-chart- 287 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 Pic. BJ stud one from '03 Sable 99K boot rotted and was squeky but no slack. One on the right, put in by Lin dealer, it was loose, I replaced it. On the Sable: Could not pull with any tools. Really overworked myself trying. Sawed off and beat the stud out with great force, and heating the LCA. Ball was rusting, failing was on the way. Strut had that wimpy bounce and I could hear the hiss of cavitation due to loss of gas. No sign of oil leak. I'm surprised gas gets lost with no oil loss. I had to use a 2 foot cheater pipe on flex handle to loosen the BJ stud nut so it was really overtightened. Likely OEM, BJ was motorcraft for sure. When I do the other side, think I will just go direct to the saw. ~ 2 minutes with the recip saw. Just sharing. -chart- One more thing. If you use KYB, maybe others, the paint is thick and does not slide in the knuckle well. Binds. You do well to use laquer thinner or sand the paint off the engagement area. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mmmfloorpie 110 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 Oooooohhhh.... Ball Joint... Gotcha! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
qwertz9586 27 Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 Oooooohhhh.... Ball Joint... Gotcha! Lol, I was thinking the exact same thing! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TaurusKev 1089 Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 Idk why, I find it easier just to replace the whole lower control arms. When I did my Thunderbird, I just installed all new lower/upper control arms, most LCA's always come with a balljoint already in it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Brian_05_SEL 1418 Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 Lol, I was thinking the exact same thing! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bull Geek 812 Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 Idk why, I find it easier just to replace the whole lower control arms. When I did my Thunderbird, I just installed all new lower/upper control arms, most LCA's always come with a balljoint already in it.With the design you cannot do this because the ball joint seats in the knuckle. If it was pressed into lower control arm first you'd have no way to attach it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thub 673 Posted August 7, 2014 Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 In almost all coil over and MacPherson designs it is easier to replace just the ball joint, where removing the LCA is way more work. We did the opposite on our 2003 Escape since the LCA bushings were shot. Replaced both LCAs with Moog LCAs with pre-installed ball joints. The improvement in ride and handling was amazing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
-chart- 287 Posted August 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2014 In almost all coil over and MacPherson designs it is easier to replace just the ball joint, where the removing the LCA is way more work. We did the opposite on our 2003 Escape since the LCA bushings were shot. Replaced both LCAs with Moog LCAs with pre-installed ball joints. The improvement in ride and handling was amazing. Bulls and the Lin Cont have had the BJ in the knuckle for a while, maybe always. Removing the LCA is a minor issue. Just did one, no big deal. Cars can be designed either way. Whatever makes the designers happy. Oh wait, memory returning, I think the G1-G2 used the BJ built right in the LCA. No taper on the stud, just a depression around and pinch bolt for the stud. But it was what it was. -chart- Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Brian_05_SEL 1418 Posted August 8, 2014 Report Share Posted August 8, 2014 Yes, Scarlett has front lower control arms that automatically include the balljoints. Cannot be separated. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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