I am still not happy with the idler arm. I installed a Dana part several years ago, and it is nowhere near as stout as the one that was in there before. It is just weak. The center tube is full height of the bolt, but the arm itself, and the bearing is not as tall. The space is filled up by a foam cushion. I tried several suppliers, and they all look the same now. Can anyone recommend a good maker of these parts? This is a wide A body suspension, with all big bolt front end parts, including the drag link, pittman, and idler.
One complicating issue, the wheels on the car are aftermarket wheels, with a 1/2" wider track on each side. The stock back spacing is 4 1/4" and these wheels are 3 3/4" which gives a total of 1" wider. This puts a little more stress on the front end, and makes the load on the idler a little greater than original. It feels like maybe when under stress the front end is starting to develope a little too much toe in because of the flex in the idler. I have driven cars with too much toe in, and they feel real twitchy, and unpredictable. This car feels fine until you push it, and then.....who knows, maybe it is the rear spring set up as in my other post. Thanks for giving this your thought, and consideration. If I could put the old part back in I would. I have changed everything over to the big bolt pattern parts to make the front end...,ha, ha,... stiffer. Go figure.Sam
PS, will a B body part fit here, and would it be stiffer?