Ball Joint replacement gone awry
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Ball Joint replacement gone awry
Hello, all. New member here wondering if anyone has seen anything like this.
I'm halfway through replacing the ball joints on my '03 F-150 4WD. When I pressed the new lower ball joint in, it's snap ring groove is ~1/8" above the top of the lower control arm surface. These are Moog 8695T joints. I've taken them in and compared with another new joint at the parts store and they seem to be correct. This implies that the control arms are not correct- they're too thin where the joint presses in. The old joints sat the way they should, with the snap ring flat against the arm. The old joints are definitely different than the 8695T's- they are shorter from the shoulder of the joint to the snap ring groove. I'm guessing that now I'll have to replace the lower control arms, as well.
I'm halfway through replacing the ball joints on my '03 F-150 4WD. When I pressed the new lower ball joint in, it's snap ring groove is ~1/8" above the top of the lower control arm surface. These are Moog 8695T joints. I've taken them in and compared with another new joint at the parts store and they seem to be correct. This implies that the control arms are not correct- they're too thin where the joint presses in. The old joints sat the way they should, with the snap ring flat against the arm. The old joints are definitely different than the 8695T's- they are shorter from the shoulder of the joint to the snap ring groove. I'm guessing that now I'll have to replace the lower control arms, as well.
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Here's the old vs new joints,
Here's the joint that I installed. Note that if I had the snap ring installed, there would be a gap between it and the lower control arm;
As to what the old joint or arm are supposed to be for, I have no idea. Perhaps a PO replaced the LCA's and got a weird off brand that had different specs...
Here's the joint that I installed. Note that if I had the snap ring installed, there would be a gap between it and the lower control arm;
As to what the old joint or arm are supposed to be for, I have no idea. Perhaps a PO replaced the LCA's and got a weird off brand that had different specs...
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Me too. I got them from RockAuto. I took both old and new into the local Napa and compared. The Napa part had the same dimensions as the new Moog part, so I have to guess that the old parts are the weird ones. I'll double check at a different parts house tomorrow. Anyone have a caliper handy? My Lower control arm measures 0.582" thick. Old ball joint shoulder to snap ring is 0.634", Moog joint is 0.698". Plus or minus a couple thousandths 
Odd that the old joint is still longer than the thickness of the arm. Looking closely at the still assembled passenger side shows that there is probably a little clearance between the arm and the ring.
Odd that the old joint is still longer than the thickness of the arm. Looking closely at the still assembled passenger side shows that there is probably a little clearance between the arm and the ring.
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Here's the old vs new joints,
Here's the joint that I installed. Note that if I had the snap ring installed, there would be a gap between it and the lower control arm;
As to what the old joint or arm are supposed to be for, I have no idea. Perhaps a PO replaced the LCA's and got a weird off brand that had different specs...
Here's the joint that I installed. Note that if I had the snap ring installed, there would be a gap between it and the lower control arm;
As to what the old joint or arm are supposed to be for, I have no idea. Perhaps a PO replaced the LCA's and got a weird off brand that had different specs...
I don't have any pics of the new ones in yet.. can submit new pics with the new balljoint in a day or so..
OLD:
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I checked another new part at CarQuest and theirs is the same as the new Moog parts.
Fourty03, are you saying that your new joints had that big gap when installed? I'm starting to think that this is just the way it is.
I'm certain that if I had dropped this off at any of the local shops they would have slapped the parts in and never thought twice. That's why I do the work myself, though.
Fourty03, are you saying that your new joints had that big gap when installed? I'm starting to think that this is just the way it is.
I'm certain that if I had dropped this off at any of the local shops they would have slapped the parts in and never thought twice. That's why I do the work myself, though.
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I considered using the old snap ring to take up the slack, but envisioned hearing it rattle someday in the future, so didn't.
Yesterday I went by Ford, and they didn't have any ball joints in stock. Or the parts guy didn't know how to use the computer. In any case I wasn't able to see theirs.
I decided to put everything back together. Unless someone chimes in to tell me I've made a mistake, I'm going to do the other side as well and take it to an alignment shop.
I don't like the look of the installed part, but it's the only style I can seem to find. Seeing other vehicles where the snap ring floats above the control arm makes me think that the engineers decided that the press fit and the weight of the truck was sufficient to keep the joint in place. Perhaps the LCA forgings are of an inconsistent thickness, and this extra long ball joint allows the part to fit in all of them. Who knows. Seriously, anyone know?
I'm kinda disappointed- I'm used to parts being cosmetically different, but it's been a long time since I got one that was functionally different from the one I was replacing. Thought we were past that.
Yesterday I went by Ford, and they didn't have any ball joints in stock. Or the parts guy didn't know how to use the computer. In any case I wasn't able to see theirs.
I decided to put everything back together. Unless someone chimes in to tell me I've made a mistake, I'm going to do the other side as well and take it to an alignment shop.
I don't like the look of the installed part, but it's the only style I can seem to find. Seeing other vehicles where the snap ring floats above the control arm makes me think that the engineers decided that the press fit and the weight of the truck was sufficient to keep the joint in place. Perhaps the LCA forgings are of an inconsistent thickness, and this extra long ball joint allows the part to fit in all of them. Who knows. Seriously, anyone know?
I'm kinda disappointed- I'm used to parts being cosmetically different, but it's been a long time since I got one that was functionally different from the one I was replacing. Thought we were past that.
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I see 2 different ball joints for your vehicle. They look different in the pictures. I think one might be for an oversized hole. However, sometimes the pictures of the parts aren't the same as their selling part number so this may be of no use.
Moog K8695T006 Ball Joint | Auto Parts Warehouse
Moog K8695T Ball Joint | Auto Parts Warehouse
Moog K8695T006 Ball Joint | Auto Parts Warehouse
Moog K8695T Ball Joint | Auto Parts Warehouse
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Takotruckin, Thanks, I agree. I would never have questioned it if the part had matched.
Lime1GT, My understanding of the 006 part is that it has a diameter that is 0.006" oversized to help it press tightly into lower control arms whose hole has been enlarged, say by a balljoint wiggling around in there because the snap ring doesn't fit against the arm.
Anyway, I shrugged, finished re-assembling, and did the passenger side, too. Thanks for the pictorial guide posted in these forums by Racerguy- much appreciated. Thanks also to those who offered their help or opinions.
Lime1GT, My understanding of the 006 part is that it has a diameter that is 0.006" oversized to help it press tightly into lower control arms whose hole has been enlarged, say by a balljoint wiggling around in there because the snap ring doesn't fit against the arm.
Anyway, I shrugged, finished re-assembling, and did the passenger side, too. Thanks for the pictorial guide posted in these forums by Racerguy- much appreciated. Thanks also to those who offered their help or opinions.
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