UMI Performance 78-88 G-Body & 82-92 F-Body Front Lower A-Arm Hardware Kit

Grade 10.9 Zinc Coated Front Lower A-Arm Bolt Kit for 1978-1988 G-Body and 1982-1992 F-Body

The front lower A-arm pivot carries more load than any other bolted joint in a G-Body or third generation F-Body front end, and on a car this old the original bolts have usually been through several decades of road salt, seized nuts and impact guns. This kit replaces them with fresh Grade 10.9 bolts, flat washers and nylon insert lock nuts, all zinc coated.

UMI sells it as a companion to a lower A-arm swap, and states the kit works with UMI A-arms, factory A-arms and other brands. Because the arms have to come out anyway, replacing the pivot hardware at the same time costs very little and removes the one part of the job most likely to fight you the next time the suspension comes apart.

Key Features

• Grade 10.9 bolts, the metric high-strength class UMI specifies for this kit.
• Zinc coating to resist the corrosion that seizes forty-year-old A-arm bolts in their sleeves.
• Nylon insert lock nuts hold clamp load without needing a jam nut.
• Flat washers included so the clamp load spreads across the bushing sleeve face.
• UMI states the kit is compatible with UMI A-arms, factory A-arms and other brands.
• Direct bolt-on with no modification, per UMI's product data.
• Covers both platforms: 1978-1988 GM G-Body and 1982-1992 GM F-Body lower A-arms.

Fitment

UMI publishes this kit for the 1978-1988 GM G-Body and the 1982-1992 GM F-Body, with no exclusions or qualifications listed, and rates it as a direct bolt-on. UMI publishes year, make and model only for this part number and lists no submodel or trim breakdown, so the fitment tags on this listing stop at model rather than inventing a trim.

On cross-brand use, UMI says the kit is compatible with UMI, factory and other manufacturers' lower A-arms, while its warranty policy separately states that UMI cannot guarantee compatibility with other manufacturers' components. Read that as works with factory and most aftermarket tubular lower arms rather than as a guarantee, and check bolt length against your arms before final assembly.

This kit covers the lower A-arms only. UMI's own part title for it is Hardware Kit, Lower A-Arms. If you need the upper pivots as well on a G-Body, that is a different UMI part number.

Specifications

What's Included

• Grade 10.9 bolts for the front lower A-arm pivots
• Flat washers
• Nylon insert lock nuts
• All fasteners zinc coated

That is the complete published contents. UMI documents no instruction sheet, grease packet or sticker with this kit, and no UMI installation sheet exists for part 3011. UMI also publishes no piece counts, so this listing does not state how many bolts, washers or nuts are in the bag.

About UMI Performance

UMI Performance builds chassis and suspension parts at 509 Hemlock Street in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, using North American raw material from USA steel suppliers, machine-guided precision DOM tube bending, laser-cut plating and welds laid by skilled and robotic welders. The company describes itself as twenty one years in the industry and lists Tiger Drylac powder coat on its fabricated parts. This kit is one of the plain-fastener items in that catalogue: zinc plated Grade 10.9 hardware sized for the GM lower A-arm pivot rather than a coated weldment.

Related Parts

• UMI 3031-B tubular front lower A-arms, the arms UMI names this hardware kit for

FAQ

Yes. UMI publishes it for the 1978-1988 GM G-Body and the 1982-1992 GM F-Body, which covers the Camaro and Firebird of that generation along with the eight G-Body models listed in the fitment table above. It is the same lower pivot design across both platforms.

UMI states the kit is compatible with UMI A-arms, factory A-arms and other brands, so a factory stamped arm is a supported use. The one caution is that UMI's warranty policy separately says it cannot guarantee compatibility with other manufacturers' components, so if you are bolting these into a third party tubular arm with an unusual bushing sleeve length, test fit before you torque.

Grade 10.9 is a metric property class describing the tensile and yield strength of the bolt. A major retailer of UMI hardware describes metric 10.9 as equal in strength to American Grade 8. They are two different rating systems, so the two markings are not interchangeable on paper even though the practical strength is comparable. UMI publishes Grade 10.9 for this kit.

No. UMI's own name for this part is Hardware Kit, Lower A-Arms, and it covers the lower pivots only. If you are replacing both upper and lower arms on a G-Body, UMI sells a separate upper and lower kit under a different part number.

UMI does not publish piece counts for this part number, so this listing does not state one. What is published is the content type: Grade 10.9 bolts, flat washers and nylon insert lock nuts, all zinc coated, sufficient for the front lower A-arm pivots.

Nylon insert lock nuts are designed as single use fasteners because the nylon collar deforms around the thread the first time it is run down. If you remove the arms for a test fit and reassemble immediately, the nuts will usually still hold, but for a final assembly on a safety-critical suspension joint fit fresh nuts.

That is a judgement call, and UMI does not require it. The argument for replacing is that these fasteners are typically forty years old, have been torqued into a compressed bushing, and are often the corroded parts that force a torch out of the corner during the next job. Fresh Grade 10.9 hardware costs a fraction of the arms you are installing and the arms are already out.

UMI publishes no torque figure for this part number and no UMI installation sheet exists for it, so this listing does not print one. Use the General Motors factory service information for your exact year and model, and follow the instruction sheet that came with the control arms these fasteners are being used on. Torque values printed on UMI sheets for other part numbers belong to those parts. As a general practice on a rubber or polyurethane bushed lower A-arm, the pivot fasteners are tightened with the suspension loaded at ride height so the bushing is not preloaded in a twisted position.

Zinc plating is a sacrificial corrosion barrier and it is what UMI publishes for this kit. It is a meaningful improvement over bare or badly pitted original hardware, but no plating is permanent on a car driven through winter salt. If the car sees salt, plan on inspecting the front pivot hardware whenever the suspension is apart.

Yes, plan on one. Any time the lower A-arms come off the car, caster, camber and toe move. That is a function of removing the arms rather than of this hardware kit, but it should be in the budget for the job.

UMI publishes a two year warranty from the original date of purchase against defects in materials and workmanship, to the original purchaser only, and it is not transferable. The same policy excludes misuse, exceeding the design limits of the product, improper installation, altered product, non-UMI components, incidental costs such as towing and labour, and normal wear items including bearings and bushings. UMI also states it cannot guarantee compatibility with other manufacturers' components. Note that the printed sheet in the box still carries an older, narrower disclaimer that predates the current two year term. The policy page is the current document. Neither is a Black Ops Auto Works warranty.

Installation Instructions

1. Support the vehicle safely on stands and unload the front suspension following the procedure in the instruction sheet supplied with your lower A-arms.
2. Remove the original lower A-arm pivot bolts, keeping track of any factory washers, shims or alignment hardware so the same stack-up can be reproduced.
3. Compare each new bolt against the original for length and diameter before installation, particularly if the arms are from a third party manufacturer.
4. Fit the new Grade 10.9 bolts with a flat washer under the head and, where the original assembly used one, under the nut face.
5. Run the nylon insert lock nuts down finger tight and leave the joint loose while the arm is positioned.
6. Lower the vehicle so the suspension carries its own weight at normal ride height before final tightening, so the bushing is not clamped in a twisted position.
7. Tighten the pivot fasteners to the vehicle manufacturer's published value for your exact year and model, taken from the applicable General Motors factory service information, and follow any additional instruction supplied with the control arms themselves.
8. Recheck the fasteners after the first short drive and have the front end aligned.

No UMI installation sheet is published for part 3011 and UMI publishes no torque value for it. This listing deliberately prints no number rather than substituting a figure from a different part.