'96 lower ball joint replacement?
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'96 lower ball joint replacement?
So - Haynes says you need to replace the whole lower control arm, and I've seen some people on the web say 'No', you can replace JUST the b.j.'s, but I'm not sure I'm buying that - actually got new b.j.'s (O.E. brand) by themselves and was about to get into it.
Is the control arm not substantial enough to withstand having the joints driven/pulled out - and pressed back in? I do see that my new b.j.'s have ribbed boss on the body - does this mean what I think it does, that they are meant to be an interferance fit, and possibly the arm CAN'T be rebuilt?
Not sure who to believe - figured you Ford folk can steer me straight - I want it done right, and will get what tools I don't have, but I WON'T have a shop do for me what I can do myself.
Thanks for any replies,
Paul
Is the control arm not substantial enough to withstand having the joints driven/pulled out - and pressed back in? I do see that my new b.j.'s have ribbed boss on the body - does this mean what I think it does, that they are meant to be an interferance fit, and possibly the arm CAN'T be rebuilt?
Not sure who to believe - figured you Ford folk can steer me straight - I want it done right, and will get what tools I don't have, but I WON'T have a shop do for me what I can do myself.
Thanks for any replies,
Paul
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I replaced both lowers on my 96 without even removing the control arms. They can be replaced "simply" by removing the old ones and pressing in the new ones. Uppers are built into the control arms and must be replaced as a unit.
Good luck
EE
Good luck
EE
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How are you getting the ball joints out? I have a C press on them and have heated the A arm with a torch around the joint. I have put enough pressure on it to indent the top of the joint. It appears to me that that large flange on the lower side of the A arm is a part of the old ball joint(?) or is rolled in place after the original part is in place. I have tried with the adapter of the press on the flange and with it off of the flange. It does not fit square on anything if I use the adapter that fits around the flange. Makes me want to choke an engineer that will take something relatively simple and make it nonreplaceable. (Sorry. Just had to vent a little.) Guess I should say that this is on a 96 Explorer 4wd
More Turbo
Joined: Sep 2007
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How are you getting the ball joints out? I have a C press on them and have heated the A arm with a torch around the joint. I have put enough pressure on it to indent the top of the joint. It appears to me that that large flange on the lower side of the A arm is a part of the old ball joint(?) or is rolled in place after the original part is in place. I have tried with the adapter of the press on the flange and with it off of the flange. It does not fit square on anything if I use the adapter that fits around the flange. Makes me want to choke an engineer that will take something relatively simple and make it nonreplaceable. (Sorry. Just had to vent a little.) Guess I should say that this is on a 96 Explorer 4wd
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Thanks Boots. Yep the snap ring is out,and I am pressing them in the direction of the floor, which would be past the snap ring groove. I put Kroil on them last saturday, and again today, after getting the tire off. That Koil is good stuff. With the heat of the torch burning out what grease remained, and destroying theh boot, it has to be replaced. The A-arm is unavailable from Auto Zone, none in the three nearest warehouses for O'Reilly. Napa and Dust&Sons are closed till Monday, so it will be later in the week before I get an A-arm. How much trouble is it to get the torsion bar off?
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first of all you should not heat the arm. supposedly this is very bad on the material and can cause it to lose strength. i replaced the lowers on an '01 sport trac. I tried the press and couldn't get it to fit right. I ended up just beating them out with a hammer without too much trouble and pretty much beating them back in from the bottom with the old nut on the threads. they seem to be fine. I would recommend getting the bjs with a grease fitting so you can grease them from time to time (stock ones dont have a grease fitting).
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More Turbo
Joined: Sep 2007
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Thanks Boots. Yep the snap ring is out,and I am pressing them in the direction of the floor, which would be past the snap ring groove. I put Kroil on them last saturday, and again today, after getting the tire off. That Koil is good stuff. With the heat of the torch burning out what grease remained, and destroying theh boot, it has to be replaced. The A-arm is unavailable from Auto Zone, none in the three nearest warehouses for O'Reilly. Napa and Dust&Sons are closed till Monday, so it will be later in the week before I get an A-arm. How much trouble is it to get the torsion bar off?
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Thanks again to all who have answered. Found out that the ball joints will indeed come out. Took the lower arm off of the vehicle, and put it in the shop press, shimming and cradling it on the press plates to get a straight push. also leaving room for that large diameter flange on the factory ball joint. Still took a fair amount of pressure, but then most things do. The flange below the A-arm that I was refering to is part of the ball joint. I was making the mistake of putting the collar of the C press on it. The collar needs to go around it, 2 5/8 inside diameter will fit around it. Then I won't be pressing against myself. It does not sit well on the a-arm, so before I do another one, I will make a collar (that fits the shape of the arm better), and use the C-press. So to anybody thinking about doing it yourself, I would say go ahead. It's still not a hard job, I just made more frustration for myself.
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From: Kansas City, Missouri
This is the thread I followed to replace the lower bj's on my 1999. Have done it on both sides. Has great detail and is actually how I found FTE.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/2...ll-joints.html
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/2...ll-joints.html
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