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Wow, I wouldn't be comfortable driving without a locking pin.
And is that nut/washer wider than the hole the sleeve fits in? Post a photo of the nut where it meets the control arm.
Originally Posted by thoiboi
I wouldn't expect any less from us!
Obligatory
The soonest I will be able to lift and take a pic is wednesday afternoon. Thoiboi, you jerk, you implying that it will fall apart and I am agoing to die?!? I'm worried AF now. The incident occured years ago....
The soonest I will be able to lift and take a pic is wednesday afternoon. Thoiboi, you jerk, you implying that it will fall apart and I am agoing to die?!? I'm worried AF now. The incident occured years ago....
The sleeve is only pressed into the control arm. It WILL eventually come out of the control arm if the nut isn't wider than the hole in the control arm. It's just a matter of time/stress until it happens IMO.
And I might be wrong on this, but I'm thinking you should be able to turn the wheel all the way to the right or left and be able to get a shot of the nut without having to jack the car....
Last edited by nfnsquared; Oct 9, 2017 at 09:45 AM.
the flange nut looks to be *barely* wide enough to hold onto the LCA.
Couldn't re-use the stock nut? IDK what thread pitch Moog uses. I know Honda uses a weird (1.25mm) pitch.
Originally Posted by nfnsquared
The sleeve is only pressed into the control arm. It WILL eventually come out of the control arm if the nut isn't wider than the hole in the control arm. It's just a matter of time/stress until it happens IMO.
And I might be wrong on this, but I'm thinking you should be able to turn the wheel all the way to the right or left and be able to get a shot of the nut without having to jack the car....
Alright, my apologies for the late reply. I wanted to get under and get a real good, clear photo for you guys. Took pics of both upper and lower ball joints from an above and below angle...
Upper BJ from above Upper joint from above Lower ball joint from below
Looks like that nut is wide enough, but I'd still be uneasy about not having a locking pin. What is that black stuff coming out from the edges of the nut? Does Moog address why they don't use a cotter pin?
That appears to be a reverse locking nut. Meaning it has deformed threads that prevent it from easily backing out. Similar idea as a Nylock.
The reason for a cooter pin on ball joints is that if the stud spins because of a malfunction and the nut loosens...then the cooter would keep the nut from completely un-threading.
A nylon locknut or rev locknut *should* work to retain the nut in case the stud spins it loose.
A castle nut that has the extra broad washer and a stud with holes for a cooter pin cost more money.
I wonder if THAT is why the OEM ball joint assembly costs more...or maybe the differences in overall quality, R&D, etc etc etc all add up to a whopping like... $20-30 more. :\
I recently purchased after market lower control arms for my 2004 acura tl. When I went to install the lower control arms the ball joint is bigger than the hole on the arm. I was thinking about replacing the oem lower ball joints with moogs. But I'm not sure after reading this post. Also, I noticed what looks like a sleeve inside of the hole where the ball joint goes. Can I press this out so that the oem ball joint currently on the car will fit?? Thanks for your help.
Thus is the site I ordered the arms from. http://discountbodyparts.com. I plugged in all the correct info for my car. 2004 acura tl. All of that came up. Tell me what you think
That looks like the lower control arm for the 7th gen Accord. You should exchange it for the correct one.
actually after doing some reading, I found out that the sleeve from the old arm can stay attached to the ball joint when removing the old arm. I didnt realize this. And if this happens the ball joint also need to be replaced from what I've read.
No, there's no reason the ball joint has to be replaced because the sleeve stayed attached, but you do need to get the sleeve off of the ball joint before it will work in the new arms...
I recently purchased after market lower control arms for my 2004 acura tl. When I went to install the lower control arms the ball joint is bigger than the hole on the arm. I was thinking about replacing the oem lower ball joints with moogs. But I'm not sure after reading this post. Also, I noticed what looks like a sleeve inside of the hole where the ball joint goes. Can I press this out so that the oem ball joint currently on the car will fit?? Thanks for your help.
your sleeve is stuck in your old ARM...not your existing ball joint.
Get it out of the old arm.
Use a press.
Or use a hammer if you're reckless. Protect the surface that the nut will fasten on.
actually after doing some reading, I found out that the sleeve from the old arm can stay attached to the ball joint when removing the old arm. I didnt realize this. And if this happens the ball joint also need to be replaced from what I've read.
think about this for a second.
if the sleeve was attached to the ball joint...why would the ball joint be too small for the arm?
As I mentioned...look at your old LCA. Assuming it was an OEM LCA, the sleeve is stuck in the old arm.
I had my shop install Moog K500117 about 14 months ago to both sides. Was the part defective back then as well? How can I validate if I’ve got a bad one or is there a way I can tell if my car is gonna fall face flat?
I’m driving a lot of long distance for the next month so need extreme reliability right now!
Well....the nut (self locking or not) has to cover the sleeve and actually attach to the LCA.
If its been on for months, you probably have the right nut. You'll likely be fine for your trip. Moog joints probably last like...10K-30K miles on this car? Or has anyone got more out of one?
Either way.... there's no such thing as a "sure thing" aftermarket "OE replacement" part. If there was, it would cost a LOT more than a dealer part.
Guys, my car is ruined because of this exact ball joint. I was turning right on the corner from a stoplight and 30 ft after the turn I was going 10 mph and the car did the Kachow thing. I step out of the vehicle to assess the damage. The wheel was sideways, fender, wheel well cover, and side skirt was damaged No suspension parts were on the ground, nothing looked snapped or bent besides the fender, side skirt and wheel well cover.
Ball joint just popped out of place with the nut still on the ball joint.
Ironically, the car broke down within 150ft to the mechanic shop I use sometimes. I paid $50 to get it towed to said shop
I talked to moog, and they don't think I have a case for this K500117 ball joint because I got it off ebay. They're talking to their legal team to see If they can help me too? What other steps did you take to do it. Did you pay out of pocket, then have them pay you or pay the shop or what was the whole process start to finish?
They told me to send the ball joint back to them so they can inspect it with a microscope. I would like to send it back. But, my vehicle is currently sitting in the mechanic shop.
Last edited by bakaryu18; Aug 13, 2020 at 02:07 PM.
The factory joint isn't much more expensive, is it?
Unfortunately, you likely don't have a case. Unless your mechanic installed it improperly.
After checking my emails I bought a pair from O'reilly's as well, I checked with moog and they said they are a vendor that buys direct from them.
what now?
I needed to replace a driver side balljoint and didn't want to buy the complete knuckle and found out that MOOG makes a replacement balljoint so I ordered one from RockAuto.
It came in a few days and it looked pretty good, although I wondered about the lock nut it came with instead of a castle nut and pin like the OEM one is, but figured its MOOG damnit, they know what they're doing.
So I install it friday night. PITA to get the old one out lemme tell ya! Take it for a ride around the block on saturday, everything feels good so I park it until Sunday. Driving on Sunday, making a right turn down a street and hit a bump... *BOOM* *THUNK* *SCREECH*
Get out to see my fender all messed up and my tire twisted into the fender. Mind you I was going like 5 miles around the turn, could have been alot worse at faster speeds.
So after lots of calls to RockAuto and MOOG and my own investigation, basically its a defective design. The locknut provided with the balljoint is large enough to only cover the sleeve that is pressed into the lower control arm. The sleeve along with the balljoint simply popped out of the lower control arm. The OEM castle nut is a few millimeters large than the sleeve and thus this would never happen if the nut was bigger. I sent the balljoint to MOOG for analysis and maybe they will correct it before it happens to someone else.
So either don't buy the balljoint or use a washer under the locknut to prevent something like this happening to you or someone could get seriously hurt/killed.
Its my fault for not checking it better, yes. But it is a MAJOR design defect for such a high priority item on a car. Be safe out there guys.
Is this one similar of the one you installed if you remember? If so im in for some disappointing results
Purchased the ball joint at O'Reilly's and did not know about the defective castle nut. I was getting on an on-ramp to the freeway when the ball joint separated from the control arm. I almost ran off an embankment off the side of the road. My driver side front fender is destroyed along with the bottom molding under the driver side door. Axle is broke as well. What steps did you take to get them to pay for the repairs? This is highly ridiculous and I could have been injured or worse!!
aftermarket chassis parts...from eBay....
