Ride Quality with HD Control Arms and Ball Joints ?

Mike98 · Post by **Mike98** » 16 Mar 2023, 16:40

Has anyone used IPD HD control arms and ball joints on their P2 ? The HD control arms are advertised as using much less recycled rubber in the bushings. The HD ball joints are advertised as having silicone boots, stainless steel balls and better grease.

I purchased a 2006 V70 with 86,000 miles in 2020. The front suspension had an obvious issue - acceleration and braking caused the car to veer from a straight line when holding the steering wheel in a fixed position.

These items were replaced:
Original struts and shocks replaced with Bilstein B4
Original strut mount bearings replaced with Febi 18481
Original strut spring seats replaced with IPD HD spring seats
Original control arms replaced with IPD HD control arms
Original ball joints replaced with IPD HD ball joints

After the parts were replaced the steering was fine and braking/ acceleration veer was eliminated. I was surprised to find that the suspension provided a much harsher ride quality. When driving over expansion joints and minor road surface irregularities there are banging noises and it feels like the suspension is way too stiff. I assumed the problem was caused by the Bilstein B4 struts/shocks but they are advertised as providing OE ride quality. The new suspension components have been used for 10,000 miles and ride quality is unchanged during that time.

Recently I read an MVS post from 2017 where someone indicated that IPD HD control arms had upset the suspension tuning and caused symptoms similar to my experience. I was considering replacing the Bilstein B4s with Sachs struts/shocks. I dont want to do that if the harshness is actually caused by the HD control arms.

Does anyone have experience with Bilstein B4s and/or IPD HD control arms ?

(I posted the same question on Swedespeed)

Thanks,

Mike

Post by **xHeart** » 19 Mar 2023, 07:22

Mike98 wrote: ↑16 Mar 2023, 16:40 Has anyone used IPD HD control arms and ball joints on their P2 ? The HD control arms are advertised as using much less recycled rubber in the bushings. The HD ball joints are advertised as having silicone boots, stainless steel balls and better grease.

Does anyone have experience with Bilstein B4s and/or IPD HD control arms ?

The HD LCA and ball joint are intended to maintain ride height, keep you steer safely, and to some extent camber; these are connecting subframe spindle (knuckle).

Unless vtl says otherwise, the LCA must be torqued at the ride height –- front wheels on the ground.

Post by **vtl** » 19 Mar 2023, 07:33

xHeart wrote: ↑19 Mar 2023, 07:22 Unless vtl says otherwise, the LCA must be torqued at the ride height –- front wheels on the ground.

I think it was specific to P80. LCA in P2 is just bolted flush to the subframe, I see no way for bushing to twist if torqued "improperly".

OPs problem is most likely the Bilsteins. They are generally tuned for more sporty feel. I have a pair of B4s for XC90 that I'm going to install in summer for lift purposes and reducing strut fatigue when rolling down the dirt road with heavy AT tires, and I can tell they are way harder to compress than Volvo/Sachs struts.

Vova585 · Post by **Vova585** » 19 Mar 2023, 11:32

Don't waste your money on IPD. Buy an OEM/OE from FCP and be happy. Please remember to torque them to spec and do so with wheels on the ground. In case they will fail-you will have a lifetime replacement guarantee from FCP.
All this "super,mega, magical " advertising from IPD is just bunch of nonsense. I would stay away from all rubber components which are made by IPD being it bushings or pcv system hoses(rubber is of such poor quality that you will be doing work again in 1 year).

Post by **vtl** » 20 Mar 2023, 08:44

I have a few things from IPD, not impressed with their quality.

- HD TCV seized in no matter of time. It turned out to be a generic made in Taiwan valve that demands absolutely no moisture in air. I cut it open, there's absolutely nothing HD in it
- adjustable toe rods - they freeze no matter how well I grease them. The water gets in through the coarse thread. When I need to adjust the rear toe-in, every time I have to take them out and break nuts loose in a vice. Also the blue paint got chipped away long ago, it's all rust now.
- subframe bushing inserts - pulled out the same day I installed them, I don't like riding a vibrator
- DEM cover - torx bolt heads are too small. The bolts freeze over winter and you can only cut them out. Replaced with Home Depot stainless steel bolts, never had a problem.
- skid plate - it is ok, 1/4" or so, however it does not use 2 nuts in back. The back is held in place by 1 bolt only, that does not even bolted directly to a subframe. Also need to take it out regularly and hammer back to a flat surface. Filter/drain cutouts are useless. No ventilation baffles.

Not a fan of IPD at all.

Mike98 · Post by **Mike98** » 21 Mar 2023, 01:02

Thanks for the responses. Looks like I might have to replace struts, spring seats and LCAs to fix the harsh ride quality. Now I wish that I didnt recycle the original LCAs, new bushings could have been pressed in. What brand control arms should I look for ? I saw posts indicating that Lemforder quality is not what it used to be. That leaves Meyle HD ?

Post by **vtl** » 21 Mar 2023, 07:31

Are you doing it yourself? If not paying a third party, I'd start with replacing just struts.

Buy used Volvo LCAs?

Post by **Blacklab467** » 21 Mar 2023, 08:46

You might want to get a junkyard pair of LCA's and press new bushings in, I went down that road before wishing I had kept the rebuildable original parts. That said, you may want to check the price of the Volvo brand LCA's, I bought them for mine and they weren't that crazy expensive. I wouldn't put any aftermarket parts in the front end, FCP seems to have the best price on the blue box Volvo parts. Remember, you get what you pay for!

chris11211 · Post by **chris11211** » 23 Mar 2023, 03:16

So far the only thing that survived for me in Brooklyn NY is the control arms. Though with the fact that I didn't get to look at in in over 3 years, so I'll check soon.

My 2 ipd ball joint didn't last 2 years, as well as the silicone top engine mount. I also have these silicone inserts for the top bar and I'm just getting annoyed at the vibration, added steering control be damned.

The ipd plastic slid plate seem to be doing great after 4 years. Doesn't seem to get brittle yet. And mechanics like to ugga dugga the bolts which makes the holes warped.

I'd 100% be ready for those ball joints to fail. Silicone boots is the entire point for selling this thing and it doesn't hold up to new england seasons.

Post by **xHeart** » 23 Mar 2023, 07:29

Mike98 wrote: ↑21 Mar 2023, 01:02 Thanks for the responses. Looks like I might have to replace struts, spring seats and LCAs to fix the harsh ride quality. Now I wish that I didnt recycle the original LCAs, new bushings could have been pressed in. What brand control arms should I look for ? I saw posts indicating that Lemforder quality is not what it used to be. That leaves Meyle HD ?

Lol! I'm running on Meyle HD LCA since 3/18/2013; paid $85.65 each! FWIW, I did a complete front refresh after reading CN90's posts.