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As the title reads, my ball joint went bad on the front right side. Im looking for a replacement part but I cant find anything. Do I need to replace the entire arm? If so, should replace that arm alone or do a set?? Also, Im looking to stay as close to OEM as possible. Im looking at DOORMAN as the only brand that sells OEM style arms. Front right upper. Do I need to replace bottom as well???
if the ball joint failed, it wouldnt be attached to the arm anymore. remove the arm from the knuckle and move the joint by hand and verify. your alignment issues lies somewhere else. bad upper and lower ball joints wont cause the car to pull to any direction................. it will thrust it into the direction of least resistance only to be stopped by an object with more mass
if the ball joint failed, it wouldnt be attached to the arm anymore. remove the arm from the knuckle and move the joint by hand and verify. your alignment issues lies somewhere else. bad upper and lower ball joints wont cause the car to pull to any direction................. it will thrust it into the direction of least resistance only to be stopped by an object with more mass
Meh, I think it would depend on if it completely failed or is in the process of failing. A ball joint where the socket has play in/out may cause some funky stuff to happen.
As the title reads, my ball joint went bad on the front right side. Im looking for a replacement part but I cant find anything. Do I need to replace the entire arm? If so, should replace that arm alone or do a set?? Also, Im looking to stay as close to OEM as possible. Im looking at DOORMAN as the only brand that sells OEM style arms.
Front right upper.
Do I need to replace bottom as well???
As you noticed the ball joint is integrated into the upper and lower control arms. I don't think there is an easy DIY way to replace them. Replacing the arm is the standard approach that I'm aware of. That's what I did.
There was a thread recently on Dorman control arms. Might want to search for it. I don't remember if they were found to be good but it sounds like it could be an option.
All that said, the pic just shows that the boot is torn. you might be lucky and it's just the boot. however, the clunk on turning that you mentioned can point to a bad ball joint.
Suspension is one of those things you don't want to cheap-out on. Brakes, steering, etc. are things you really dont want to be failing at speed.
Awhile back, i bought a used axle from the classifieds. I didn't know it was an aftermarket replacement, and it failed when my shop was testing / tuning. I replaced that with a Mazda OE used axle.
My point is that you never know what lack of engineering went into material selection, for example. Plenty of reason for me to only go with OE on something as crucial as suspension components.
Awhile back, i bought a used axle from the classifieds. I didn't know it was an aftermarket replacement, and it failed when my shop was testing / tuning. I replaced that with a Mazda OE used axle.
My point is that you never know what lack of engineering went into material selection, for example. Plenty of reason for me to only go with OE on something as crucial as suspension components.
I generally prefer OEM parts but not all non-OEM parts are ****. Plus, with these cars being 25+ years old, we don't really have access to some OEM parts...
The USED axle you bought could have failed because it was already worn out by the seller - not solely because it was aftermarket. That doesn't mean all NEW aftermarket axles or <insert whatever part here> are going to fail.
Something is definitely messed up, the upper arm shouldn't rest on the shock body. Echo the opinion to buy good used or new OEM.
Agree that it shouldn't be resting against the shock body. However, it looks like the car is jacked up and the suspension in full droop so that might explain it. Especially if the diameter of the shock is larger than stock.
I generally prefer OEM parts but not all non-OEM parts are ****. Plus, with these cars being 25+ years old, we don't really have access to some OEM parts...
The USED axle you bought could have failed because it was already worn out by the seller - not solely because it was aftermarket. That doesn't mean all NEW aftermarket axles or <insert whatever part here> are going to fail.
We'll have to agree to disagree, here. While OE used parts can fail, I would state that they fail with much less frequency than aftermarket used parts. Front UCA and LCAs are readily available from Ray, at the best prices you'll see online, so theres really no reason to purchase aftermarket at this time. Personally, I would purchase aftermarket performance arms before parts store stuff. I wouldnt trust the materials or manufacturing process of an aftermarket forged unit. Everyone else can do what they want, but I'm all about limiting variables.
Last edited by quichedem; Dec 23, 2020 at 04:44 PM.
