Upper ball joint A-Arm "boot" popped..
 

Not sure if this should be posted in the suspension section, but it is relevant to our cars.


Anyway, I noticed some grease on my hand after installing a front shock. it came from this piece, which had popped open:


https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...e2eb1baf6d.jpg

Just curious if there's something special needed to replace it (like a press). It appears that there is only one bolt underneath the shaded area in the pic which is connected to the brake assembly.

Anyone know how hard it is to replace? It looks like the part is only 20$ on atkins, but didn't want to mess with it until I knew what was involved.

Thanks

Its not hard. It has a retaining clip on uca side of the ball joint. Disassemble the joint, remove that clip, gently pry the old boot off. throw some bearing grease in the new boot, slide it on, clamp it down in the same spot and reassemble. Would probably take 15-20 mins tops.

Don't wait too long to do it since the ball joint is not replaceable (you have to purchase the entire arm) and dirt in the joint will reduce the service life.

Hit up Ray at Malloy Mazda for a new boot and clip. Make sure to put liberal amounts of bearing grease inside.

Total time is more like a couple hours from start to finish. Hardest part is separating the ball joint. You'll need a puller. I used something similar to the following

AutoCraft Tie Rod End & Pitman Arm Puller AC3370: Advance Auto Parts

You may want to check all your boots while your at it. To get the lower ball joint off, I used

3/4" Forged Ball Joint Separator

And if you're in this deep, you may want to check your bushings, and your outer tie rod joint, and your rear suspension (esp pillowballs), and......

I guess I work a little faster than you do... It's not a huge job.

Yes, replacing the boot itself is rather easy (~15 mins). Everything else you have to do to get it off and then put it all back takes 1-2 hrs esp if you haven't done it before

But you're right, it's not a huge job

As I am anything but a mechanic it will probably take me sometime

So the joint does need to be disassembled.

This involves removing the bolt below it, and using the puller to separate it?

Thanks for teh replies. Will be getting that stuff from Mr. Crowe

Correct

it really is straight forward... not a difficult process at all and it shouldnt take more than 30 minutes from wheel removal to lowering the jack. i used a rubber mallet to get my upper arm out. once you remove the bolt that attaches it and the unbolt the ABS line, loosen the two bolts in the back that attach the arm to the chassis. after that hit UP as hard as you can on the arm while wiggling the link it is attached to and it will pop out. once it is out refer to the pictures below on how to replace the boot. the end of it is grooved as you can see for the bolt to slide through, so on install you will know how far down to push it back in.

the thing that holds the boot to the arm is a wound piece of metal. when you see it in person it will make sense how it is on there. just look for one of the ends and push outward on it and it will unwind it allowing you to remove the whole thing.
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Oooooh, I'm getting a separator!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vweCmGwBiU

awesome y'all ! I'll get it done.

Thanks for all the input, seems clear now.

In case you haven't ordered these yet, I normally have these ball joint boots in stock. I'm also in So Cal.

Did not need puller or mallet or anything to remove the joint, once I took out the lower bolt it came out easy.

the hardest part was actually getting the damn clip around the top!

i picked em up from the local mazda dealer who ordered them for me. i use ray frequently but didnt want to pay shipping for something so small.

easy peasy.