My '96 Explorer AWD needs an emmergency lower left ball joint replacement and I have searched this forum and Google for a procedure with torque values for this repair and can't find anything. The job looks straight forward but I need the torque amounts for the re-instalation of the:

Caliper mounting bolts
upper & lower ball joint castle nuts
Spindle shaft nut
and torsion nut???

Does the torsion shaft need to be loosened and if so why?

Since my wifes van is in the shop for, funny enough, ball jt repair plus more and the explorer is really binding now on that ball joint, I have to break out my 2 seater to chase down the parts at pep boys.

Thank you in advance.

Matt

 

Here are the torque values.

Shock absorber, lower bolts 15-21 lb-ft
Shock absorber, upper bolt 30-40 lb-ft

Stabilizer bar link 10-13 lb-ft
Lower arm pivot bolts 111-148 lb-ft
Stailizer bar retainer to frame bolts 65-91 lb-ft
Torsion bar protector plate bolts 25-34 lb-ft

Lower ball joint nut 82-113 lb-ft

Wheel lug nuts 100 lb-ft

The following set of values are used when removing the spindle, or partially removing it in lieu of removing the complete lower arm. I have not personally done it this way.

Hub nut 157-213 lb-ft
ABS sensor bolt 62-67 lb-INCH
disk brake rotor shield 89-124 lb-INCH
disk brake caliper and bracket assembly 56-77 lb-ft
upper ball joint bolt 30-40 lb-ft
tie rod 57-77 lb-ft

There is no torque value on the torsion bar adjuster bolt, because it is an adjuster. Count the number of exposed threads on the bolt before you take it out. Put it back the same way. Use blue (not red) loktite on the threads.

You must loosen the torsion bar adjuster bolt to take the preload off the suspension. Otherwise you are not going to be able to move or remove that lower A arm. Use a two-jaw puller to raise the bar off the adjuster bolt and to free the adjuster nut once the adjuster bolt is loosened.

I followed the factory procedure to change my lower ball joints. This involves removing the lower arm completely. I replaced the entire lower arm rather than pressing in a new ball joint -- the lower arm complete with new bushings and installed ball joint costs around $80 from the Internet Ford parts discounters. An alternative is to press a new ball joint into the existing lower arm, after having removed the arm from the truck.

Other guys suggest changing the ball joint without removing the lower arm, to save having to get the torsion bar out. (They tend to rust in place, especially on the newer F150s). But this means you have to loosen the hub nut and mess around with the brake caliper, ABS sensor, etc, plus press out the old ball joint and press in the new one with the A-arm still on the truck.

I don't live in road salt country, so I had no problem removing the torsion bars. The factory procedure worked fine for me. I will admit that having a car hoist and air tools makes the job a lot easier, but you could do it on your back under the truck if you had to.

 

Thanks for the info, it's a real help.

The ball joint was actually very easy to R&R. I left the tie rod attached and removed the caliper, upper/lower ball joints and hub nut. The hub swings out of the way and I pressed out and pressed in the ball joint, greased it up and put it all back together.

As usual, the job never goes by the book. I wonder if this truck has ever had new pads. It has 75k miles now and when I finally was able to tear it down I found a new problem. The glide pin is absolutely frozen in place. the pads are worn unevenly and even a sledge hammer would not break it free. So, where can I get a new/used caliper bracket from? Other than a dealer preferrably.

 

While I was at the dealership buying the new bracket, I spoke with a mechanic about the glide pin and he told me to torch it on the side of the bracket to heat the pin and bracket together. I used my trusty propane torch for plumbing and what do you know? It slowly twisted free and the dropped out. That just saved me $96 as I returned the bracket. It did require new pin and bolts though ($9).

I hope this post helps others here who find themselves in the same situation.