Whats up everyone......I just got my lower ball joints done and the clunking is still there. Checked with a senior tech up at the FLM store and he said that besides ball joints, the majority of clunking came from either lower control arms or struts. His guess when driving it was struts as they are 100,000 mile old ones. Anything else I should replace while I'm doing this (as in bushings, etc) Also, should I replace my rear struts too while im in the process of spending money and time? Thanks a lot......let me know on this.
Still clunking
- Thread starter DLS8K
- Start date
I haven't got those done yet........but now that you mention it, it wouldn't be a bad idea. The parts seem to be fairly cheap and the labor shouldn't be too bad. But, since you are a tech, maybe you could help me with what I'll be doing via a post. If i'm going to be replacing the struts in the front, should I replace the links and bushings while I have the strut out or does it not make a difference? I'm planning on trying to do as much of this work as I can and it would be of great benefit if you could tell me what I need to do first and what would make it the easiest on me. Thanks a lot l-m tech!l-m tech said:
had one in the shop last week that was kicking the crap out of one of the other techs thay had replaced both steering knuckles for the lower ball joint looseness. still real rattle. what i do is take the sway bar links loose from each side at the steering knuckle,tie the sway bar up to the frame with bailing wire or zip tie.make sure that there is no way anything can come into contact with the wheels.find a safe road that is ruff. if the rattle goes away it will be one of the two ,bushings or links,they usually go hand in hand.the bushings might not have any play but they will still cause a rattle.do all of this before spending any money on struts.let me know what you find.good luck
jumpball207
Active LVC Member
how much was it to replace you lower ball joints
Well.........I didn't have to pay to get them done as I had a used car warranty on my LS. But, the labor rate for doing both ball joints is around 1.6 hours (so take that times whatever your shop charges or do them your self for free) But, the knuckle (which contains the balljoint which then slides into your lower control arm is around $240) This isnt a cheap endeavor........and if you have a clunking in the front end, it might not even fix it. It could be struts, bushings, stabilizer links, etc. Hope this helps.jumpball207 said:
This could have been my post. I thought it was! I am going through the EXACT same problem and have heard the same advice. I was able to get my ball joints (knuckles) for $189 each. After replacing mine, I have the same clunk and they WERE bad.
I thought about disconnecting the sway bar for a test. I think that is a good idea. I ordered the sway bar bushings as they are $10.00 ea and plan on trying that next. I have had a few techs tell me the bushings are a common problem...even though mine looked fine.
I thought about disconnecting the sway bar for a test. I think that is a good idea. I ordered the sway bar bushings as they are $10.00 ea and plan on trying that next. I have had a few techs tell me the bushings are a common problem...even though mine looked fine.