Help Diagnosing bad ball joints
10-09-2011, 02:08 PM
#1
Help Diagnosing bad ball joints
Hey guys, I jacked up my car today to check up on my ball joints to see how they were doing. Here's what I found the passenger front has major play in the 12 and 6 position as well as at 9 and 3. I could clearly see the upper ball joint was the culprit on that side. On the drivers side though the 12 and 6 seemed solid no play, but at 9 and 3 there was some play. The upper ball joint seemed to moving a slight bit at the 9 and 3. Could the problem be the upper or lower ball joint on that side??? Other than that no clicking or abnormal noises on turns.
10-12-2011, 10:06 AM
#3
Senior Moderator
There shouldnt be any play when prying
10-12-2011, 11:29 PM
#4
rebmeM deretsigeR
Lift up one side of the car and have someone use a pry bar or pipe under the tire to move it up and down. Take a look from another angle to see what is moving and what isn't. Uppers might be harder to spot because of the angle.
Can;t remember, but you want there to be near normal weight on that corner of the car, so you might need 2 jacks to raise that corner then jack that one wheel up. From my experience, you can't get to the lower control arm properly with one jack.
Can;t remember, but you want there to be near normal weight on that corner of the car, so you might need 2 jacks to raise that corner then jack that one wheel up. From my experience, you can't get to the lower control arm properly with one jack.
10-13-2011, 04:39 PM
#5
Lift up one side of the car and have someone use a pry bar or pipe under the tire to move it up and down. Take a look from another angle to see what is moving and what isn't. Uppers might be harder to spot because of the angle.
Can;t remember, but you want there to be near normal weight on that corner of the car, so you might need 2 jacks to raise that corner then jack that one wheel up. From my experience, you can't get to the lower control arm properly with one jack.
Can;t remember, but you want there to be near normal weight on that corner of the car, so you might need 2 jacks to raise that corner then jack that one wheel up. From my experience, you can't get to the lower control arm properly with one jack.
Typically, just grab the tire and try to shake. Play at 12:00, upper ball joint. Play at 6:00, lower ball joint. Play at 9:00 or 3:00, tie rods or steering linkage.
10-13-2011, 10:46 PM
#6
rebmeM deretsigeR
You're describing "unloading the ball joints", which is necessary on many cars. It does NOT apply to our front ends. Both upper and lower ball joints are unloaded with the wheels hanging free.
Typically, just grab the tire and try to shake. Play at 12:00, upper ball joint. Play at 6:00, lower ball joint. Play at 9:00 or 3:00, tie rods or steering linkage.
Typically, just grab the tire and try to shake. Play at 12:00, upper ball joint. Play at 6:00, lower ball joint. Play at 9:00 or 3:00, tie rods or steering linkage.
Thanks for the info. Been awhile since I took my suspension class and wasn't sure. whether it applied or not.
10-14-2011, 09:54 AM
#7
You're describing "unloading the ball joints", which is necessary on many cars. It does NOT apply to our front ends. Both upper and lower ball joints are unloaded with the wheels hanging free.
Typically, just grab the tire and try to shake. Play at 12:00, upper ball joint. Play at 6:00, lower ball joint. Play at 9:00 or 3:00, tie rods or steering linkage.
Typically, just grab the tire and try to shake. Play at 12:00, upper ball joint. Play at 6:00, lower ball joint. Play at 9:00 or 3:00, tie rods or steering linkage.
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10-15-2011, 10:21 PM
#8
rebmeM deretsigeR
Had the same thing happen to me. Didn't bother with the shake since I could feel the tie rod shake when someone was shaking the wheel. In my case, the nut seemed to work its way loose but stopped at the cotter pin, but I replaced it anyways. Joint felt very loose. I only changed the outer rods in my case.
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