Ready Lift Control Arm Maintenance.. If Any

[Texas415]

Wondering if there is any maintenance involved once you have the Ready Lift Control Arms on your 2019. For example, do you have to grease them every certain amount of months or else they start to crack and squeak?

 

[Tstevenson325]

Hello Texas415,

My name is Trevor Stevenson. I am an Engineer at ReadyLIFT Suspension and I just wanted to respond to your question. Once, the arms have been installed and you apply the grease the ball joints, there shouldn't be any service that you'll need to perform. A visual inspection every few months to insure the boot isn't torn. They were engineered ( maybe over engineered ) with the end user in mind. They are a spring loaded 1-ton ball joint that utilizes two grease grooves to insure the ball is always lubricated.

Feel free to reach out if you have questions, comments, concerns or requests.

 

[troutspinner]

Hello Texas415,

My name is Trevor Stevenson. I am an Engineer at ReadyLIFT Suspension and I just wanted to respond to yo

Feel free to reach out if you have questions, comments, concerns or requests

Maybe answer his question for starters?

 

[Tstevenson325]

Maybe answer his question for starters?

that is always helpful. I hit the post reply a bit too premature... Apologizes.

 

[Texas415]

Hello Texas415,

My name is Trevor Stevenson. I am an Engineer at ReadyLIFT Suspension and I just wanted to respond to your question. Once, the arms have been installed and you apply the grease the ball joints, there shouldn't be any service that you'll need to perform. A visual inspection every few months to insure the boot isn't torn. They were engineered ( maybe over engineered ) with the end user in mind. They are a spring loaded 1-ton ball joint that utilizes two grease grooves to insure the ball is always lubricated.

Feel free to reach out if you have questions, comments, concerns or requests.

Thanks I appreciate the feedback!

 

[Agitated]

What about the poly control arm bushings? In my experience those type of bushings dont last nearly as long as a factory high durometer bushing. I was a bit disappointed to see those. I know the upper arm doesnt carry a huge load but still.... Id feel a bit better if they were at least greasable bushings.

 

[Tstevenson325]

What about the poly control arm bushings? In my experience those type of bushings dont last nearly as long as a factory high durometer bushing. I was a bit disappointed to see those. I know the upper arm doesnt carry a huge load but still.... Id feel a bit better if they were at least greasable bushings.

The grease we supply with the bushings is a very high quality grease design to be used with poly bushings. When applied correctly the bushings will last thousands of miles with out maintenance. In fact we have a truck with 30k miles with no issues.

Nevertheless, we will be releasing the new bushings that are a non-bonded maintenance free shelled bushing that will extend the life of the arms. We utilize this style of bushing in many of our other arms.

 

[Roddog2220]

Hello Texas415,

My name is Trevor Stevenson. I am an Engineer at ReadyLIFT Suspension and I just wanted to respond to your question. Once, the arms have been installed and you apply the grease the ball joints, there shouldn't be any service that you'll need to perform. A visual inspection every few months to insure the boot isn't torn. They were engineered ( maybe over engineered ) with the end user in mind. They are a spring loaded 1-ton ball joint that utilizes two grease grooves to insure the ball is always lubricated.

Feel free to reach out if you have questions, comments, concerns or requests.

great to know your here bro, I put the front and back level kit on and love the look but my mpg seem to go down right after with same tires, any clue why?

 

[Tstevenson325]

great to know your here bro, I put the front and back level kit on and love the look but my mpg seem to go down right after with same tires, any clue why?

Hey Roddog2220, I really don’t. I have not heard of this, or not as severe as you experienced. The only thing I can think is simple aerodynamics. FCA put a lot of engineering in the aerodynamics and the effects on the mpg. So that’s the only thing i can think.

I didn’t really notice any difference or at least negligible difference when I first drove around without new wheels and tires.

 

[Wbre]

Hey Roddog2220, I really don’t. I have not heard of this, or not as severe as you experienced. The only thing I can think is simple aerodynamics. FCA put a lot of engineering in the aerodynamics and the effects on the mpg. So that’s the only thing i can think.

I didn’t really notice any difference or at least negligible difference when I first drove around without new wheels and tires.

Quick question roughly on point but I wanted to get your opinion on aftermarket lift kits and the factory air suspension. Do you see any downside(s) other than warranty from your perspective?

 

[VaderRebel]

The grease we supply with the bushings is a very high quality grease design to be used with poly bushings. When applied correctly the bushings will last thousands of miles with out maintenance. In fact we have a truck with 30k miles with no issues.

Nevertheless, we will be releasing the new bushings that are a non-bonded maintenance free shelled bushing that will extend the life of the arms. We utilize this style of bushing in many of our other arms.

Just wanted to chime in that I installed the RL 67-1500 UCA's this fall as per instructions and have been very pleased with the results. BUT, the last few days now that we are in constant sub zero temps, bitterly cold actually, they're squeaking a bit. Is that something one should expect? Or do I need to re-lubricate every winter? That would be a huge pain in my a$$.

 

[Agitated]

That is one of the many negatives of those bushings. They are cheap and easy to replace but they do wear quickly and deform, and can squeak depending on environment. They have a use for applications that want better handling and ease of fabrication but i cant understand why they didnt use a long lasting factory type bushing there.

 

[Tstevenson325]

That is one of the many negatives of those bushings. They are cheap and easy to replace but they do wear quickly and deform, and can squeak depending on environment. They have a use for applications that want better handling and ease of fabrication but i cant understand why they didnt use a long lasting factory type bushing there.

Agitated, Thank you for your input. This is something that we are addressing. I've mentioned before that we have developed a non-bonded maintenance free shelled bushing that will extend the life of the arms. We utilize this style of bushing in many of our other arms. Design, engineering, testing and production do take time though.

Just wanted to chime in that I installed the RL 67-1500 UCA's this fall as per instructions and have been very pleased with the results. BUT, the last few days now that we are in constant sub zero temps, bitterly cold actually, they're squeaking a bit. Is that something one should expect? Or do I need to re-lubricate every winter? That would be a huge pain in my a$$.

VaderRebel, I understand your frustration, the noise can be annoying. Assuming the bushings and crush sleeves were assembled properly there should be no need to replace/re-grease the bushings. If for some reason you are seeing failure please feel free to contact our Customer Service or myself and we'll make sure you get some replacements.

 

[Tstevenson325]

Quick question roughly on point but I wanted to get your opinion on aftermarket lift kits and the factory air suspension. Do you see any downside(s) other than warranty from your perspective?

Wbre, I'm not sure I follow. Do I think there is a downside to installing a lift on an AirRide equip truck?

 

[Roddog2220]

with all the problems I have heard with air suspensions there is no way I would alter them

 

[Tstevenson325]

with all the problems I have heard with air suspensions there is no way I would alter them

I agree, opening up your system not only voids your warranty but may cause other problems. With more and more Air equip trucks on the road this is definitely something that needs to be looked at.

 

[wthomps79]

great to know your here bro, I put the front and back level kit on and love the look but my mpg seem to go down right after with same tires, any clue why?

I saw the same thing on my truck after I leveled it. I went from the stock 275/65R18 tires (32") to 275/65R20 tires (34"). With the lift and taller/heavier wheels & tires I expected some reduction in mileage due to reduced aerodynamics and higher rolling resistance. What I saw is my mileage dropped from about 16mpg average to about 13-14mpg (all hwy driving). I haven't had the computer reflashed to update the rev/mi of the tires, so I'm hoping that is part of it. Honestly I was hoping the drop wouldn't be quite this high especially since I have the 3.92s vs the 3.21s. I also noticed that the truck didn't seem to want to get up to 60mph as quickly as before. I was a bit surprised by that actually given the 400hp and 8spd trans.

One other thing I noticed is that at colder ambient temps my mileage has been lower even with the truck 100% stock. It was 18 degrees here yesterday and 9 degrees this morning.

 

[Roddog2220]

I saw the same thing on my truck after I leveled it. I went from the stock 275/65R18 tires (32") to 275/65R20 tires (34"). With the lift and taller/heavier wheels & tires I expected some reduction in mileage due to reduced aerodynamics and higher rolling resistance. What I saw is my mileage dropped from about 16mpg average to about 13-14mpg (all hwy driving). I haven't had the computer reflashed to update the rev/mi of the tires, so I'm hoping that is part of it. Honestly I was hoping the drop wouldn't be quite this high especially since I have the 3.92s vs the 3.21s. I also noticed that the truck didn't seem to want to get up to 60mph as quickly as before. I was a bit surprised by that actually given the 400hp and 8spd trans.

One other thing I noticed is that at colder ambient temps my mileage has been lower even with the truck 100% stock. It was 18 degrees here yesterday and 9 degrees this morning.

these trucks have some strange phenoms, but oh the large screen and pano sunroofs lol

 

[Magnum9999]

Agitated, Thank you for your input. This is something that we are addressing. I've mentioned before that we have developed a non-bonded maintenance free shelled bushing that will extend the life of the arms. We utilize this style of bushing in many of our other arms. Design, engineering, testing and production do take time though.



VaderRebel, I understand your frustration, the noise can be annoying. Assuming the bushings and crush sleeves were assembled properly there should be no need to replace/re-grease the bushings. If for some reason you are seeing failure please feel free to contact our Customer Service or myself and we'll make sure you get some replacements.

Did your issue of the squeaking bushings get resolved on your Ram? Mine is doing the same thing.

 

[antwon412]

When replacing the UCA do you have to pack the boots with grease? I don’t have a grease gun.
thanks