2003 f150 ball joint questions

grayfox350 · #1 (**permalink**) 05-16-2008, 09:05 AM

I used 4 wheel drive on saturday ... while driveing down the highway on monday i got a shimmy in the streering wheel and now it comes and goes and help or suggestions with this problem....

Also I can't find the grease nipple on the ball joints to grease up my gears please help with that too

randy6800 · #2 (**permalink**) 05-16-2008, 06:14 PM

the factory ball joints are sealed and do not have grease fittings. Did you go into the mud four wheeling?, In the past ive had mud get into the wheels and it causes a out of balance problem.

galaxie641 · #3 (**permalink**) 05-16-2008, 06:33 PM

I agree sounds like mud/ice in the rim. Aside from not being able to grease the ball joints DO NOT put any kind of needle in there and try to grease them. You will absolutely destroy them if you do that. Same goes for any other sealed joint.

You may have also thrown a wheel weight the more I think about it. I'd clean the rims and have them rebalanced and go from there.

Bobby82490 · #4 (**permalink**) 05-16-2008, 09:23 PM

[quote=galaxie641;6162080]I agree sounds like mud/ice in the rim. Aside from not being able to grease the ball joints DO NOT put any kind of needle in there and try to grease them. You will absolutely destroy them if you do that. Same goes for any other sealed joint.[quote]

Im just curious.. why would it destroy it? I have greased some of my sealed steering/suspension components with a grease needle, and they are doing fine.

galaxie641 · #5 (**permalink**) 05-17-2008, 08:51 AM

Grease eats the plastic/rubber that is inside them. Motorweek had an excellent section on it a few months ago that showed a sealed Tie rod and a greaseable tie rod. They cut them in half and showed what happens when you grease a sealed unit. Aside from the grease eating them you puncture them and allow contaminants in.

Bobby82490 · #6 (**permalink**) 05-18-2008, 07:25 AM

So do the sealed ones not have grease in them?