro, PST which one?

55K views 61 replies 23 participants last post by  Rizzi427 
#1 ·
I have been looking at the front end kits, will go rubber, but the:

Moog is pricey.... $283 but part by part
Big Tony Chevelle has a kit for $150
PST has a kit for $369
CCP has a kit for $259
MPC Master Pro Oreilly House Brand

..................Moog... MPC ....CCP
2Uballjoint...... 30..... 9....... 19
2Lballjoint .......30.... 15 ......23
O tie rod .........46.... 20...... 39
I tie rod ..........25.... 11.......14
Tie Adjust .......32 ....11...... 18
CA Bushings..... 59.....59...... 59
Sway b end......28.....16...... 28
Idler Arm......... 33.....15...... 29
....................$283..$175 ..$229


Is the Moog better due to marketing or truly superior over these other manufactors?....When you line them up side by side, they damn near look the same. MCP is Orelliy's house brand. My buddy that works there says they use em all the time and Moog you are paying for advertisement. But I noticed that if you break down the parts in these kits from the restoration sites/shops, they are the same price as MCP's part for part.... The they are cheaper than the Moog....... So my question is can you live with the MCP stuff from Oreilly's?

I also talked to a guy from one of the resto sites and he claimed Moog out sources their componets anyway and often parts will not fit or look orig. He says their parts are better for retro.....

Any thoughts?
 
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#3 ·
Moog is a top quality part made in the USA and CANADA not "offshore" their products provide excellent fit and reliabilty and are made to last.We have never had a problem with a Moog unit in 35 years and their reputation speaks for itself. note the prices you list are they all for 2 and are they MOOG NEW STOCK the ball joints and the ends does not look correct Bob Rizzi/Rizzi's Auto Parts
 
#25 ·
shonuff said:
I have been looking at the front end kits, will go rubber, but the:

Moog is pricey.... $283 but part by part
Big Tony Chevelle has a kit for $150
PST has a kit for $369
CCP has a kit for $259
MPC Master Pro Oreilly House Brand
We (PST) also offer FREE SHIPPING to the 48 US States and a 10% discount to Chevelles.com members. I think you will find that PST has the best combination of quality and price of any kit on the market, and all of our products meet or exceed OE specifications and are backed by our Limited Lifetime Warranty.

Tom Mobley did a great writeup on the install here:

http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=276113




I know for a fact that not all Moog products are made in the USA - many of their ball studs are made in Taiwan and assembled in the USA.

That being said, they do have great quality and we do use quite a bit of Moog product in our kits!
 
#5 ·
Good topic....I have been researching the following as well as I am ordering a front end rebuild kit this weekend as well. PST said they use some moog parts in there kit and also make there own....I wish moog had a kit rather than parting it out.
 
#9 ·
I just replaced lower control arm bushings on my friends '03 Ferd Escape. I told him to buy the quality Moog parts. Upon opening the boxes the bushings said "MADE IN CHINA"


if that product was made in china it should of been stamped on the box,


box should also state "problem solver" bob rizzi/ rizzi's auto parts

we are discussing moog parts for a chevelle ?
 
#13 ·
service grade ,professional grade etc, etc, know the product sell the product stand by the product>>>>>>>>> bob rizzi/rizzi's auto parts
Rizzi do you see what I am saying? What gives, who do you trust? If I go Moog I will have to piece it together or use my buddy's shop discount at Oreilly's..... I have a shop account at XL Parts(don't ask any questions how) but wanted to give the vendors a chance before I ordered the Moog part by part.....

I just found out Summit has a Kit Right Stuff for $159...... Are these other kits inferrior to Moog?
 
#12 ·
To add something to the gumbo...... I just left Oreilly's where my buddy works, the old timer there said Borg Wagner makes the Master Pro Oreilly house brand........He said sometimes they open up the boxes and they say moog on the parts of the Master Pro......The Master Pro looked exactly like the Moog..... He basically said its all a gumbo..... but I have used Moog on my 67 Deville I had, with no probs.......

The thing that was interesting to me was when I talked to one of the vendors here the tech said they do not use moog, their claim is that Moog outsources so many parts, and sometimes they do not mate completely OEM with our cars......

So that goes back to when I compare prices of some of these kits and part for part from the resto shops..... Are the resto vendors buying the cheap house brands, then packaging them up and selling them?

Tony's Chevelle $150
Ground UP $159 and $269
PST $179 and $369
CCP $149 and $259

These are suppose to be complete kits... How are they selling em so cheap, but the Moog's are $300 plus....

Just trying to figure this stuff out............I am a economist so I try to nail it down to the finite numbers.......Maybe I am helping myself as well as others put the numbers to the pad and figure out the quality.. I do not want to over pay for damn near the same parts and pay for one company's advertisement......
 
#15 ·
John,I have been in the auto parts business since 1975 owned one of the fastest chevelles in the ny area back in the 1960's and early 70's,Moog makes a great product as well as dana/spicer also there is different levels of parts today some parts are made in the USA and some offshore. Some of the kits sold are just that made to be used together because of their design and the grade of steel used, etc. As for a vendor stating problems with a Moog product thats called "knock the competitor buy my product" be assured the parts that Moog makes for your chevelle are "MADE IN THE USA" note they have hd rubber boots on the ball joints and tie rod ends and state" problem solver" when it comes to a classic car know your product!!!!!! Bob Rizzi/Rizzi's Auto Parts
 
#16 ·
What Bob said.

Not knowing of Bob's shop last year I bought a complete MOOG setup for my Chevelle. Upper and Lower ball joints and bushings, inner and out tie rods and sleeves, problem solver idler arm and drag link, sway bar stuff, it was like $500 before it was over. It was cheaper there than anywhere else for MOOG. When I see complete kits being advertised for $150 or $200 I think "cheap china junk".

I think some of these vendors have it figured out that most of these cars are weekenders or trailer queens, very low mileage. Cheap junk might last a long time, longer than any warranty. My car is a daily driver though, I wanted good stuff. Then I ended up with the polygraphite stuff from a forum sponsor on a trade deal. All that MOOG stuff is in a closet. I do have to say my car drives better than ever with the P-S-T stuff and I've put around 220K on it.
 
#19 ·
What Bob said.

Not knowing of Bob's shop last year I bought a complete MOOG setup for my Chevelle. Upper and Lower ball joints and bushings, inner and out tie rods and sleeves, problem solver idler arm and drag link, sway bar stuff, it was like $500 before it was over. It was cheaper there than anywhere else for MOOG. When I see complete kits being advertised for $150 or $200 I think "cheap china junk".

I think some of these vendors have it figured out that most of these cars are weekenders or trailer queens, very low mileage. Cheap junk might last a long time, longer than any warranty. My car is a daily driver though, I wanted good stuff. Then I ended up with the polygraphite stuff from a forum sponsor on a trade deal. All that MOOG stuff is in a closet. I do have to say my car drives better than ever with the P-S-T stuff and I've put around 220K on it.
Tom: Daily driver here too, so I put 1000+ a month thats why the urgency... I have too do this soon.... Car is steering to the right, plus control arm bushings rotting, right inner tie rod, and left outer tie rod, upper ball and joint are through... I guess when the guy I bought it from restored, they did not touch the Front end.... Plus I have been really driving the heck out of it to see if something is wrong or pop up before I replace...

I read your sticky, good stuff....
How is the PST polygraphite working for you Tom? What are you going to do with the Moog? Save it for later?

Rizzi :
thanks for the info, Just wanted to do some Homework first... Thanks for the info.....
 
#17 ·
it's not that hard to piece together a Moog "kit".. it's not like there are a million parts in the front end of a car.
inner tie rod ends (2)
outer tie rod ends (2)
adjuster sleeves (2)
lower ball joints (2)
upper ball joints (2)
upper bushings (4)
lower front bushings (2)
lower rear bushings (2)
lower bump stops (2)
upper bump stops (2)
idler arm (1)
center link (1)

that's 12 part numbers on the front, with a total of 24 parts. any parts counter computer jockey should be able to easily figure out the parts and the total, or you can find the part numbers online and take the list into the store and tell them to order those.
i used to have a complete list of all the part numbers i ordered for my Nova- i found all the Moog part numbers online and took the list to my local Carquest. i got everything new for the front end of that car except for the steering arm and center link, and i think it was around $300 for everything. it was there the day after i ordered it with no shipping and everything fit like it was meant to be there.
i can't say the same for the PST kit that my cousin got for his 69 Camaro- the bushings all fit nicely, but the balljoints and tie rods (you know, the really important stuff) didn't fit right. the studs on them fit too far into the holes and i needed to put a washer under each nut just to get it so that the cotter pins would actually go thru the castle nuts to keep them from backing out. that was 3 years ago, and he hasn't got the car o nthe road yet. he is ordering all new Moog balljoints and tie rod ends before he finishes the car up.
one other thing that Moog has in it's favor is that DSE uses Moog parts in their control arms and such and sells Moog parts separately in their catalog.
 
#46 ·
i can't say the same for the PST kit that my cousin got for his 69 Camaro- the bushings all fit nicely, but the balljoints and tie rods (you know, the really important stuff) didn't fit right...he is ordering all new Moog balljoints and tie rod ends before he finishes the car up.
That is very strange. I just pulled the info on our 69 Camaro Front End Kit and confirmed that the ball joints and tie rods are all Moog parts.

Did he speak to customer service when he had the problem?
 
#22 ·
1966 malibu: Moog /fmsi #"s :ball joints upper k5108/lower k5103/lower control arm bushings k6076 1.35 front 1.65 rear bushing/alt k5144 1.65 front 1.90 rear/upper control arm bushing k5196/idler arm k5142/center link n/a/sway bar links hd kk6629/oe k8266/outer tie rod end es333r/sleeves es2032s/ inner tie rod end es681n/sway bar k5227 oe ********Note:ends,idler arm,ball joints should have hd boots "Moog' inprinted ALSO say problem solver on part/
 
#26 ·
Reference : August 14 th/sbvelleman, MOOG PARTS FOR CHEVELLES ARE MADE IN THE USA AND CANADA (SOME BUSHINGS ARE MADE IN MEXICO,THIS IS NOT OFFSHORE) PROPER VERIFICATION OF ANY PART SHOULD ALWAYS BE CHECKED BY THE INSTALLER .AGREED Moog has part numbers being made in other countries today but this is a Chevelle forum pertaining to Chevelle parts. Bob Rizzi/Rizzi's Auto Parts
 
#29 ·
I priced out all Moog parts from Rockauto for my 71 Chevelle and it came to $468.76 shipped. I couldn't find the bump stops though so those would have to still be purchased. Here's a scan of the part #'s and prices...

Be sure to note what I high lighted in yellow. 2 different part #'s for the lower control arm bushing, depending if you have a round or oval rear lower bushing....
 

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#32 ·
wow.. the prices have really shot up since i did my Nova in the winter of '02/'03. i just checked prices on a few of the Moog pieces i used, and everything seems to be about a third more on Rockauto than i paid locally back then. i know that the adjusting sleeves were only about $5 a piece back then, but they are $11 now.
this hobby just isn't getting any cheaper, is it?
 
#30 ·
GUYS,first of all we are not a sponsor on this site ( I tried when I joined but was told all slots were filled up so we allocated that advertising to other websites) personally I do not believe in a "FREE RIDE" We are a wholesale operation , est.1975 and run various internet businesses and an e-bay store. What drew my attention to this forum was certain vendors here and at store fronts stating their products were "MOOG IN THE BOX " Suspension is a very critical part of any restoration and using no name brands is very dangerous. As stated for kits, parts description part numbers etc, I will try to help any forum member out so they know they are getting the proper part. I have been around CHEVELLES since 1965 and I take pride in what we sell and take pride in MY CHEVELLES . BOB RIZZI/RIZZI'S AUTO PARTS
 
#33 ·
So here is a question for you guys debating which parts to get...

Have you ever had yourself- first hand- a "Cheap" suspension part break?
IE: PST or one of the other canned front end kits.

I have done 4 PST front end kits in the last 10 years, and never had a single problem or complaint (except the inner tie rods don't have the zerk on the end like OEM did)

I have put a lot of miles on the cars these were installed on and had no problems.

The only problem i have ever heard of was on a car a friend sold- then bought back 3 years later, to have a front ball joint break. The joint was dry as a bone the guy who bought it from him had done no maint on it- plus it also was a small block car with big block springs (super high front end) so that probably put extra stress on the joint...

Anyone else ever actually had any failures after installing one of these kits?
 
#35 ·
I put a lot more than 1500 miles a year on my cars. closer to 5-6k a year- but they are drivers not road racers.

Just curious if there is any particular reason to bend over backwards to find the moog parts to put together a kit.

I'm all for buying american when i can, and don't mind paying extra for it.

my only thought is that if there was such a major difference in quality, you'd think there would already be places offering kits with complete Moog parts... That would be the selling point that it was all Made in USA, higher quality, etc etc... But i don't see those...

I see the difference in price, but have to wonder if thats simply because PST adviertises in the back of every single car magazine so they must have a much higher sales volume in order to be able to discount it the way they do.
 
#41 ·
there is someone out there that sells front end rebuild kits with all Moog parts, but i can't remember who..
i think they had "Vette" or "Corvette" in their name, but they sold Camaro and Chevelle kits, too.
 
#43 ·
Spohn performance sells a complete front end kit with MOOG parts

http://www.spohn.net/shop/1968-1972-GM-A-Body/Suspension/Front-Suspension-Steering/

I bought many things from Steve when I had a 3rd Generation F-body, great products.
NOTE: The above kit price does not include lower and upper ball joints. We made them an option for customers who are running aftermarket tubular a-arms that come with new ball joints already installed. Second option is for Moog upper a-arm offset cross shafts and bushings.

Rock Auto:
2Lower ball joint
2Upper ball joint
Centerlink
2Inner Tie rod
2Outter Tie rod
2Tie rod sleeves
Idler Arm
w/shipping
$344
 
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