Type S of Edmond

I went to acura to get my oil changed and they told me that my ball joints are very loose and a ball joint boot is close to spliting. How hard is this to replace on my own they wanted 390 for it what do you all think. im all for it if its easy to save a little money. thanks

immauser

iTrader: (1)

do you hear anything when moving your steering wheel back and forth? and is your car lowered? i hear its a problem when you lower your car....i think one of mine popped out a bit, but the person who did my suspension pushed it back in...i think mine was the lower ball joint... it looked like a pain in the ass to get in there.

Type S of Edmond

Yeah im on ksports and i havent really heard anything so idk but yeah it doesnt look like it would be that easy thats why im asking i just looked on the Ingalls site and they have the lower ones and the upper control are with ball joints so i might look into that so i can adjust. Anyone have these?

rondog

iTrader: (1)

jack the car up, grab the wheel at 12:00 and 6:00 and push and pull and see if there is any play. I had that in my old CL, my camber looked way off. uneven tire wear is also a sign. Just price out the parts and see if it's cheaper to do it yourself.

pits200

Ok, not sure how many of the people who gave advice have ever changed the lower ball joint, let me put it this way, it is a PITA. You have to take off the entire knuckle assembly and take it to a machine shop to have them press out the ball joint.

The part is only like $20 (I can't exactly remember) for each side. But the labor is very intensive unless you've taken your suspension apart before.. But you're in luck cause I did a brief write-up on replacing my ball joint. Hope it helps.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...light=axle+nut

Nersh7

^ thats how it goes step by step, I used it the other day

You have to know what your doing to some extent but its not that hard of a job with the right tools

Type S of Edmond

Ok i will try that ron thanks, and also use that diy if it comes down to it i have a friend that gets me parts so well see how this works out thanks guys

Nersh7

if you end up doing the lower ball joints, do your inner and outer tie rods as well

underst8

Just came across this thread while considering my lower fronts. Had them replaced (Acura OEM) at 105k-ish. Definitely noticed the front end felt a lot more clunky before and a lot tighter after, almost like it was bottoming out easier before. I'm lowered on Tein S-tech...

Now at 135k and I'm starting to feel the same sort of roughness I did before. I definitely think lowering this car puts a ton of stress on the lower front ball joints.

I think I will pick up some moog joints and new tie rods and do it myself in the next month or so. Did my suspension myself with a buddy so not worried about the work - I'll let ya know how it goes.

Nersh - any recommendation on aftermarket tie rods or is OEM the only known option? Thanks!

Nersh7

Why me? lol

I have moog for both inner and outer but ingals is another option out there. I don't think there is a huge difference between moog or ingals I just went with whatever was easier to get ahold of. But definently get those over stock, way thicker and just better.

ChucksCL-S

I'd get a second opinion....I think the dealer is looking for work and will take big dollars from you. Just a thought.

NiVeK

I just did my lower ball joints and let me tell you that other than taking the knuckle off along with the associated parts it's not that bad. I didn't have to press them out either. Once you remove the C-clip that retains the BJ in the knuckle I popped it one good time with a dead blow hammer and it went flying. Tap gently back into place and install C-clip. Install all the other stuff... job done.

richardparker

iTrader: (7)

What is a better option for lower ball joints acura/honda or moog ?

After installing new tie rods I started to get a rattle going over bumps thinking that maybe one came loose. Today looking around I noticed my drivers side balljoint is on way out.
I can put a wrench between the the knuckle and lower arm and lift it a good bit.
The ball joint is snugged up but their is play at the socket area.
I only replaced them a little more than a year ago with cheap one's and this time I want to buy longer lasting ones.
So witch one's will last longer ?

fuzzy02CLS

iTrader: (2)

Moog.

gurot1

Just replaced lower ball joints with some from Partsource (Nascar brand which is made by Mogul (same company that makes Moog per the box)). It was a major PITA. 9 years of Ontario winters aren't the kindest to the underbody. We couldn't get the ABS sensor out, even after spraying with PB Blaster; we just disconnected the line in the engine bay and pulled it out and just left the sensor attached to the knuckle when we removed the knuckle. Cotter pins were so corroded that they broke when removing and we drilled the remains out. I can't say that I personally changed them, my cousin did, I was more like the assisstant, handing over different tools/sockets,etc.
Suspension is a lot quieter now, but there is still this loose clunking kind of noise on front passenger when going over bumps and dips...that's next on the agenda to fix at a later time. Car handles way better now, steering wheel doesn't shake when braking, most of the nose diving while braking is gone and car is a lot smoother when I am changing gears (6-speed, initially I thought it was an engine mount, but changing ball joints made everything smooth). It was definitely a lot of work...the parts needed a lot of persuasion to get everything apart! The ball joint press kit from Partsource did not have a clamp small enough to fit because of the bend in the knuckle, so we just took it to a shop to have the old joints pressed out and they pressed the new ones in as well. Overall a HUGE improvement, I should have done this last year!