How many grease joints on the truck? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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How many grease joints on the truck?

91explorer1009

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91 sport
Just bought a grease gun, put a fresh tube of grease in and pumped the greaseable joints I could find. Problem is on my 91 ex, I could only find 4? Does that sound right? 1 on each tie rod end, and 2 in the middle of the bar, one facing towards the front one towards the back of the truck.

My question is simple, are there any more parts anywhere on the truck that I could shoot grease into. Not sure where else to look, thats all I could find but maybe theres more near the back or something. Thanks

(Its a 1991 eddie bauer explorer, susupensions pretty much stock except my 2 inch skyjacker lift, add a leaf and bigger springs.)
 



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There should also be one on each ball joint, so that is 4 more, there may be some on the u-joints in your drive shaft as well
 






As Find mentioned, there are very few total. Your U-joints are probably the NON-lubricating kind. If you've got the 8 (tie rods and ball joints), you're probably fine. If the tie rod ends and ball joints have ever been replaced, they may have also been replaced with the NON-lubricating kind, which means over time, you may be able to eliminate them all.
 






Yeah. Depending on what has been replaced, and what it was replaced with, you could have anywhere from 0 to 15+ greasable spots. Also, some sway bar links are greaseable, although most are not. You should also consider cleaning/regreasing the front driveshaft slip joint (inside the rubber bellows/boot).
 












I have always just used standard grease, even when I lived in North Dakota, even when I dealt with -40s in the winter, and I worked in a truck shop for some time as well as on farm equipment and other heavy machinery. Grease warms up fairly quickly once stressed, you don't have to worry about it.
 






U joints are not greasable. Did the 4 on the tie rods, but where are the ball joints? i dont see where you would grease them? Not even sure exactly where the ball joints are located???
 












Thanks, would it be possible to post a picture? Also what signs do ball joints show when they are going bad? I have a really annoying squeaking sound coming from my front right tire when I am driving around...Its an almost constant squeaking from the tire area? not sure if its a bushing, shock, or what?
 






Here we go. This is the left front wheel turned hard right, viewed from the rear. The ball joints are circled. You are looking for grease fittings around the red boxes. They may or may not be there, I did not have grease fittings in this location. In terms of the noise, I don't diagnose suspension noise because there are things that sound similar that are quite safe, and others that are absolutely deadly. I would suggest taking it to a shop that does alignment and suspension work and ask them to diagnose it. I'd get this done sooner than later. If a ball joint fails, well, look where they are and what they do. At highway speeds, your wheel assembly will get ripped off the vehicle and you are going to have the ride of your life.

ball_joints.jpg


Only in the midwest can they manage to make your aluminum wheels rust. This vehicle is the most eccentric I have ever owned. Today I took the left headlight assembly apart to drain the water out. I put it back together, and the left turn signal quit working. I screwed up the front bulb, right? Nope, the back one burned out at that precise moment.
 






Thanks roadrunner, any signs that ball joints are going out?? Is that the test where you jack the truck up and try to shake the tire up and down/north-south, and if there is a lot of movement there shot or getting there? Thanks again, I will get the squeak looked into.
 






If you jack it up hold it at 12 and 6 oclock and push pull there should be minimal play. My ball joints are going bad on the lower of the passenger side and the wiggle is noticeable even without the tire in place.
 






That's the way I remember it too. If I had an impact wrench around, I might even take the wheel off, just so that weight is off the balls, might make it more apparent. Any play is unacceptable. The noise, it might just be a creaking shock. I drove around with a noisy front end on a Contour for 3 years, so I have nothing to tell anyone. But, it should be looked at, if nothing else, go in and ask them for a safety inspection.
 






Where are the grease nipples located on the ball joints if they have them?
 






they should be where the red squares are in Roadrunner777's picture. They may be covered in crap/grease/dirt or the were previously replaced with non-greaseable ball joints.
 






Ok thanks for the clarification. Missed the red square thing duh. Thanks guys you all helped alot.
 






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