Ball Joint Questions 1999 Explorer

[kumaxlt]

Hi, I have read several threads regarding ball joints and am mentally preparing for the big day After learning that that the drivers side control arm (1999 Explorer) is different than the passenger side it looks as if I will be removing the entire upper control upper arm. If this is the case, do I need to also replace the upper radiul arm bushings on the drivers side - it looks like those will be coming out anyway with the arm and with this model explorer I must replace the entire arm to replace the upper ball joint. I have read some threads that mention how difficult the radiul arm bushings are to replace?


Planning ahead I will be needing:

Left side Radial Arm bushings??
upper control arms with ball joints
lower ball joints
ball joint press
sway bar bushings (figure Im dirty anyway)
brake pads
wheel bearing greese
PB / WD40

Anythingelse I should be looking at replacing - tie rod ends... It has 85,000 miles on it and the steering feels tight its just that the lower ball joints are bad.

Guidance appreciated

btw - Im not a mechanic. I have done brakes, tuneups no problem - have even done a few clutches - never front end work.

 

[JasonF]

I bought the MOOG parts for my 96 and the upper ball joint/arm included all the bushings and stuff already on it. I would assume your 99 would be the same. All I did was unbolt the old one and bolt in the new one. (make sure you mark the adjustment cams so you know where they go) On mine the fuel lines were extremely close to the bolts but it seems like they were bent just perfectly so that I could maneuver the pivot bolts out and just barely clear them. You probably have the SOHC engine so it may be different.

Jason

 

[IZwack]

per say i dont think ur 99 explorer has radius arms - radius arms only came in the first generation explorers using the TTB front.. what u have is a rack and pinion steering.

 

[sandrunner]

It took me at work about 2hrs to do. very simple, pass side replace the shorty controle arm, leave it loose and up out of the way with the spindle, and press out the lower and press back in, reattach. driverside replace the controle arm (normal length) and do the same as pass lower ball joint... and taking the controle arms off and puttining on new will now affect camber or toe... on pass side dont touch the horizontal bolt.on the controle arm bracket.. affects the caster..but you should alighn the truck anyways good thing to do every 15,000 miles....

 

[kumaxlt]

Ah perfect - people with first hand experience! I do have the SOHC V6.

Did you have to remove the hub/rotor from the spindle. I read a post where the person said they did not disassemble the rotor...

The drivers side ball joint does come with the control arm and bushing. Did you change the passenger side bushing also as this side does not come with the bushing - only half of the control arm with ball joint? How about lower bushings - is it worth the hassle?

Im not sure what you meant when you mentioned "not touching the horizontal bolt on the control arm". It looks like the bolts - I see two bolts? - are attached to the ball joint half of the passenger control arm and need to be removed in order to change out the passenger side ball joint?

 

[pax]

Yes only two bolts attached the ball joint half to the passenger side control arm. The adjustment bolt is the horizontal bolt on the side of the control arm just ahead of the two mounting bolt. Don't touch that one. You should be able to see it, it is right in front of the two bolts.

 

[kumaxlt]

Thanks!! I couldnt see that the arm was slotted in the back so that the bolt would slide through the arm...

What special tools do I need besides a ball joint press? Any of these:

2-3/8" Rounded Hex Locknut Socket for 1990-Current Explorer Models with Automatic Locking Hubs

http://www.etoolcart.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=188


I just have the typical 3/8 and 1/2 tools - sockets and wrenches to 1 inch size

 

[IZwack]

no u dont need that..

ur 3/8 and 1/2" tools will be perfect..

the largest nut ull run into is at the bottom ball joint - this castellated nut holds the knuckle onto the ball joint.. it sits under the lower A-arm. i dont remember exactly what size that nut is, but its fairly large.. close to 1".. so you may have to make a trip to a local shop to get a larger socket.. oh u'll also want to remove the knuckle/hub/rotor assembly from the CV.. that requires a 1.25" socket..

 

[kumaxlt]

I read somewhere that you should not reuse the 1.25" bolt holding the rotor and axle? Is this true. Also, I wanted to see if someone would anwser the question I posted earlier:

Did you have to remove the hub/rotor from the spindle. I read a post where the person said they did not disassemble the spindle, rotor....

 

[Howard]

When I did my lower joints. I did remove the rotor/pads only two bolts and just makes the whole hub ass much lighter to handle. Crack the main hub nut with the vehicle on the ground as it is very tight (200 ft/lbs) I re-used mine with no problems. The press is very handy and makes the lowers a fairly easy job. WD40 is also required to loosen things off. watch out for the abs sensor wire to the hubs as it gets damaged easily.