What can happen if a ball joint fails?

[Reptile]

The two rear ball joints on my new 3G are bad. How serious is this?

[w261w261]

If you hit a bump at speed and the joint falls apart on you, the wheel will stop being nice and could steer you off the road or into traffic. This could be serious indeed. Ever see a clapped-out taxi or some other old car sitting by the side of the road with (usually) the front wheel at a crazy angle? That's the ball joint letting go.

[Reptile]

Ah, that's what I thought. It will be replaced within two weeks max.

[SteveDX89]

It could cause a serious accident. Get them fixed ASAP.

[2oodoor]

tires will wear out cause your alignment wont stay put
and your car will feel real loose, your car could dart slightley when the weight tranfers in turns, if the ball joint breaks completley it can separate and things could turn sour quickley. You should really take it easy and drive sensably with the car like that. nuff said

[Cheeseburger]

i would take it that it would be the same with the front ball joints? i need to get my front ball joints changed bad :( im hoping by next week or so

[MessyHonda]

i would take it that it would be the same with the front ball joints? i need to get my front ball joints changed bad :( im hoping by next week or so



WElll..........my front ball joints were making noises and i didnt change them until i had time.....like 2-3 months...and that is me puting 40 miles on the car every other day...they did not fail when i took them out they were just dry.



for the rear....yeah they are way easy to replace but like i said the front ones were a bit of a pain in the ass to take out since you have to take out the whole rotor/caliper then take off the hub and i used a cylinder Dye to pound them out on a bench vise

[EX-ileAccord]

I had one brake on me once it sucked. Bent my fender, and riped my axle apart. Luckly I wasent going fast

[Reptile]

Ok here is where I am at right now. The mechanic said they were loose and he would feel better if they were replaced within 30-60 days. I guess that means they are really bad.? I just do not have the money at the moment, this hatch has eaten it all until I get my income tax back within the next two weeks; and then they are as good as fixed.

I am going to probably put another 500-600 miles on it before they are repaired; mostly on the interstate at 70-75mph. Is that something I should reconsider?

[Cheeseburger]

time to drive slower mate

[Reptile]

Hmm. I will see what I can do about fixing them this week.

[HondaBoy]

The mechanic said they were loose and he would feel better if they were replaced within 30-60 days.

either he actually care or wants your money. how much is that mechanic going to charge you? i need my front ones replaced also. i know for sure the lower ball joints, i dunno about the top, they dont have any play in them. my rear ones have no play in them.

[LX-incredible]

"The Black Wind howls... One among you will shortly perish..." ...C.T.?

[2oodoor]

yea, if you were having it aligned, they will tell you stuff is wrong to freak you out so they can benefit on easy labor. I have driven vehicles with bushings and joints worn for thousands of miles, only because I take it easy and dont drive it like a maniac. I dont recommend that to anyone though.
Going by the info you provided, you should be ok for a little while. The rear suspension does not work or stress near as much as the front in normal driving. Things like potholes, RR tracks, real sharp turns should be taken carefully.

[w261w261]

Ok here is where I am at right now. The mechanic said they were loose and he would feel better if they were replaced within 30-60 days. I guess that means they are really bad.? I just do not have the money at the moment, this hatch has eaten it all until I get my income tax back within the next two weeks; and then they are as good as fixed.
I am going to probably put another 500-600 miles on it before they are repaired; mostly on the interstate at 70-75mph. Is that something I should reconsider?

Depends on how good your mechanic is. Sounds like he is saying they're bad, but not "you could get killed" bad. If it's interstate driving you're doing, you should be OK, but we're not under your car. I wouldn't hit any big potholes.

[shepherd79]

you may want to replace them very soon. I would not drive 600 with bad ball joints on highway.

[smufguy]

the Fronts are more forgiving than the rears. Changing them is not hard esp if you have the right tools. I changed mine when i pressed them in. Cost me 35 bux per ball joint and with the lend a tool from Autozone, within 10 minutes, both the ball joints were in place and in the next half hour, both the arms were on the car. It makes a world of difference with the right balljoints and i did not notice it till i actually installed them.

[Reptile]

I forgot he also said both of the rear control arms need to be replaced as well. To take care of the arms, and ball joints he quoted me $324.66 but I am not sure if that is before or after tax.

In all honestly I trust Greg (the mechanic) a little, he has had the opportunity to royally rip me off in the past and has not done so. He is also one of the most sought after and respected mechanics in the area. He said they were defiantly bad enough for it to fail the safety inspection.

And yes LX-incredible that quote is from CT; it is a personal favorite of mine.

[smufguy]

Ingalls smart arms for the 3g are 45 bux each and the balljoints are 35 bux each ($160 in total). Atleast thats what i paid for. I still have the old ones in my trunk for god knows why. Nothing was wrong with them, i just could not adjust the camber on these. The boots are still intact and you can have them if you are in dire need of part but low on money.

[MessyHonda]

Ingalls smart arms for the 3g are 45 bux each and the balljoints are 35 bux each ($160 in total). Atleast thats what i paid for. I still have the old ones in my trunk for god knows why. Nothing was wrong with them, i just could not adjust the camber on these. The boots are still intact and you can have them if you are in dire need of part but low on money.


i thought you had 2nd gen lude arms?

[smufguy]

i thought you had 2nd gen lude arms?

im talking about the rear arms

[88Accord-DX]

I've only seen a handfull of vehicles where the upper ball joint came out. The front tire/rim buckled up under the front fender well. On a Chevy truck, when the lower ball joint broke, the coil spring pushed the lower control arm down. Also, the front tire sort of buckled up in the fender well..

[vongiese]

I've only seen a handfull of vehicles where the upper ball joint came out. The front tire/rim buckled up under the front fender well. On a Chevy truck, when the lower ball joint broke, the coil spring pushed the lower control arm down. Also, the front tire sort of buckled up in the fender well..

My kids rear upper BJ went out on her 87, said the wheel flopped sideways...she tied it together with an NRS tie down strap - got it to the mechanics. No damage. I replaced th eother side a few weeks later when she came home for a visit - it was loose. easy to replace:)

[ChaseR]

I had a joint do that in high school... on the rear.. I taped it up real good with Duct tape! LOL and drove for a good 500 miles on it, pretty hard too.. LOL memories

[Blkblurr]

When my rear ball joint broke my wheel tilted in at the top and caused the inside of the wheel to rub on the strut making lots of aluminum shavings. My car did not lose control and was easy to get off the road. I was on the interstate going about 75mph when this happened. If your front gives you will most likely lose control since you cant steer anymore.

[HondaBoy]

i looked and Moog rear ball joints are $43.99 each. not too terribly expensive.

[MessyHonda]

i looked and Moog rear ball joints are $43.99 each. not too terribly expensive.


i paid 30 bucks each for the front ones(lower).

[TdotWarrior]

The two rear ball joints on my new 3G are bad. How serious is this?



heh my front passenger ball joint fell wen i went ova a speed bump in the mall parking lot.... hit a bump then the cars front end dipped straight to the ground lol


ps ma front upper joint was 75 bux cnd frum canadian tire :(

[MessyHonda]

heh my front passenger ball joint fell wen i went ova a speed bump in the mall parking lot.... hit a bump then the cars front end dipped straight to the ground lol
ps ma front upper joint was 75 bux cnd frum canadian tire :(


yeah that sucks...but it also could of sucked if it went out on the freeway doing at least 100kmph

[frantik]

he would feel better if they were replaced within 30-60 days. I guess that means they are really bad.?

or he's got some bills to pay :kekeke:

[89-LXI-5SPD]

I've had my upper rear ball joint go out, twice lol. Each time I was going around a curve. It was the one on the inside of the curve that went out. It let the weight/force off of that side and the worn out ball just popped out of its socket. Top of the wheel tilts in and on mine the tire (vs. the wheel) hit the coil spring. Ahhh, ya gotta love the smell of burnning rubber, lol. Each time I was able to jack up the car, pop the ball back in the socket, wrap some bailing wire around to keep it together, and drover her home. Luckily I have a U-Wrench-It/Pick-N-Pull junk yard 20 miles away. I just go there and pull one off, one that still has a good rubber boot holding the grease in. Only costs 10$ a piece. I can usually find one where somebody has already replaced it with a new or remanufactured one. Gotta love those junk yards :)

[Blkblurr]

I paid $16 a piece for new ones from Advance auto.