Just a heads-up to anyone ordering rear upper control arms (Jaguar C2Z31678 & C2Z31679) from RockAuto (and probably other sites)… the Moog R-Series rear upper control arms (RK622865 & RK622866), which is supposedly Moog's "Economy" line, even though it's listed in RockAuto's "Daily Driver" category, and the AC Delco Professional rear upper control arms (45P0296 & 45P0297), which is supposedly AC Delco's OE parts line (now called "Gold" instead of "Professional"), are the EXACT the same parts (at least when ordered from RockAuto). This probably isn't a shocker to a lot of you, but it was to me. Here's my story...

I'm ordering a ton of parts online to rejuvenate my '11 XFR, including a lot of replacements for the worn suspension components. I've purchased Spires Springs and PowerFlex bushings, but for some of the items, it seemed like replacing the whole control arm which includes new bushings and ball joints already installed, rather than pressing everything in/out of the original arms, seemed like the best choice. Consequently, amongst other parts, I ordered Moog rear upper control arms from RockAuto, as I'd read that Moog was a decent aftermarket alternative to Lemforder and some of the other brands. So, I've been purchasing from FCP Euro, Welsh, RockAuto, etc.

Anyway, onto the rear upper control arms... I bought the Moogs (RK622865 & RK622866) from RockAuto, as they seemed like decent options. However, when I received them, I noticed that they didn't look great and were completely different from each other, including some different dimensions, which was very frustrating. I googled the Moog part numbers and found that the control arms I'd ordered were supposedly Moog's Economy line, as indicated by the "R" at the beginning of the part number, indicating "R-Series." If I'd known that, I wouldn't have ordered them, but as they were listed on RockAuto's "Daily Driver" listings for parts, rather than their "Economy" listings, I had no idea. RockAuto has absolutely zero customer service options (no phone, web chat, email, etc.), so I couldn't ask anyone about the issue, and just decided to send them back and order the parts from a different manufacturer on RockAuto. I settled on the AC Delco options (45P0296 & 45P0297), which were also listed in RockAuto's "Daily Driver" section, as I read that their "Professional" line were OE options. I'd literally dropped the Moog parts off for return shipment (for which I paid) and got home to find the AC Delco replacements (which I also paid to have shipped), and when I opened the boxes up, I noticed that they were identical to the Moog parts I'd just returned in every single way, including the bags they were in and the stickers of the part numbers on said bags. The left and right AC Delco parts were also different from each other in the exact same ways as the Moogs (color, dimensions, unique structural specifics, etc.). Luckily, I'd taken pictures of the original Moog parts for documentation, and pulled the pix up to make sure I wasn't going crazy. Thankfully, my sanity was confirmed (ish); the AC Delcos were identical to the Moog parts I'd just returned.

Again, incredibly frustrated with RockAuto's complete lack of customer service options, I called AC Delco. The AC Delco representative informed me that there was nothing they could do, including confirming or refuting that the AC Delco and Moog parts were manufactured as the exact same parts and simply re-labeled, because RockAuto was not an authorized seller of AC Delco parts and they couldn't confirm authenticity. He gave me the email address for AC Delco's fraud department, but said I'd have to sit on the parts for up to a week while I waited to be contacted by them. Yeah, not happening.

So, now I'm at a bit of an impasse regarding next steps. In my mind, several things could be going on, in order of probability: 1) The parts are manufactured at the same place and simply thrown in Moog, AC Delco, etc. boxes, regardless of stated quality (Professional/Gold/Daily Driver vs. R-Series/Advantage/Economy); 2) RockAuto is either intentionally or inadvertently screwing customers by putting the sealed bags of parts into the wrong boxes; or 3) I really am going crazy. Regardless, I'm sick of waiting on parts to arrive and paying RockAuto for shipping (including return shipping) for the exact same parts listed by different manufacturers and sold at different prices by RockAuto, so I need to figure something out. I guess I can either 1) just install these control arms and stfu about making sense of it; 2) pay to also return these AC Delco parts and buy the control arms elsewhere (hoping they're not also the exact same); or 3) buy the bushings and do the pressing on my original control arms.

Why is buying these parts so hard? All of this rebranding of Jaguar/Ford/Lincoln/Lemforder, etc. is infuriating. I'm 100% sure that it's not exclusive to Jaguar parts, but that doesn't make it any better. It's not like I don't want quality, but if I can get the same part for 30% of the cost, why wouldn't I? Yet, even "reputable" brand name manufacturers are turning out to be as much of a quality crapshoot as buying parts on eBay or AliExpress.

I'm not completely happy with Welsh (sent me suspect front upper control arms with one missing the ball joint nut) or FCP Euro (no phone support), either, but RockAuto definitely takes the cake for crap customer service (or complete lack of customer service communication, altogether). Side note regarding getting screwed by parts sellers, although unrelated to suspension: I popped a coolant hose (C2Z14540) a few days ago due to the well-documented brittle plastics failing over the years while playing around with my intake and tried to buy it at my local *********** due to expedience, but was informed that their Atlanta monopoly (Hennessy, where I've purchased at least four Jags/Rovers over the years and also gotten them serviced while under warranty over the course of 12 years) dictates that I pay an almost 100% markup over Jaguar/Rover MSRP for parts if I want to buy them locally. When I called Jaguar North America to complain, I was informed that it's a "luxury brand" and that's why I should expect dealers to mark up the parts. I laughed at him and told him that a lot of the parts were interchangeable with Ford parts at a fraction of the cost, and he didn't know what to say.

Anyway, I guess the lesson I'm sharing is Buyer Beware. I did a TON of due diligence prior to purchase of these control arms (and everything else) and still feel like I've gotten screwed by somebody and wasted countless hours of my life for the privilege.

Here're some of the dimensional differences between the same brand's Right & Left versions (which were repeated in the AC Delco versions):

Here're some of the differing unique identifiers between the same brand's Right & Left versions (which were repeated in the AC Delco versions):

AC Moogco:

 

Thank you for the info.. I was thinking when I do mine I’ll just go poly bushings instead of full replacements if possible.

 

i got those exact arms for like $50/pair on ebay lol, 25k miles later they’re doing fine. anything that isn’t lemforder will be whitebox china specials period end of story

every dew98 upper control arm ever made is interchangeable. right now you can steal a 2022 f-type and put the upper control arms in a 1999 s-type

i prefer used parts out of late model wrecked cars especially when i work on a customer’s vehicle. OE quality super low prices. reduce reuse recycle

 

It would be nice to just buy parts for this car like any other, but that doesn't work. Economies of scale.

You want to make double sure that the parts ordered are Lemforder who is the OEM supplier. Replaced my entire suspension with these guys with no issues. You can message them to confirm and they are small enough to be responsive, aside from any impacts of the health crisis.

https://www.berkshirejagcomponents.c...s-c102x2777211

 

I actually sent the AC Delco versions back to RockAuto, in addition to previously sending the Moog versions back to them, and bought the Lemforder control arms from FCP Euro. As expected, the Lemforder versions are identical in every way to the OEM Jaguar branded control arms, except they've ground off the word Jaguar and the interchange number. Unfortunately, the Lemforder versions cost more and didn't come with the two sets of bushing bolts and nuts per control arm, like the AC Delco and Moog versions did. Bolts are cheap, though.

 

Whenever I get ****ed like that by some mega retailer I keep all the hardware and extra stuff before sending back.

Thanks for sharing I just bought literally every Powerflex poly bushings you can and will addressing this thread in the future.

 

Let us know how you like the Powerlex stuff. We have had several guys remove them and go back to the factory rubber stuff due to harsh ride.
.
.
.