I have had the vehicle for just over a year. I did check recall notices and no flags then. No other service records that I can locate so I would presume they have not.
Enjoy the carnage!
When to replace lower ball joints?
- Thread starter 4runnerfever67
- Start date
I have had the vehicle for just over a year. I did check recall notices and no flags then. No other service records that I can locate so I would presume they have not.
Enjoy the carnage!
Thanks, me too! That's good advice on this repair.
I'd say about half of the 3rd gens I see entering the local PnP lots are there because a lower ball joint failed.
3rd gens are tough as hell, but LBJ's are one place you can't cheap out on. Replace them every 100K at the most, sooner if you see any damage in the boot. Don't wait until it breaks. There's very little warning and the failure mode is catastrophic.
3rd gens are tough as hell, but LBJ's are one place you can't cheap out on. Replace them every 100K at the most, sooner if you see any damage in the boot. Don't wait until it breaks. There's very little warning and the failure mode is catastrophic.
Thank you - catastrophic is how it was. My goal in posting was a reminder of this issue, particularly for new owners. As a self-described Toyota household this is something I have overlooked in the many years of owning Toyotas.
Although few on this forum may need it, Youtube has a concise video to test for this by AdventureTaco called "Testing a Tacoma Lower Ball Joint for Play in Less Than 30sec" that may be helpful.
T4R2014
Elite Member
That recall was due to manufacturing defects found on the actual ball of the ball joint, not a design defect. Scratches occurred on the ball at some point in production for a large batch in a particular time period and this could have led to premature wear. Once the recall was performed, the issue was eliminated. Your ball joints failed because they were old.
Previologist
Member
Now I'm scared. :dammit:
Pyral
Member
My lower ball joints went over 210k miles and showed no signs of needing to be replaced. My right side one is still original from 1998 but I plan to replace it.
And that's the scary thing, there is no pattern. My ball joints are older and have more miles and they've been fine while newer ones with fewer miles fail.
And that's the scary thing, there is no pattern. My ball joints are older and have more miles and they've been fine while newer ones with fewer miles fail.
96RedRunner
Senior Member
And that's the scary thing, there is no pattern.
Not a fan of final destination moments. I do the FSM LBJ inspection every time I rotate my tires while doing oil change.
Harbor Freight flexible mount dial indicator $40 iirc makes it too easy once you get the how-to down pat.
Not a fan of final destination moments. I do the FSM LBJ inspection every time I rotate my tires while doing oil change.
Harbor Freight flexible mount dial indicator $40 iirc makes it too easy once you get the how-to down pat.
