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is there a specified mileage that ball joints should be serviced or changed out or is it just at the owners discretion? How is one supposed to know when ball joints have gone bad?
Generally get them greased up with every sheduled oil change.
You'll more than likely know when the ball joints need replacing.
Signs of bad ball joints:
- Loose or sloppy steering.
- I believe the steering wheel can be off center if they're really bad.
- Clunking when turning or applying brakes or hitting bumps.
- Pulling to the left or right.
- Others will add to the list or correct me as needed...
Rick...
Originally Posted by wrdabney
is there a specified mileage that ball joints should be serviced or changed out or is it just at the owners discretion? How is one supposed to know when ball joints have gone bad?
There is no specified point that I'm aware of. It will really depend on how you drive the truck, milage, etc.
FYI, I have a 2003 Crew cab with a short box. It has 105K miles on it and just tonight my mechanic told me I need to replace mine. I'm a mostly highway user...very little off road and I'm pretty careful with mine.
My first indications was the clunk in the front end when I drove it over cobblestones. I really thought I had a bad shock.