dzywicki

I recently purchased a 2008 4.2 A6 and the control arms are going to need replacement. I know all about the pinch bolt stories so I am not looking for advice on that part. I see a wide variety of brands for control arms. What is the recommended brand? I have read that LEMFÖRDER was the OEM brand. Are there upgraded ones available? I will be doing all the work myself so I'd prefer to get the best quality since I'm not paying labor on top of the parts. Thanks for any help and opinions.

stuffinder

While you can save a lot of money using other brands such as Febi and Meyle I've had better luck with OEM/Lemfoerder personally. There are are some sources where they can be found at substantially less than AUDI dealer prices. One source that I've used with great success is emiparts.com. It's a small company but owned & operated by AUDI guys & are always competitive in pricing with quick service. They're in CT but that's not a problem with today's rapid shipping,

raj99

+1 on this. Your original control arms have lasted over a decade, so why not just replace with Lemfoerder? Unless you feel that replacing a part every decade is too soon.

dzywicki

I don't know if the control arms have ever been replaced, but I suspect they have not. I have rebuilt a lot of suspensions on Jeeps and Mercedes and have used upgraded components such as poly bushings (I like a tight suspension) and heavier duty track bars, bushings etc. I was leaning towards the Lemfooeder but wanted to ask opinions. Hopefully coming into some money soon and would have no problems going Lemfoeder as I plan to keep the A6 for a long time. I love the V8, interior is super nice. I drive my old Jeep Wrangler a good amount in the summer on weekends (safari top FTW) and ride my motorcycle for 3-5 months out of the year so the Audi doesn't get a ton of miles. Thanks for the replies and opinions. I have replaced several control arm bushings on Jeeps by air hammering out the old ones and pressing in new ones. PITA but doable with air tools. I was looking at that option too and was primarily looking at wether there were upgraded control arms with poly bushings available or if it was a waste of time.

cal3thousand

FCPEuro has a Meyle kit for about $700. And, if you happen to keep your Audi long enough, they will send you free warranty replacements for life. You just buy another kit and send the old one back and they refund you.

stuffinder

If my experience w/Meyle & Febi on '98 A4 Avant & '99 A6 Avant which both needed ctrl arms again after 25-35K! I'm sure you'll enjoy installing those "Free" replacements & doing another alignment!

cal3thousand

That's odd as there are a rather large number of positive reviews for Meyle across German car forums. FCPEuro does a fantastic job at sourcing quality parts. I'm sure if the line of parts gave them a high warranty rate, that they would eventually discontinue offering them. There's also the issue of installing and properly loading suspension bits for longevity and performance.