You should replace your ball joints...
- Thread starter sprockmember
- Start date
sport2004
Member
Thanks...
JBurt
Senior Member
You got it fixed yet?I checked mine after seeing this thread and there was no play. Not 1,000 miles later it failed. Ill post a pic again so y'all can get scared straight lol
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rudogg760
New member
Yea a friend of mine got it done on Thursday. Some friends and I are going to do a run this Saturday to split mountain ifn you'd like to join us. They have jeeps tho lol
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Mark_BC
Senior Member
Gonna (try to) do mine tomorrow, rust permitting.
T4R2014
Elite Member
I checked mine after seeing this thread and there was no play. Not 1,000 miles later it failed. Ill post a pic again so y'all can get scared straight lol
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How did you check for play? I followed a video posted by a user on here who's name escapes me right now. I had my mechanic check it himself as well. 210k and no play. With that said, they are getting replaced because I found a new tear in the boot. Even still, the grease leaking from it looked clean as can be.
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JayRolla
New member
The allowed play per Toyota is .5mm. You can't feel that. My boots where good and grease was fine when mine failed.
rudogg760
New member
Lifted the tire in the air and then put a pry bar under the tire and lifted the tire to simulate it being on the road.
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SoCal C4S
New member
I drove on mine (originals w/218k) for about 1500 miles before replacing them. I was on pins and needles the entire time, because you literally don't know until they go. My upper and lower ball joints were completely done when they pulled them; was just a matter of time until catastrophic failure.
Definitely could tell an instant difference when I drove it the first time after replacing them.
Definitely could tell an instant difference when I drove it the first time after replacing them.
Another Ball Joint Experience
Here is another ball joint experience for the record:
1998 4WD bought used at 137,000 miles approximately 9 years ago. Stock tires and wheels with no off-road use that I know of prior to purchase or since I’ve owned it. Very little 4WD use except during heavy rain storms with standing water or infrequent snow storms.
Immediately after purchasing, noticed that when I hit a large bump, pothole, or uneven payment (such as highway bridge/overpass expansion joint) at high speeds, the steering wheel felt as though it moved quickly forward toward me and would hit the stop; I could actually feel it hit and it would “thud”. I know that’s a bad description, but it’s hard to explain.
More often than not it would do it once or twice a week/month when driven, depending on the road surface smoothness. It would do it just like clock-work at a certain location on a highway I frequently use in my area. I didn’t think anything about it for years, even after reading about ball joint failures on this forum.
About 2 months ago (approximately 250,000 miles) went and had a rotate and balance done and the mechanic recommended changing ball joints for approximately $600. I declined the repairs but it prompted me to revisit the issue. I even parked it for several days while I debated what to do.
Decided not to chance a failure (especially after the inspection) so purchased 2 new Toyota OEM lower ball joints and 2 new tie rod ends for $360 on Amazon. Took about 6 hours one weekend to install all myself after researching on this website and others; even found the FSM to help guide.
After installation, got front end aligned. Several days later began to notice that the thud disappeared even when crossing that same location on the highway mentioned above.
I think they were worn out when purchased but got lucky and another 110,000 miles out of them.
Again, just another experience for others to consider.
My advice: if you have any suspicion they may fail, recommend changing them immediately.
Here is another ball joint experience for the record:
1998 4WD bought used at 137,000 miles approximately 9 years ago. Stock tires and wheels with no off-road use that I know of prior to purchase or since I’ve owned it. Very little 4WD use except during heavy rain storms with standing water or infrequent snow storms.
Immediately after purchasing, noticed that when I hit a large bump, pothole, or uneven payment (such as highway bridge/overpass expansion joint) at high speeds, the steering wheel felt as though it moved quickly forward toward me and would hit the stop; I could actually feel it hit and it would “thud”. I know that’s a bad description, but it’s hard to explain.
More often than not it would do it once or twice a week/month when driven, depending on the road surface smoothness. It would do it just like clock-work at a certain location on a highway I frequently use in my area. I didn’t think anything about it for years, even after reading about ball joint failures on this forum.
About 2 months ago (approximately 250,000 miles) went and had a rotate and balance done and the mechanic recommended changing ball joints for approximately $600. I declined the repairs but it prompted me to revisit the issue. I even parked it for several days while I debated what to do.
Decided not to chance a failure (especially after the inspection) so purchased 2 new Toyota OEM lower ball joints and 2 new tie rod ends for $360 on Amazon. Took about 6 hours one weekend to install all myself after researching on this website and others; even found the FSM to help guide.
After installation, got front end aligned. Several days later began to notice that the thud disappeared even when crossing that same location on the highway mentioned above.
I think they were worn out when purchased but got lucky and another 110,000 miles out of them.
Again, just another experience for others to consider.
My advice: if you have any suspicion they may fail, recommend changing them immediately.
Yeah the problem is the weight of the truck is pulling on them rather than pushing the ball into the socket. Gravity works against these joints unlike most domestic trucks, where the spindle rides below the lbj. Glad I'm doing them now rather than later.
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Mark_BC
Senior Member
Man that upper castle nut is a b!tch when rusty. I had to grind off one of the tabs to get the cotter pin out. Now it's out and the nut is stuck. Don't want to use heat or I'll wreck the outer tie rod boot which I don't have a replacement for, and I'm not getting one on a Sunday. I'll update the excitement as I go...
Mark_BC
Senior Member
LOL just watched Timmy's LBJ tutorial and the castle nut section. Mine doesn't look anything like that!!! It's a big red / brown crusty blob. You California dudes are lucky. No I won't be reusing my cotter pin!!! Problem is it's 19 mm but with all the rust removed maybe I should shave it down to 18mm, I've done that before.
mtbtim
Elite Member
Yeah, I feel for you dudes in the rust belt. Every time somebody posts pics of their rusted undercarriage, I think how much of a pain in the ass it must be to work on and feel lucky to be living in the California Bay Area. Now California has many negatives, one being insanely expensive, but I definitely like how long vehicles can last out here.
Tyler James Inc
Senior Member
These are oem correct? Got them from my local car quest.
Sankei was supposedly once an OEM manufacturer, but they are NOT OEM units.
A member here recently did a write up on a set he got, and he was very unhappy with the build quality. I don't think he ended up running them, and I remember the ball socket was so poorly made, it was scarring the ball as it was manipulated. I would be weary.
OEM is packaged in Genuine Toyota packaging, with a Toyota part number. Period.
