Big D's 4Runner
New member
Man you got lucky. Glad your ok.
Until the Wheels come off (literally)
- Thread starter ben_atl
- Start date
BrianSD_42
New member
Its kind of funny because you have had the truck for a long time, are not a regular on the forum, then your truck fails and you feel the urge to come here and grace us with the info "FYI replace your ball joints" ....
BUT if you had actually been active in the community you would know that this is very common and something we warn newbs about all the time, practically every 2 weeks. LoL :bash:
// END mini-rant//
That said, I'm glad you and your family were not hurt. :trophy:
BUT if you had actually been active in the community you would know that this is very common and something we warn newbs about all the time, practically every 2 weeks. LoL :bash:
// END mini-rant//
That said, I'm glad you and your family were not hurt. :trophy:
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SCRunner12
New member
I don't see anything wrong with his post at all. He's probably not someone who frequents forums and ended up searching ball joint failure after it happened and stumbled upon this site. Most people don't spend every day going through all the posts on the forums to gain the info we have. Plus these "major failure" threads come and go. Not too long ago everyone was posting about pink milkshakes and now I haven't seen one for months.
I'm happy he got on here and posted it. The more failure threads out there the more likely people will see them before it happens. It's common knowledge to us but not to the general public. So leave the guy alone and only post if you have something constructive to say. His post is helpful, yours isn't.
BrianSD_42
New member
yeah that was just my sarcastic gut reaction .... to the FYI "old LBJ's fail" thread.
Hopefully this failure convinces OP to become a more frequent member so he know these things before they happen.
Hopefully this failure convinces OP to become a more frequent member so he know these things before they happen.
CDN RUNNER
New member
I have seen this a few times with these trucks.
Doggon I bet you're heart is still racing. You're still alive!!! I wish ball joints were designed to provide more apparent warning signs before failure. Mine was handling fine and then passenger tire falls off. We're lucky to have forum to reference. Some lady could end up upside down over a guard rail without even knowing what a ball joint is.
cj80cruiser
Senior Member
I saw pics of one that failed at speed posted when I joined this forum a couple years ago and one recently on the "what did you do to your 3rd gen today" thread.
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Thanks all for the feedback; yes I have not been very active in the community, but thought this might be interesting enough to post. No offense taken on the rant; you got a point here. I will try to better myself :boink:. Unfortunately I am not yet very handy fixing things myself and rely on the various shops around me to tell me what to do. Not the best thing in the world, but I am an IT guy and could fix anyone's computer instead. It is on my list to improve my car repair skills.
I by the way did get the car back, here the damage:
- Remove & Replace Driver Side Ball Joints Upper and Lower
- Remove & Replace Passenger Side Ball Joints Upper and Lower
- Remove & Replace Outer Tie Rod Ends Driver Side
- Remove & Replace Outer Tie Rod Ends Passenger Side
- Remove & Replace ABS Speed Sensor
- Brake Hoses Metal & Rubber
- New Tire & Alignment
- Rim only has scratches, was saved and got rotated to the back.
Still better than totaling it
rickashay
New member
Thanks all for the feedback; yes I have not been very active in the community, but thought this might be interesting enough to post. No offense taken on the rant; you got a point here. I will try to better myself :boink:. Unfortunately I am not yet very handy fixing things myself and rely on the various shops around me to tell me what to do. Not the best thing in the world, but I am an IT guy and could fix anyone's computer instead. It is on my list to improve my car repair skills.
I by the way did get the car back, here the damage:
- Remove & Replace Driver Side Ball Joints Upper and Lower
- Remove & Replace Passenger Side Ball Joints Upper and Lower
- Remove & Replace Outer Tie Rod Ends Driver Side
- Remove & Replace Outer Tie Rod Ends Passenger Side
- Remove & Replace ABS Speed Sensor
- Brake Hoses Metal & Rubber
- New Tire & Alignment
- Rim only has scratches, was saved and got rotated to the back.
Still better than totaling it
Wow man, glad you are OK, you're one lucky SOB! haha
If anything just be happy you decided to post on this forum and become a member; don't feel guilty for not researching and reading about the lower ball joint issue sooner... It's not like all 4Runner owners should be obligated to become a forum member. The simple fact is that most people don't have the time, are not aware they exist (lots of the older folks... no offense!), or don't realize the benefits of a vehicle specific forum community. Now that you are here though, we hope you do take advantage to ALL of the amazing resources available. Even if your not too mechanically inclined, this is a great place to learn and there are a TON of helpful members and helpful write-ups on replacing some of the parts that you are now faced with repairing. We are also good at giving non-biased opinions and advice so your local mechanic doesn't take advantage of the not-so-mechanically-inclined.
Let me say: Welcome to the forum, and hopefully we can help prevent any future, potential, mechanical failures that your vehicle may have! Cheers.
@rickashay: Thank you; you are very kind!!! I definitely would like to learn more;
@Kmvreter: Repair ticket was $1,700 at Firestone. I know they are not the cheapest but treated me fair in the last couple of years. No insurance on that, I don't even carry anything but Liability Insurance. Not worth the premium last time I checked.
