07250psd, did you change the ball joints only or did you change the control arm and ball joint together? Getting ready to tackle this job on my wife's 04 explorer and need guidance. I have a quote for a mechanic to change control arm and both upper and lower ball joints(both sides) @ a cost of $450, But if i can replace the ball joints only i can get the parts for ~$150. Big difference. Don't want to pay more than i have to, but willing to pay if necessary.

 

Hello 4x4fordtrkn..!! At this point it is certain that the OEM control arm<ball-joint can be pressed out with a ball joint press, but the thing is where you get the replacement ball-joints from.. It is recommended that the entire control arm & ball joint be replaced as one part, and some parts stores may treat it as such; like in my situation.. sometime when It comes to the OEM control arm you might have to search around for the correct OEM replacement ball joint..!!

 

I just recently found that I have a bad upper ball joint. It appears that the joint is pressed into the control arm (05 explorer) so I assumed a press was going to be needed. I decided to price the joint to get an idea what I was looking at for parts. The gentleman at our local parts store confirmed they were pressed in but also showed me I could get the whole control arm with joint and new bushings for $75 so to me it would be worth it to have all new parts. Anyone have experience changing the control arm? My parts guy also pointed out that the date of manufactor is needed when ordering these parts so that is something to keep in mind for the DIY's

 

Yes, you can press them in and out, at least on a 2002.
However, the price for the entire control arm makes it worth it to just change the entire thing out. As for changing it, as long as you have all the tools it's not a super hard job. The joint bolt can be a pain if rusted but really other than that it's not a bad job for the average back yard mechanic.

 

The 2002 and 2003 Explorers should be the same. I just replaced my upper and lower ball joint without replacing the upper control arms. That being said, you do need to remove the upper control arm to get the ball joint press positioned. It will not fit in the wheel well. The bolts holding in the upper control arms are likely to be a PITA. The nuts are facing down on each side of the spring toward the engine where they get a lot of road debris. Mine were rusted on...I sprayed the heck out of them with PB blaster and WD-40 rust penetration solvent. I wire brushed as much of the rust off the end of the bolt as possible and sprayed it some more. I think it is about 19mm nut. I had to use a breaker bar for most of the removal. Before putting them back I sprayed them some more, wire brushed the threads, coated them with anti seize and put the nuts all the way on the bolts a few times. Then I was sure I would not have trouble getting them back on properly. Being a female, I do not have the upper body strength of most of you men... so you may not struggle and curse them like I did.

 

Have replaced the Ball joints on this whole range. However there was a control arm used on a few Explorers between 03 & 05 that you could not change the ball joints on. The 2000 can't be changed. Best thing to do is look at the ball joint you have you should be able to tell if it is changeable. One last thought if you change the control arm you should need alignment.

 

i just did both control arms , around 80 each with ball joints , im in the northeast so it was worth it rusted to **** , and bushings were shot to. it was an 02 explorer xlt

 

After watching a few of the videos on YouTube, it's quite obvious that my '02 and the '04 models I've seen on there are different. Looks like the '02 has serviceable upper ball joints, while the '04 needs to have the whole upper control arm replaced. I have to wonder if there is a distinct cut-off point between the two designs, or if whether the vehicle is 4WD makes any difference.

 

I did it this past weekend. Bought A Frame bushes and upper ball joint from AutoZone. Took three hours to complete. Spent less $60. 00 bucks

 

I did it this past weekend. Bought A Frame bushes and upper ball joint from AutoZone. Took three hours to complete. Spent less $60. 00 bucks

 

Hi Guys,

I have a problem. I have a banging sound that happens sometimes. Can't tell where it's coming from. Some times it's not there, then when I seem to let off the gas I hear it. I've just replaced the front brakes, back brakes, and the front axle bearing.

So here's my question. The front upper ball joint is bad. I can't afford to fix it today. I'm wondering if that would cause the banging? I have a 4X4. I notice that when I put it in 4x4 high when I'm driving, the noise goes away (I do hear increased purring noises, sounds like road noises), but there's no banging sound.

I'm actually hoping it's the loose upper ball joint causing it, since that's easier to replace than something in the transmission. Also, when i hear the noise, if I put the vehicle in neutral, and keep rolling, it still makes that noise.

Any ideas?
thanks!
Jim

 

Welcome to the forum!

Do you only hear the noise when letting off the throttle, or do you also hear it when going over bumps in the road or on turns?

-Rod

 

Just changed them on my MGM, upper and lower. Got the joints from Autozone and the install tools as well. The tools are loaners. Wasn't much trouble and took about a day to change all four.

 

Assuming I want to swap out the entire control arm/ ball joint assy. who makes a good replacement? Do I need to do both sides together?


thanks,

Rob