I replaced all of the ball joints on my 2003 Limited this past week, as three of the four had failed.
I bought four Moog ball joints from Rock Auto: two K8695T (lower) and two K80008 (upper), both with grease nipples.
I started by removing the wheel, then unbolting and removing the brake caliper from the steering knuckle (hanging the caliper from the spring using a coat hanger, so it didn't hang by the brake line). I disconnected the ABS wire inside the engine compartment and fed the end down through the upper control arm and out of the way. The brake rotor then pulls off easily and can be put aside.
I then took some PB Blaster (penetrating oil) and doused all of the ball joints, bolts and nuts that I would be removing - this stuff works best if you do it a couple hours before, then give it another dose before you start.
After removing the upper ball joint nut from the ball joint stud, removing the upper ball joint from the steering knuckle was a task. I broke a cheap two-jaw puller attempting it at first. After I bought a new two-jaw puller, I put it in place pushing upward on the ball joint stud and tightened it, then inserted a ball joint fork in between the ball joint and the steering knuckle. A good whack on the fork, and the ball joint popped out of the steering knuckle - the fork on its own wasn't enough, the puller on its own wasn't enough, but the two together did the job.
I was using the
Harbor Freight Ball Joint kit to press out the ball joints - before starting, I greased the threads of the puller - a good idea.
Putting the press on the upper ball joint, I drove it home with my impact wrench, and my worst nightmare occurred - the rusty upper control arm came apart instead of the ball joint coming out.
I stopped and went inside to order a set of new upper control arms from Rock Auto: A Dorman 520288 and 520287 for left and right. The new control arms come with ball joints installed, so I kept the Moogs I had already purchased as spares.
Waiting for the control arms to arrive, I got back to work. I removed the existing control arms, keeping track of which shim went on which stud. While the control arm was out, I used the extra clearance to get to work on the lower ball joint. The cotter pin holding the castle nut in place was rusty on both of my wheels - one took about 20 minutes to get out, the other one took over half an hour. After almost half an hour of pounding, drilling and picking at it, I decided brute force was called for and used an air chisel to destroy the half of the stud and castle nut holding the rusty cotter pin. My impact wrench then made short work of removing the castle nut.
I used a three-jaw puller and my trusty ball joint fork to pop the ball joint free of the steering knuckle. I removed the spindle nut and pulled the steering knuckle free of the half shaft. Once the half shaft was removed from the knuckle, I got the knuckle free of the lower ball joint stud. I used another coat hanger to hold the steering knuckle in place while I worked on the lower ball joint.
I removed the snap ring from the lower ball joint, and it then pressed out easily with the ball joint press and my impact wrench. If you don't have an impact wrench, I recommend you buy one - or a large 1/2" drive bar and some painkiller rub for your muscles.
I put the new Moog ball joint in place and drove it home with the press - keep in mind that it has a specific orientation. I put its new snap ring in place, installed the grease nipple, and pumped some grease into the joint.
After I fit the knuckle over the new lower ball joint stud, I greased the spline on the half shaft and inserted it into the hub. I installed the new castle nut onto the lower ball joint stud and torqued it to spec, then inserted the new cotter pin.
I then maneuvered the new upper control arm into place, put the old shims on its studs, and bolted it into place. Inserting the new upper ball joint stud into the knuckle is easy, and I then bolted it into place - make sure you use a wrench to hold the stud so that it doesn't rotate as you tighten the nut.
I secured the hub so it wouldn't rotate and then installed and torqued the spindle nut. Next I and reinstalled the brake rotor and caliper. Lastly, I reconnected the ABS wire.
The alignment was obviously ridiculously out after replacing the ball joints and control arms, so I had the truck re-aligned.
Some hints:
- An impact wrench is almost a necessity, in my opinion
- Have quality two-jaw and three-jaw pullers on hand
- Have a
ball joint fork available
- You will need 18mm sockets and wrenches - this size is commonly omitted from wrench and socket kits, so make sure you have it on hand before starting
- Have a
29mm spindle nut socket on hand - these are next to impossible to find in stores, so you might need to order one in advance
- You WILL need a
torque wrench capable of measuring at least 150 ft-lbs (200 is better)
- You should probably use 1/2 drive sockets for this job - a lot of the nuts require a lot of torque, and 3/8 drive sockets are really not up to the job