Lower ball joint advice please

[taylormj4]

Hi all,
On way to work going around a bend and the 450 develops a heavy clunk noise, which then clunks loudly over any bump in the road. Stop to check but can't find anything obvious so continue to nearby garage who trace to O/S lower ball joint, which is "proper f###ked" - the wheel can be moved up and down with a lever showing the joint has a lot of movement. MOT was back in August so not tested since then but surprise how bad it's seemingly got without any noticeable noise or handling issues.

The garage owner reckons I'm "OK to drive for a week or two but don't drive to London" ! What I'm really interested in is it OK to gingerly drive the few miles home or do I need the RAC flatbed ?

Presuming it is a pretty straight-forward job to replace, is it advisable to replace the N/S one too as a set or the lot? Presume geo set up is necessary afterward ?

I see they are available from Clever Trevor and Racetech but Racetech say they are the sole producer of the joints as OE are not available and that others available are weak and may fail ! Anyone back that up ?

We also noticed a small amount of play in the ARB joint on the OS. What's the latest on the best ARBs: OE/SH etc

Thanks.

[scotty_d]

They are not hard at all to change out i am doing all 4 on my Cerb just no plus the track rod ends and re-furbing all the wishbones/chassis. If the Mechanic says you can get by with it it should be fine but i would not be going above legal speeds/track days in it just in case. They do not need to be done in pairs but if one is gone the other side might not be far away. As far as a geo set up if your careful to remove it you should not change anything depends how much you strip off the car

I got all mine from power as seen here, With a 1 year warranty on there parts. Never had any problems from any off Tvr powers parts and i have bought lots from them over the years now

http://www.tvrpower.co.uk/store/slug/lower-ball-jo...

Edited by scotty_d on Tuesday 21st February 13:14

[taylormj4]

Thanks Scotty.
Just noticed the track rod end boot is split. I guess they don't sell just the boots and cheap anyhow so I'll probably be doing the rod ends too.

Noted that there are some spacers for the ball joints to accomodate new types of joints - are they just for the top ball joint to get the right caster angle or something ?

[Jon Brown]

I would change all four as the above. Also if the bottom ball joint is knackered then there will be increased stress on the top ball joint in theory.

You will have it apart so might as well do all four and have the castor/camber checked

[taylormj4]

Yeah, making sense - this is getting expensive !
Actually Scotty, how did you find those parts on TVR Power's site. I clicked onto suspension and it showed all suspension parts for all cars except for ball joints !
If you click on suspension and then serp chimaera it just shows you everything for the Chimaera ?
Am I going crazy here or doesn't it work with Firefox ? Ha ha.
Matt

[taylormj4]

Anyone driven on a duff ball joint like this - approx 10mm of lift up and down in the joint.
Garage bloke reckoned OK to drive on it but I'm worried it's gonna collapse adn a flatbed would be a better option (oh the shame of it though).

Matt

[M@H]

I have driven on some thoroughly buggered components over the years - if you are going to fret about it then call the AA/whatever, but personally I'd just drive it gently home.

[taylormj4]

Hi M&H, was thinking stuff it, it'll be fine but not sure how much play you get before failure and I don't fancy paying for fibreglass work on the front end, so have gone for the RAC flatbed. It's what I pay them annually for I guess. I'd really kick myself if it did collapse.

RAC man may say fine to drive on it, then I'll take his word (and their insurance) for it.

Perhaps I'll get him to drop me off around the corner from the house and drive the final bit ha ha.

Cheers.

[TJC46]

taylormj4 said:

Hi M&H, was thinking stuff it, it'll be fine but not sure how much play you get before failure and I don't fancy paying for fibreglass work on the front end, so have gone for the RAC flatbed. It's what I pay them annually for I guess. I'd really kick myself if it did collapse.

RAC man may say fine to drive on it, then I'll take his word (and their insurance) for it.

Perhaps I'll get him to drop me off around the corner from the house and drive the final bit ha ha.

Cheers.

Have you checked its not just the lock nut that has started to undoe. Had this on mine, full refurb of everything on the front suspension, all ball joints, track rod ends etc and full geo. Everything was perfect for a few months until i had the steering on full lock trying to park, and heard a terrible screeching noise. Carefully drove the couple of miles home absolutely shng myself. Got the car up on the ramps and you could clearly see the bottom ball joint lock nut had undone itself enough to give about 10mm of play, the screeching noise was the wishbone touching the inside rim of the front wheel, due to the now excessive movement.
Replaced the lock nut, fitted a new tyre on the nearside front as it must have been loose for a while as there was uneven wear on it, geo checked again and fine ever since.
If the joint was fine last august i cant see it developing that much wear since. Get a socket on it and check its tight.

[Shawbags]

If you do find you need to replace the bottom ball joints make sure you get the ones that match OE. Pay the extra. There have been well documented problems reported on PH regarding the cheaper ones. The shank doesn't taper as OE and restricts movement. David.

[taylormj4]

Shawbags said:

If you do find you need to replace the bottom ball joints make sure you get the ones that match OE. Pay the extra. There have been well documented problems reported on PH regarding the cheaper ones. The shank doesn't taper as OE and restricts movement. David.

Thanks David,
I was going to buy from Racetech or TVR Power.

[Shawbags]

Much as I would normally recommend TVR Power, I'm sure their bottom ball joints will not give you the articulation of the OE. Racetech's do and maybe Clever Trevor at a cheaper price. Check CT prior to ordering. David.

[taylormj4]

Just bought lower ball joint, track rod end (as gaiter was cracked) and ARB link from Racetech. It was only the ball joint that was pricier and they explained why so happy with that. I was thinking I should probably replace the same components on the NS too, particularly the ARB link but Racetech guy said not necessary unless showing signs of wear.
Fair play to them not trying to take customers for a ride, would have been easy for them to have sold me those.

[BIGMIKE1]

Ive just gone through this and had a thread running the other week (would link it for you but don't know how!)
Only race tech direct and racing green state that there ball joints are specially manufactured to give full articulation and both are more expensive than any of the other companys. I read the TVR power ones have the same problem with not enough articulation for all set ups.
I bought mine from Race tech direct and although Ive not fitted them yet they seem to have at least as much movement as my old ones so should be ok.

Once you start it does get expensive quickly though as Ive now ended up with poly bushes, SH drop links, new track rod ends,gaitors, new top&bottom ball joints, POR15 wishbones

[big geoff]

any one got the part number for the lower joint please

[taylormj4]

big geoff said:

any one got the part number for the lower joint please

The one I just bought had Part No. TVR C0036