chrismeoli

Well title says it all. Failed my inspection because of a front ball joint and i am real handy with my car , just never had to do a ball joint. Any help would be appreciated guys! thank you

acutee

It is very simple. all you need is the balljoint removal tool, a 32 or 36 socket to remove the wheel center bolt, and other regular tools.

fsttyms1

What ball joint? Upper or lower?

chrismeoli

upper, 75 at advance auto parts

fsttyms1

You can get the part for like 40 at napa. I didnt have time to do it and i paid a shop 10 bucks to press it out and press the new one in. Just take the control arm off and bring it in.

chrismeoli

Thanks!

poohlikeshunny

what are the signs that your balljoint is going bad?

fsttyms1

Clunking noise over bumps. With teh car jacked up and supported movement in the wheel when pushing/pulling on it

bluefin

Another sign is squeaking when turning and squeaking when pressing up and down on the fendner. Not too many other parts will squeak the same with both motions. That was the symptoms of my daughters Vigor and an Acura mechnaic suggested it. It had not progresssed to wobbbling when testing the wheel on a jackstand. She was embarrased from all the noise her car made. Changed out the lower ball joint (along with control arm), the apparent source of the noise. No more squeaking. I cut open the rubber cover and the joint was dry. Not sure how many more weeks it would have lasted before developing worse symptoms and then breaking. My sons 1990 legend broke a lower front ball joint when starting to drive out of a parking space. I mean catastrophic failure with wheel collasping. Thank God it happened in the parking lot rather than on the freeway. The car had to be towed home of course.

poohlikeshunny

How about when it is cold in the morning and you turn the steering wheel and you hear a faint clunking/grinding noise for the first fw minutes?

zboys

My 99 TL is doing the same thing... squeaking when you push on the fender and squeaking when you turn the wheel. I called Acura dealer today. They said they usually "exercise" the ball joint 1st unless it is actually loose. They said they would replace it if it was loose. To exercise it the rotate the ball joint and relube it. Cost is around $250. I called local mechanic. He said he could replace both ball joints with Moog brand for $375. Acura said to replace them it would be $450 unless the ball joint was stamped with the letter "B" on the bottom and then the entire knuckle would need to be replaced at $400 per side for the parts and another $350 in labor. I haven't looked yet to see if I can see the letter "B".

I road home in the rain tonight and the squeaking is gone. I am sure it will return when things dry out.

Any suggestions?

fsttyms1

I would first find out if its the ball joint, upper or lower. The dealer is always going to be expensive. Here is a site for oem parts at a discount.

http://www.acuraautomotiveparts.org/...catdisplay.jsp

ac5320

Hey, so im having my lower ball joints on my 03 type s replaced tomorrow. I got quote for $300 labor and i think like $120 for parts. am i getting ripped? I dont know how to do to much on my car...

bluefin

Try to get an idea that it is the ball joint or not, follow the noise.

Rock Auto has the lower ball joints for around $40. Replacing a ball joint is not hard, but you have to have some mechnaical abilities and the tools, the manual helps, or you will be in for a painful ride.

If you can get the knuckle off, you can purchase the ball joint for $40 and take both to a auto machine shop and have them press it in as described elsewhere by fattysyms. If you don't want to DIY, take it to an independendt acura/honda mechanic. If asked, they may do the band aid thing with trying to grease it more or pushing whatever grease is left into the dry spots, and that could save some money for awhile. I would think that would work best for newer cars. Looks like the worst from an independent mechnaic for one ball joint replacement is $200 or less. For a 1999, I would not replace the other unless it also showed signs of a problem. Myself, I would replace it as opposed to the first aid thing.

etxxz

Advance auto parts has two options. Lifetime warranty TRW for $26 or 1yr wrty Treadsaver for $16...twr are good, i was ast manager at this place for almost a year

zboys

Thanks everyone. I'm not real sure about the "exercise" option either. Would it not be better to replace both sides at the same time though?

Superb

Def gettin raped on the parts. Like etxxz, go to Advanced, get the TRW ball joints and then take them to the shop to get put on. I had both front lower ball joints replaced last month for $180 plus $50 I spent at advanced for the parts.

ac5320

Damn. To late for me I had them done a few days ago.

zboys

I took my car in today to a local mechanic. He took the car for a ride and said he pushed it pretty hard. He said he might have heard a little noise in the right wheel bearing but other than that no creaking or squeaking. He checked the ball joints in the shop and said the right had a very slight amount of play but not enough that it should be replaced. The squeaking has not returned since I sprayed the bushings with wd40 and then drove in the rain(?). I guess I'll wait for the noise to return and try to pinpoint the source again.

bgl2687

is it also a ball joint proble when my car squeeks while riding on bumpy roads or going over speed bumps?

vtec260

I just had my lower ball joints fixed under five year major component warranty. I thought it was just cold weather causing squeaks when going over bumps and when pushing down on the fender. Also felt some brake shudder, but after joints were fixed, no more shudder. I had hit the curb at low speed a few months ago and I think that damaged the joints. When inspected, the dealer said bad lower ball joints. Both were repaired at no charge, otherwise, it would have been $750. Only one side was bad, but both were changed. Thanks Acura.

chrismeoli

i ended up buying a whole new upper control arm, any DIY in swaping this out? Thanks again