lower ball joints !
hello everybody !
i just checked my lower ball joints today ! and i found one of the joints without a boot and the other has cracked boot !
so does this means replacing the balljoints or i can just put a new boot on ! i don't think the boots were off for a long time cause i checked them about a month ago !
and is replacing the ball joints too hard ! what about the boot ! ?
do i need to remove the knuckle hub !
thnx
MIKE
3geez member since October 4th 2001
Yes, you should be able to just replace the boot. Check to make sure the ball joint hasn't been damaged however. And yes, it looks like you will need to remove the whole steering knuckle. It isn't a tough process, it just involves a lot of steps.. Removing the spindle nut might be the toughest part. They are torqued on at about 149 ft lbs... When I tried to loosen mine, I broke one breaker bar and bent another one and still couldn't loosen it. If you have an impact wrench then great if not try to loosen it yourself. I had to end up taking it to a shop and paid them $10 just to loosen it for me. Other then that, everything else is pretty basic... You will also need a separating tool to pop the ball joints out of their seats.. If you need to replace the whole balljoint, I would not recommend doing it yourself.. you will need a balljoint remover and installer tool , plus a press to remove hub from steering knuckle... looks pretty complicated...
Anyway, here is all I could dig up on it...
Hope this helps you to make the decision on whether you should tackle it yourself our not..
Peace..
89 Lx-i
Performance: K&N filter,custom CAI, Accel coil, MSD 6aL ignition, magnecor wires, high flow injectors, FPR, sport exhaust,Tokico springs/struts
Appearance: white gauges, side markers, headlight conversion, clear bumper signal/fog light conversion, SE-i center armrest and cupholder, SE-i leather seats
17" ADRs with 205/40/17 khumos
future plans: 16" or 17" rims(can scratch that one off the list 9-12-02), headers-high flow cat.-cat back piping. Rear disc brakes from SE-i, reground cam.
thank you very much 89accordlxi !
i will try to do it my self ! i 've done the bearing before ! i removed the knuckle hub but i went to a mechanic to press the bearing out and back in !
so i think i 'll do the same here ! take the knuckle hub out and see if the ball joint is damaged and go to a mechanic with the hub if it needs replacement !
BTW i used a big hammer to seperate the ball joints ! it worked fine !
about the breaker bar i used a 1.5 m pipe !
thnx again !
MIKE
3geez member since October 4th 2001
Sorry to sound stupid but on the lower control arm, what is the littile rubber circular thing. When i replaced my CV shaft i used to a pickle fork to pop those 2 pieces apart on the control arm and now that little rubber thing is split open and grease is comin out. Is that the ball joint or the other piece you called it?
Thanks guys,
Chris
*1986 Honda Accord Lx-i* 5-spd.
17" Konig Maxxum Cam 178's wrapped in 205/40/ZR17 Kumho Ecsta Supras, Eibach Sportlines, Tokico struts, 92-95 civic custom short ram air intake, Magnaflow streetseries exhaust, 20% tint all around, Red/Black taillights, painted calipers and drums, hyperwhite corner bulbs, blue interior lights, Racing pedals, Carbon fiber shift knob
yes chris under that rubber is the lower ball joint and you better get that replaced before you ruin your ball joint !
MIKE
3geez member since October 4th 2001
A'ight, so when i order a new ball joint it will come with that little rubber circular thing? That's part of the ball joint right? Also, maybe you know about this> I am getting ready to get the prelude control arms for my car so i will need to get the new ball joint for those prelude arms too. That also includes the rubber thing too, right?
Thanks,
Chris
*1986 Honda Accord Lx-i* 5-spd.
17" Konig Maxxum Cam 178's wrapped in 205/40/ZR17 Kumho Ecsta Supras, Eibach Sportlines, Tokico struts, 92-95 civic custom short ram air intake, Magnaflow streetseries exhaust, 20% tint all around, Red/Black taillights, painted calipers and drums, hyperwhite corner bulbs, blue interior lights, Racing pedals, Carbon fiber shift knob
Balljoints for the prelude arms include that "rubber thing"
Carl
you're thinking about the upper joints man
AccordEX, if you're going through all that trouble you may as well buy the whole joint! That's my recommendation, if you don't take care of a bad joint what happened to OldSchoolSwap can happen to yours too (xcept you won't have a cool motor to swap into your next car :p )
Eric
3geez member since October 12, 2000
"All this worldly wisdom was once the unamiable heresy of some wise man." - Henry David Thoreau
thxn for reminding me !!!!Originally posted by POS carb
(xcept you won't have a cool motor to swap into your next car :p )
ok i checked them today ! one of them is shot ! so i am gonna change both ! and change the bearing that i didn't change the last time ! !
BTW how do i got the fuckin ball joint out of it's place ????
MIKE
3geez member since October 4th 2001
You have to remove the entire steering knuckle and then remove the ring at the inside of the bearing.
Remove the snap ring on the ball joint. it won't come off easily otherwise! You have to replace it by pressing or other special tool. A rental shop had the tool for $17 per 4 hours. I took mine to a shop and they replaced it for $10 (ball joint cost $25). They can replace the bearing at the same time. It also needs pressing in and out.
dj 99! i am gonna take the knuckle out ! and go to the shop to replcae bith the bearing and the ball joint !
MIK
3geez member since October 4th 2001
Be extra careful with the upper ball joint. You have to replace the whole arm if it is messed up!
Good luck!
OMG get the joint checked......yesterday my real ball joint poped out because it was deteriorated so they just replaced both joints and arms...cost me $205..my rear wheel almost came off..lucky iwas only going 5mph and was next to a garage when it happened..i got out and my right rear wheel was sitting like this \ against my axel...im like holy crap..the whole joint came apart..so they replaced both sides and both arms...not the lower ones the upper ones ....the idiots there said they didnt know cars had rear ball joints...but seriosly get it checked...does ur car make a slight noise when u turn left or right?...like a rubbing noise...make sure u get it checked...if u dont that could happen..i would have been screwed if it had happened one the interstate..my wheel woulda come off..plus my lugnuts werent tight from when i got my car inspected
"But no matter how much you tune it, it is still just an 86."
Kyoichi Sodou
~Initial D
MOds: bunch...if you see blue streak by catch up to me and ill show you ^_^
I saw a guy bust a lower ball joint right off and the front wheel wedged between the fender and the wheelwell and made him fight for control of the car going 65mph and by the time he slid to a stop the sliding had worn a 2" hole right thru the tire itself
429whp 362wtq A20 TURBO. A20T>*
Could you possibly be referring to me?
nope but i do need to change my BJs they are getting really bad... its setting my alignment off
429whp 362wtq A20 TURBO. A20T>*
well, i don't think the upper and lower BJ's affect alignment at all. The inner and outer tie bar joints will.
they only effect alignment when they are completely shot
429whp 362wtq A20 TURBO. A20T>*
I finally figured out what that ^&*&^&* sqeaking noise was from the front end..well I didn't figure it out..the old gray boy showed me ( the hard way)..right in the middle of 10th ave and 33rd street. Boy was I pissed.
I must have nicked the boot when I changed the driveshaft a few years ago ( like you can get the joint apart without a fork)..so I didn't really know what the heck was going on there ( fist time I ever had to do any real f/e work on my accord, outside of brakes )
Anyhow, I get a tow and get to work on it the next day ( snowstorm coming, no time to screw around).
Long story short, I ended up pulling the drive shaft/control arm/knuckle from my junkyard front clip, and slid the whole thing into place. I didn't want to &(&((*& with the big nut and perhaps damage the boot on the repalcement items. A good transplant, I was able to get the lower arm, nuckle and driveshaft off in one piece
Would have been great had I remebered to tighten the lugs nut up all the way
I had a white knukle drive on the way home from work ( that's 50 miles for those who don't know me) trying to figure out what the clacking noise was..my luck the junkyard axel had a bad joint...I kicked myself good when I realized the lugs were a bit loose.
Needless to say I'll pay better attention to this in the future..it was a realative inexpensive lesson, considering I was 100 miles from nowhere in the poconos just a couple of weeks before.
This car however is on it's lasts, the tranny is leaking oil ( I must have nicked the driveshaft seal when I replaced the shaft) the head needs valve seals badly ( funny, it only smokes when the weather is pretty cold) and the tranny slips and shifts weird sometimes after taking a turn. I'm still getting my $$$ out of it however, the inspection is good until december of next year, so around then I'll drag out the 86 lxi I bought on ebay, and put that together for a driver.
all in all for a car I have to drive 500 miles a week, it doesn't own me nuthin. I've already put 100k miles on it. I figure by next year,the rest of it is going to be pretty worn out.
Check your tranny fluid, it is probably a little low.
75 Malibu for sale, fully restored, $5,500 obo
https://www.3geez.com/showthread.php?t=43055
Currently driving a 95 LS soon to be turbo integra.
Okay Guys, this isn't brain surgery. The lower ball joints are not difficult to replace an d you don't need shop press to complete the job. I just did both on mine the right tools do help alot. The one real important tool is a good bench vice.
Other tools needed: 3lb sledge hammer
Heavy duty punch
Universal joint/ball joint press (rent at any parts store AUTOZONE"
pitman arm/tie rod seperator (AutoZone $9.99 "A Great tool"
Drop the Knuckle including upper control arm I did b/c I have a bench mounted vice this also keeps you from having to to remove the upper ball joint, just unbolt the 2 control arm nuts in the engine bay compartment.
Remove the rubber boot on the ball joint if if its still there, just a small spring wire.
Place the knuckle upset down in the vice (ball joint threads facing up) remove the dust seal on the knuckle this will pop out when you tap the ball joint out anyway push the rotor dust shield (Bend) away from the ball joint, it will bend right back into place.
Now with the punch and "3lb Sledge Hammer" tap (Not PounD) each side of the ball joint until it pops outs I only tapped two sides until it came out.
Now get your new ball joint (remove the boot) use the the Universal joint/Ball Joint press to install, if the adapters don't fit correctly use some large size sockets I had to do this. Replace the boot. Reinstall the knuckle, bend back rotor dust plate. DONE.
Hope this helps
Originally Posted by danronian
even though I had neglected to mention that I had drained the sump and refilled, I checked it again..damm if it wasn't real low..took another quart and now she's humming as good as before the ball joint took a dive. If you drive automatics, you know the death sounds. The lack of a good filter setup is a killer on accords, I'll be installing a filter can at my first opportunity after I replace the next tranny, this one will still run for a while I guess, it must have been really low on oil-that dipstick just invites neglect. I'd pay 20 for one I could get out without hurting myself
good advice on the auto zone fork and ball joint tool...a vise is as good as a press, if you know what to do :-). I needed a fork with a smaller throat. A strong back is required
For now I'm good..I got a new upper a for $50 ( need the bushings yet) and I'm resigned to doing a timing belt this weekend..I have to get one of the other cars into a long range standby, they are all questionable in the timing belt, including the one I'm driving now..that was is a march/april job. At least it won't be 20 degrees this weekend
Well good luck on the timing belt project, they are a pretty straight foward job. But in cold weather the knuckle raps against the engine and fender can test your vocabulary in the most extreme way. Been there done that Maryland style, on my way to Connecticut for 4 years am not looking foward to cold weather repairs.
But just a quick reply to the Autozone tool its a Pitman arm/tie rod separator tool for $9.99 and it isnt a "pickle fork" I personally don't like Pickle forks.LOL
NSWST8
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