Turner Motorsport BMW Control Arm Replacements & Upgrades

It’s no secret that BMW’s suffer from weak, failure prone front thrust arm bushings.  The stock rubber bushings are designed to allow significant fore/aft movement of the front wheels and are fluid filled to help absorb road impacts.  This compliant design maximizes daily driving comfort and helps add to the “luxury” feeling of your BMW, but it also contributes to the numb, disconnected feeling that many enthusiasts complain about with modern BMW’s.  Not only is the OEM design far from ideal for the street or racing enthusiast that is looking for optimal handling and braking performance, the constant twisting and deflection required of the rubber bushing often causes premature failure, resulting in degraded handling, wheel shimmy, delayed steering response, delayed braking response, unwanted alignment change, and poor tire wear.

Introducing the new Turner Thrust Arm Ball Joints!  The Turner engineering team set out to design a solution that offers far superior durability when compared to OEM, requiring no modification and offering nearly instantaneous cornering and braking response for the absolute best road feel and driving experience possible.  Our thrust arm monoballs utilize a sealed OEM BMW ball joint for exceptional quality and durability.  The bearing assembly is precision CNC machined from 6061-T6 anodized aluminum and features a knurled OD to ensure a perfect press fit and longest lasting component life possible. 

By utilizing a sealed ball joint, Turner achieved the ultimate in terms of low friction no bind suspension travel with no unwanted deflection, providing exceptional steering precision, turn-in response, and direct braking feedback; all while maintaining exceptional comfort and durability levels making these an excellent no compromise upgrade even for a street car.  These thrust arm monoball / ball joints are a must have for any track car, but are also completely street-able and are a great upgrade for any enthusiast that enjoys spirited driving.

Features:

Ball Joint / monoball

- OEM BMW sealed, greased ball joint for exceptional durability and service life, even in the most severe operating conditions

Housing

- 6061-T6 anodized housing for excellent corrosion resistance. 

- Proprietary Turner designed knurled OD to provide the perfect fit for the wide range of thrust arm bore diameters among brands. 

Bearing Inserts

- CNC machined 304ss, providing a precision fit between the ball joint and the subframe. 

Performance

- Nearly instantaneous, crisp steering and braking response.

- Maintenance free, long lasting performance. 

- Improved road feel without undesirable NVH.

BMW’s are known to have failure prone front thrust arm bushings.  The flexible rubber bushings, even those found in M performance models, allow significant movement of the front wheels to maximize daily driving comfort, but also allow considerable alignment change.  This results in a disconnected and numb road feel, standing between you and a confidence inspiring driving experience. Eventually the fluid filled rubber bushings fatigue and crack due to continual deflection and ozone degradation, and eventually the damping fluid leaks out resulting in complete failure.

For the enthusiast looking for superior performance and longevity with a crisp, confidence-inspiring driving experience, our sealed ball joint monoballs are the best solution available!  Our experience with spherical front control arm ball joints goes back to those we designed and used in our IMSA E90 328i and E92 M3 race cars (GS class Champions in 2011). We wanted to offer as many BMW owners possible a similar level of handling, precision, and control for the track and street.

Utilizing a sealed OEM BMW ball joint for exceptional quality and durability, making them completely at home on both the street and track with no compromise.  We have done extensive street, autocross, and track testing to ensure the ball joint used in this bushing design excels in each setting. The advantage of a sealed ball joint is that it eliminates all unwanted deflection while still allowing complete bind-free movement throughout suspension travel, resulting in exceptional control of wheel alignment.  What you get is superior steering precision, turn-in response, direct braking feedback, and better handling.

In short, if you're seeking the ultimate in precise, predictable handling and control, with crisp braking response and a long service life that’s equally at home on the street or track - look no further. We have you covered.

Watch to learn more about Turner Monoball Bushings

We offer these control arms with the monoball bearings pre-installed for your convenience. Since BMW recommends the control arms be replaced for every other bushing change, we prefer to sell these as a pre-assembled set. The bushings are also available separately if you wish to source your own control arms.

Control Arm Bearing

• CNC machined corrosion resistant 304 Stainless steel shell, bolt sleeves, & snap rings
• Sealed spherical ball joint for long service life & maintained OE fitment
• Suspension pre-load is no longer required when torquing the control arm hardware

Thrust Arm Bearing:

• OEM BMW sealed, greased ball joint for exceptional durability and service life, even in the most severe operating conditions
• 6061-T6 anodized housing for excellent corrosion resistance
• Proprietary Turner designed knurled OD to provide the perfect fit for the wide range of thrust arm bore diameters among brands
• CNC machined 304ss, providing a precision fit between the ball joint and the subframe

Benefits of Both:​

• Nearly instantaneous, crisp steering and braking response.
• Maintenance free, long lasting performance.
• Improved road feel without undesirable NVH.

Fits the following BMW models

BMW F10 528i, 535i, 550i

BMW F12/F13 640i, 650i

M3 upper and lower control arms are a known upgrade for non-M E82 and E9X chassis. But our Monoball Thurst Arms are even more of an upgrade over the stock M3 arms. This package bundles the Turner Monoball upper thrust arms with the stock M3 lower control arms. If there's one big fail point in the E82/E9X front suspension it's the thrust arms. The front inner thrust arm bushing is filled with dampening fluid that leaks over time. Once it's gone the bushing has the strength of a rubber band. Even though we sell two types of upgraded rubber bushings there was still room for improvement. For someone looking for superior performance and longevity these sealed monoball bushings are the best out there. 

The advantage of a monoball bearing is that it will not deflect under load. All of the rubber bushings, including the M3, move in all sorts of directions and that changes your alignment, especially when used with big brake kits or when driven hard. And when worn out, performance suffers. Our monoball sits in a CNC machined aluminum housing which has zero deflection. The monoball allows complete freedom of movement but only at the desired angles. What you get is superior steering precision, better handling from more consistent alignment, and almost infinite bushing life. And thanks to the inner liner and sealed rubber boots there's none of the extra noise or reduced service life of fully solid race bushings.

The lower M3 control arm bushings use a similar sealed monoball bushing instead of rubber. This package gives you monoball precision and performance with OE-quality components.

This item fits the following BMWs: 
2008-2012 E82 BMW 128i 135i 1M Coupe 
2006-2011 E90 BMW 325i 328i 330i 335d 335i M3 - Sedan 
2006-2012 E91 BMW 328i - Wagon 
2007-2013 E92 BMW 328i 335i 335is M3 - Coupe 
2007-2013 E93 BMW 328i 335i M3 - Convertible 
2009+ Z4 BMW Z4 sDrive28i Z4 sDrive30i Z4 sDrive35i Z4 sDrive35is 

Here at Turner we understand the importance of an upgrade that will get the results you need on the track and still be tolerable on the drive around town. When it comes to control arms on the track, making them as stiff as you can (usually using solid mounts) is the best way to increase your driving precision by eliminating the deflection of rubber. The next best thing to create a balance would be to stiffen up the control arm with polyurethane, giving you the option of a more stock like feel with 80a or closer to the solid feel with 95a durometers.

When it comes to the E36 chassis you also get the options of choosing a stock centered design or going with the E30 inspired offset bushing to increase castor, further taking advantage of improvd handling. These poly bushings will give your control arms a direct connection between your suspension and the body of the car eliminating the slop felt under take-off and braking so you feel more in control of your vehicle. 

This item fits the following BMWs that use a centered-style bushing: 

1984-1991 E30 BMW 318i, 318is, 325, 325e, 325es, 325i, 325is 
1992-1999 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic
1996-1999 E36 BMW M3 S52
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i MZ3 M Coupe M Roadster 

Our experience with spherical front control arm ball joints go back to those we designed and used in our IMSA E90 328i and E92 M3 racecars (GS class Champions in 2011).  We wanted to offer e30, e36, and e46 owners similar levels of handling precision and control for the track and street, but weren’t satisfied with the other options out there. Instead of a Delrin® bushing or unsealed spherical bearing alone, we selected an oversized sealed greaseable spherical monoball to offer unparalleled durability and precision, but designed a Delrin® adapter sleeve to help isolate the added noise, vibration, and harshness that a full solid monoball bearing will have. While race-ready, our hybrid Delrin®/monoball control arm bearings are more at home on the street than other kits that are advertised as “race-only” bearings. We did extensive street, autocross, and track testing to ensure the spherical bearing used in this bushing design excelled in each setting.

The stock rubber bushings, even those found in the M3, allow significant fore/aft movement of the front wheels to help absorb road impacts, especially when being pushed hard.  This soft flexible design maximizes daily driving comfort, but also allows considerable alignment change.  This unwanted deflection stands between you and a crisp, confidence-inspiring driving experience.  The advantage of a monoball bearing is that it will not deflect under load, eliminating all unwanted deflection while still allowing complete freedom of movement in the desired angles. What you get is superior steering precision with better handling from more consistent alignment and direct braking feedback, with exceptional service life.  Thanks to the Delrin® insert and double lip seals, there's none of the extra noise or reduced service life often found on other spherical bearings.

In short, if you're seeking front control arm bushings that offer precise, predictable handling, crisper braking feel, with a long service life free from noise - look no further. We have you covered.

Watch to learn more about Turner Monoball Bushings

Features:

Bearing housing

• Precision CNC machined from 6061-T6 blue anodized aluminum with a pre-installed grease fitting and grease distribution channels making this a serviceable design
• Knurling allows for a wide variance in lollipop dimension, although this particular SKU comes pre-installed, so you won't need to worry about that. Want to install your own? Click here. 

Bearing

• A high quality sealed bearing with Delrin® inserts. Delrin® was chosen due to durability under pressure, while still soft enough to create a perfect play-free fitment on the control arm.
• Replaceable for infinite service life - no need to replace the entire mount in the event a bearing happens to fail.

Includes new hardware. Grease before installation and with each oil service with high quality Moly grease for maximum service life. Need a grease fitting tool?

Installation is relatively easy - see our instructions here.

This item fits the following BMWs that use a centered-style bushing: 

1984-1991 E30 BMW 318i, 318is, 325, 325e, 325es, 325i, 325is 
1992-1999 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic
1996-1999 E36 BMW M3 S52
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i MZ3 M Coupe M Roadster