How To: Replacing Upper Ball Joints on a 3rd Gen 4x4 [Pictures]

[Limited02]

I'm planning on doing both the upper and lower ball joints this weekend. Yesterday the pictures were there but today they aren't? Any Idea's? I new I should have copied them into a word doc!

I've read that some of you have been able to remove the upper without removing the control arm. I did reserve the ball joint press from Autozone so will I be able to remove the ball joints without removing the control arm with the press?

If you are using the same one that I used(see my post #152) then yes you can change the ball joint without removing the arm. Just pay attention, use common sense and the project will go smoothly and easily

 

[thepotroast]

I'm planning on doing both the upper and lower ball joints this weekend. Yesterday the pictures were there but today they aren't? Any Idea's? I new I should have copied them into a word doc!

I've read that some of you have been able to remove the upper without removing the control arm. I did reserve the ball joint press from Autozone so will I be able to remove the ball joints without removing the control arm with the press?

The pics still work for me. Try clearing your browser cache and temp internet files and then reload the page. I still have the pics on my PC if needed....there's like 30 of them though in my original post here, so not wild about uploading them all again if it's just an issue on your PC

 

[mrau92me]

I'm planning on doing both the upper and lower ball joints this weekend. Yesterday the pictures were there but today they aren't? Any Idea's? I new I should have copied them into a word doc!

I've read that some of you have been able to remove the upper without removing the control arm. I did reserve the ball joint press from Autozone so will I be able to remove the ball joints without removing the control arm with the press?

If you're set on just replacing the ball joint, I highly recommend spraying a liberal amount of silicone grease on the bushings while you're in there. About 4 months ago I replaced the UCA and pressed the lower balljoint in on the right side of my '02. But, I pressed in both upper & lower balljoints on the left side. Afterward, left side squeaky-squeaky + right side no squeaky = wife not happy. After the fact and with everything intact, I lubed best I could, making a significant improvement, but there's still some squeak there.

Any thoughts out there on completely getting rid of the squeak? I don't want to now go back and replace the UCA and get another alignment

 

[bdf24]

The pics still work for me. Try clearing your browser cache and temp internet files and then reload the page. I still have the pics on my PC if needed....there's like 30 of them though in my original post here, so not wild about uploading them all again if it's just an issue on your PC

I'm on my computer at work, tried clearing cache and cookies but no go. Weird I can still see em on my phone? Oh well. I'll probably be able to see them from my PC at home. Thanks again for the write up!

I just had all of my wheel bearings replaced all the way around. The front drivers side twice now in a little over a year! The truck is quieter than it has been in years though now, nice! After the ball joint replacement, front end alignment, and four new tires, I still need to figure out why it doesn't want to start sometimes. It turns over fine but wont fire. The two times Its happened to me it was really damp and yet out so I'm thinking moisture. I haven't changed the plugs since I've owned the truck so I'll start there. But that's a topic for another time.

 

[thepotroast]

I'm on my computer at work, tried clearing cache and cookies but no go. Weird I can still see em on my phone? Oh well. I'll probably be able to see them from my PC at home. Thanks again for the write up!

I just had all of my wheel bearings replaced all the way around. The front drivers side twice now in a little over a year! The truck is quieter than it has been in years though now, nice! After the ball joint replacement, front end alignment, and four new tires, I still need to figure out why it doesn't want to start sometimes. It turns over fine but wont fire. The two times Its happened to me it was really damp and yet out so I'm thinking moisture. I haven't changed the plugs since I've owned the truck so I'll start there. But that's a topic for another time.

Just let me know...if not, I can always email them to you Good luck with the install, it should go pretty smoothly especially with the rental press. Made my life much easier and they popped right out.

Guessing you might have used the write-up for the front wheel hub/bearing assemblies as well? I wasn't the OP but I added some info and pics in that thread on the 1st page I believe when I went through my experience on the replacement. They were a real PITA....the 3 bolts on the backside being the toughest part. Thought those suckers would never come out!

 

[bdf24]

Just let me know...if not, I can always email them to you Good luck with the install, it should go pretty smoothly especially with the rental press. Made my life much easier and they popped right out.

Guessing you might have used the write-up for the front wheel hub/bearing assemblies as well? I wasn't the OP but I added some info and pics in that thread on the 1st page I believe when I went through my experience on the replacement. They were a real PITA....the 3 bolts on the backside being the toughest part. Thought those suckers would never come out!

Thanks, I'll let you know. I only replaced the front drivers side hub, after that I took it in. I just wasn't in the mood to deal with it at the time. I've stuck so much money into this lately though I need to save a little now. That's why I'm doing the ball joints. Plus, they don't seem nearly as bad as the hub was! The garage wants $585 plus tax for all four ball joints and a front end alignment. The fun part is probably going to be working on this thing when it's 16 degrees out side, ouch! I'll be buying some kerosene for the ready heater for sure. I've been telling my wife I want to insulate and drywall the garage for a few years now, wish I had.

 

[bdf24]

Reloaded the thread again and the pictures are back! I copied the how how too into a word doc with the pics so I'm good to go. I'm thinking I will hit everything good with liquid wrench tomorrow night so it has a change to penetrate everything before I work on it Saturday.

If you're set on just replacing the ball joint, I highly recommend spraying a liberal amount of silicone grease on the bushings while you're in there. About 4 months ago I replaced the UCA and pressed the lower balljoint in on the right side of my '02. But, I pressed in both upper & lower balljoints on the left side. Afterward, left side squeaky-squeaky + right side no squeaky = wife not happy. After the fact and with everything intact, I lubed best I could, making a significant improvement, but there's still some squeak there.

Any thoughts out there on completely getting rid of the squeak? I don't want to now go back and replace the UCA and get another alignment

Thanks for the tip! Mine's been squeaky for years now, never really new what it was till now. I'll make sure to spray everything down good.

 

[bdf24]

So I picked up the parts from Autozone today. They were supposed to have the ball joint press kit set aside from me. At least the guy I talked to yesterday said they had one and he'd reserve it. Well, it turns out they don't have one, they didn't even show any in stock in the greater Milwaukee area! I went down the road and rented one at Advance Auto Parts instead. They'll be getting my business from now on! If I would have known that I wouldn't have bought the parts from Autozone. Oh well, I should have everything I need now. My brother in-law said I can use his heated garage! He's got a lot more tools than me and a lot more room in his garage. I also picked up a can of PB Blaster. I'm hoping to spray everything good tomorrow night so it has time to penetrate.

I've got all weekend to get this done so I'll just take my time and do it right. Also a good excuse to drink some beers

 

[thepotroast]

Cool man, can't wait to hear about the final results! If you run into any snags someone will be here to help. Good luck! Take a pic of your bad ball joints too, I'd like to see em And of course an "after" pic in the thread is always great too, as well as any contribution to the thread of perhaps what you did different than others helps as well!

 

[bdf24]

Got all four changed out yesterday. Took us around 6 hours or so. By far the most difficult part was getting the steering knuckle to release from the bottom ball joint. It took a lot of brute force with a 3lb sledge! Getting the ball joints in and out with the press was a piece of cake. We didn't even have to remove the upper control arm. I used an impact wrench with the press kit and they came out and pressed in with ease once we figured out which pieces to use. Thanks again for all of your help and this tutorial. It made things a lot easier.

I didn't get a chance to take any pictures while we were working on it but I did take a few pictures of the ball joints I removed. They really didn't look too bad other than one being pretty tore up on the bottom. But they were really loose with a lot of play. The truck feels so much better now, steering is tighter and the front overall feels much smoother driving. Better than it has in years!

 

[digdog1]

I have a 2004 mercury mountaineer. It has the same control arm shown in pics. Iam using same tools shown but the ball joint will not come out. I had 2 people standing on the control arm. I pushed the ball and stud thru its housing, but cant get housing out of control arm. Ive used breaker bar on tool and and impact wrench but wont come loose. Iam starting to think the manual is right. You have to replace the whole control arm

 

[gsmaclean]

I have a 2004 mercury mountaineer. It has the same control arm shown in pics. Iam using same tools shown but the ball joint will not come out. I had 2 people standing on the control arm. I pushed the ball and stud thru its housing, but cant get housing out of control arm. Ive used breaker bar on tool and and impact wrench but wont come loose. Iam starting to think the manual is right. You have to replace the whole control arm

Mine was bound in there so tight, that when I did use an extraction tool with an impact wrench, it ended up destroying the control arm in the process, so I had to replace it anyway. Part of that was due to corrosion, but it did still destroy it. If you do take the control arm off, make sure you keep track of the placement and orientation of the shims, so that you can put them back on exactly the same way.

 

[bdf24]

Wow, that's unfortunate! Mine came out with ease using the ball joint press kit and an impact wrench.

 

[digdog1]

This is funny. After fighting it all night, I decided to go to bed it was getting late. I decided to give up on getting the ball joint out and go buy the whole control arm. I went to garage this morning and the press was loose on control arm. so i pulled it off and the ball joint was out. I had left the press tight when i gave up last night. The pressure must have popped it out during the night

 

[bdf24]

This is funny. After fighting it all night, I decided to go to bed it was getting late. I decided to give up on getting the ball joint out and go buy the whole control arm. I went to garage this morning and the press was loose on control arm. so i pulled it off and the ball joint was out. I had left the press tight when i gave up last night. The pressure must have popped it out during the night

NICE! I know when I removed mine they didn't come out at a steady pace. They kind of jumped and popped till they came out. So I can see how that would happen.

 

[Sportrac99]

I know this is an old thread but is this the same procedure for a 07 sport trac 4x4? Also you replaced the upper BJ what is the procedure for the lower BJ?

Thanks

 

[bdf24]

I know this is an old thread but is this the same procedure for a 07 sport trac 4x4? Also you replaced the upper BJ what is the procedure for the lower BJ?

Thanks

This is the thread I used for my lower ball joints.


http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=188225

I'm not sure if this thread applies to your 07. I wouldn't think things would be much different.

 

[65super_sport]

Just replaced both upper ball joints on my 2005 Explorer XLT Sport this past weekend. PotRoast's post with pics really helped. First, I can absolutely confirm that you do not have to replace the control arms as Ford would suggest.

I also used K80008 Moog ball joints, with a grease fitting. I got them at Advanced Auto ($49 each), but only because I was there picking up the loaner press kit. The kit they have includes everything you need. You can get the ball joints on Amazon for a lot less (I think $33 or so), which is what I suggest you do. Additionally, you will probably find that they look different than the picture shown on all the part sites, including Advanced Auto's. Specifically, the ball joints sold now are threaded all the way to the end of the ball stud and they are connected to the knuckle with a castellated nut and cotter pin. They also come with a snap ring that goes on the bottom side of the control arm after you press them in. I spoke to a technical service rep at Federal Mogul (who makes these), because I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to hold the stud with a socket while I tightened the nut. He knew this issue like the back of his hand. This is the way they are made now and the pictures are simply out of date. It had to do with them basically supplying someone else's part (with the hex end and lock nut) until their design/manufacturing was approved. By the way, it's better. You can spin that nut all the way up against the knuckle, torque it in a second (about 40 ft lb) and put the pin in. Done.

Couple other things. I used a breaker bar to loosen the ball joint nut and the control arm nuts. In fact I did the whole job with ratchet and deep sockets (sizes mentioned earlier...18mm and 13/16 are correct). I also torqued the control arm nuts, as they should be (90 ft lb is plenty). I also temporary detached a fuel line bracket for a little extra room on one side of the control arm. Mainly this was because I had the deep socket and a 3/8 to 1/2 adapter, which took up more room.

Bottom line: anyone could do this job, and it will save you $600-800.

 

[goatman]

Replaced my uppers today. This was not a bad job at all. Even with the worn out ball joint press from our local Advance Auto. Replacements are the Moog greaseable. Pictures of the old and the new.

 

[mrau92me]

This is funny. After fighting it all night, I decided to go to bed it was getting late. I decided to give up on getting the ball joint out and go buy the whole control arm. I went to garage this morning and the press was loose on control arm. so i pulled it off and the ball joint was out. I had left the press tight when i gave up last night. The pressure must have popped it out during the night

Same thing happened to me, except I was sitting right beside it when it happened. I was taking a breather from fighting with it and was mad as I could be that it wasn't coming off. then suddenly, bam!! It was loud and scared the crap out of me