about to buy suspension parts - any advice autozone / rock auto/ advance / napa?

[neverwinter]

hi all

well i was able to get my 79 c10 suspension all disassembled. going to replace all ball joints, etc before securing to the 63 frame.

there are so many prices and varying levels of quality out there i thought i'd ask those who have used the parts for any advice.

ideally i'd like the truck to become a daily driver sort. nothing radical engine wise. just the stock 283 with maybe some bolt on goodies.

so wondering - are there major differences between autozone or advance, napa or rock auto in terms of price/quality for ball joints and suspension items.
this isnt a 20k miler per year truck and i'll spend for the right quality to only do it once. but if the 15$ ball joints are good for low-to avegrage miles per year obv i'd like to save where i can.

lastly do i buy shocks for the 799 or for the 63 since i am replacing the ones that were on the 63 with ones from the 79 - but the ones from 79 are toast.

thanks for any input.

- jason

[kieth]

I have found that Rock Auto is the least expensive place to purchase most front end parts, I used a 91 burb front end and bought all of the parts ball joints, tie rod ends, etc from rock auto. I found the least expensive parts looked just like the raybestos and moog parts, all are now made in china and the price difference is so great that I bought cheap and figured if I had any trouble I could replace them easily since we did all the work ourselves. Good luck Kieth

ps check with O'Reileys on front disc hubs and rotors (32.00 each) and disc brake calipers ($17.00ea) I needed them quickly and did not shop rock auto........and was surprised you might try getting prices and part #s from rock and then shopping locally to see if they will meet or beat rockauto.

[likaroc13]

O'reillys will not price match online competitors, because i've already tried that...however, i know from experience that Advance will price match Rock Auto

i got most of my stuff from Carquest, because a friend of mine knew the regional manager & got them at cost....however, we compared prices with Rock Auto to make sure I was getting the best deal....i went with mostly Moog parts

another thing i have done with my other vehicles is shopping at Advance using their internet site...you can go to retailmenot.com and find various discount codes to use at checkout...i determine what parts i can combine to give me the best deal possible when using the coupons....i even place multiple orders if that works best....then i can place the online order & have it ship to my home, or i can pick them up locally if they're in-stock...on top of that, my Discover Card also offers 5% cash back from Advance when you link to the retailer through Discover's site

if you can't find what you need on the Advance website, i've found that Rock Auto is a useful tool for gathering the part #'s....then plug those numbers into the Advance website search box, & you'll find stuff that doesn't show up during normal searches

[neverwinter]

thanks guys. I have always heard good things about Moog but what about the store brand parts or duralast, etc?

[Leadfoot Lambert]

Rock Auto rocks! I bought 2 upper control arms with cross shafts, bushings, ball joints all complete $136 and change to my door in two days! That's $136 for the pair!

[blackedoutharley]

I am not too impressed with Rock Auto looking at their site.... Complete front suspension with all new steering linkage including coils for my '65 using Moog parts as well as complete front and rear brakes with hardware, cylinders and 2 drums is $620, which isn't bad but $145 for standard freight?

I don't think so.

[62 Longbed]

I've always used Moog Frontend Parts ... Quality and Warrenty .. TRW Frontend parts are also good ... Not sure on some of the other names out there , but just throwing in my 2 cents ... Good Luck !!!

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by blackedoutharley

I am not too impressed with Rock Auto looking at their site.... Complete front suspension with all new steering linkage including coils for my '65 using Moog parts as well as complete front and rear brakes with hardware, cylinders and 2 drums is $620, which isn't bad but $145 for standard freight?

I don't think so.

which is where Advance Auto comes in...have them price match Rock Auto and buy locally...yet another reason why I used a local Carquest when purchasing for my '66 (no shipping)...but i bought all my Moog parts for the S-10 from Advance...i think $75+ orders offer free shipping, or you can pick up in-store if stocked

[lilpoindexter]

You can get MOOG parts from summit racing. You can also get the "good" parts from NAPA, but they also have a cheap line, don't get that stuff. Don't buy any of the crap from autozone or kragen, etc, unless you want to do the job over again.

[T Smith]

I bought moog stuff reaonably priced through amazon with free shipping, takes a little time so no good if you're in a hurry...

[clemdaddy]

i get my stuff based on the people on the other side of the counter. they know me, there's a mutual trust thing happening, warranty is verbal, time brings about discounts and charge account status and it supports the local economy. i buy from both o'reilly and napa, they have good counter people and good parts. i don't buy based on price but quality of parts and i look for the older guy at the counter. but that's just me.

[neverwinter]

id prefer to buy local - mostly as a means to have options if i buy the wrong thing. i dont mind spending a bit for quality. then again this will be a 3k mile per yesr truck and if it doesn't need gold-cased brake pads i'll go with the safer alternatives lol.