StewHatch

I realized after I posted it. Apologies - nothing nefarious was intended.

mikew968

I have a set of control arms off my 85k 968 that I would part with for whatever is fair. Have those rebuilt and keep yours for spares or sell them. i installed charlie arms but for street or DE I think the oem arms are fine.


Mike

kasturbo

I've also got a set of stock 968 arms for sale. They are still in good shape. Go to www.rennbay.com to have your arms rebuilt. Travis is a site sponsor and if you tell him to return your same arms to you he will.

I ran his rebuilt arms on the track for several years with out issues. I just went to Charlie arms on the 968.

RajDatta

Kevin, I didn't know that rennbay re-did control arms as well. I will be contacting them shortly.
Raj

spieln

OK, I will have to dig up a picture but aren't 968 control arms different than 944 arms? If I remember correctly the end caps are factory sealed and do not have the removable plate and snap ring. Is that not correct or has someone figured out a way to get them opened up?

RajDatta

Tim, you are correct. They are sealed but once you remove the epoxy, its a similar ball joint. They have to be press fitted and then epoxied back. They are definitely rebuildable and I had great experience using them.
Raj

Travis - sflraver

Here is the scoop. 968 arms are not rebuilable by conventional methods. If anyone offers to rebuild your 968 arms, they will be machining them out and pressing in FIBI VW joints.

The only difference between the 968 arms and the late offset 944 arms is that the 968 ones have little tabs for the cooling duct / scoops. If you weigh the two arms, the 968 arms are a bit lighter but I don't think that is a good thing (read, thinner castings). Besides that, just find yourself a good set of late 944 arms to rebuild and scrap the little cooling scoops and replace them with a better, aftermarket brake cooling solution. There are plenty out there.

spieln

Thanks Travis for setting the record straight.

StewHatch

Exactly. The way it was explained to me was that the ball joints are permanently set into the (968) control arms at the factory and the casting that helps retain the ball joints in place has to be machined away in order to remove the old ones and install new. Everyone I spoke to about this said that they haven't yet found a method of rebuilding the retaining "lip" safely. Therefore, the only available rebuilt control arms available - to my knowledge - are rebuilt 944 units. If there are rebuilt 968 units commercially available, no-one I spoke with is aware of their existence. It appears that Porsche dropped the price of new control arms to facilitate replacement when this became an issue.

kasturbo

Thanks Travis for the clarification. I wasn't sure if they could be rebuilt or not, but did know if a customer wanted their arms back you would do that.

ryan@usaimage.com

Anybody ever work with http://www.blaszakprecision.com/ ? I talked with these guys up in Canada and he machines your arms and sends them back. He also has his own fabricated arms and castor blocks. It ahs been a while since I talked with them, but the site still looks the same. You have to call or email for pricing, but it was about $350 a pair for repair as I recall.

RajDatta

Ryan, if that is the price for rebuilding a pair, its well within the range of what others charge. Might be worth checking into. I know it can be done and has been done, unfortunately the place I used in the past no longer does it.
Raj

Travis - sflraver

Febi machine out / press in joints are not good. If you had a place that did it, and they do not any longer, there is good reason. There are many instances where those rebuilds only last around 12 months.
I deal with it all the time. Customer purchased rebuilt "febi" arms somewhere else. One year later they are just out of warranty and the ball joints have went bad. Now they buy a kit from me, only to find out that the pockets in their "febi" rebuilt arms have been machined and they are now non-rebuildable. I get at least 2 calls a month with the same exact story.
This is FYI if you have 944 arms. Since you have 968 arms that are already non-rebuildable, I say go for it as long as the price is reasonable. Just keep an eye on them and be on the lookout for a deal on some late offset 944 arms just in case.

968workaholic

Deutch Nine has rebuilt arms. They might be another option to look into.

Rich Sandor

Travis, I just ordered a deluxe rebuild kit from rennbay - for my 968 arms.

Now, I've already busted them open, and I'm planning on machining a groove inside the bottom for a circlip, to hold the bottom plate it, just like the 944 arms. There is lots of space.

The question is, am I going to be the first yahoo to try this with your kit?