# Help - Lower ball joint



## gcturp (Feb 11, 2008)

I have a 1994 2WD truck. I failed my state's safety inspection because of a lower ball joint issue. (Original equipment. Although it LOOKS fine to me, no crack in the boot. The tire/rim is off right now because I replaced a tie rod and a sway bar, so I cannot feel for excessive 'play' in the wheel right now).

I have searched this forum a bit, but I am getting mixed messages on replacing it: some say the entire control arm has to be replaced (PITA?), some say just the ball joint can be replaced.

Can just the lower ball joint be replaced? In a garage by a DIYer? What special tools should I rent at autozone/oreilly? Any advice?


Thanks, gcturp


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

I'd just replace the whole lower control arm (but that's me).
The new control arm would come with a new ball joint, new bushings, etc, and basically it's unbolt the old one, bolt in the new one. Whereas when replacing just the ball joint, unless you've got a decent set of tools/pullers/hammers/torches/etc, it could end up being a big ol' job to get that old one pressed out, unless you've got a shop nearby that'll take care of that part for you. On the other hand, you'd have to figure out a way to keep the spring from "springing" when you pull the lower control arm, whereas if you were just replacing the ball joint, you could likely hold the spring in place with a floor jack while you were beating on the ball joint to get it out.
For you, it's probably half and half, depending on what kind of tools/expertise you've got laying around. Low on tools, expertise and time? Control arm. Good for tools and got some knowledge and time? Ball joint.


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

Nissan doesn't offer the lower ball joint seperate from the control arm, so you would have to replace the whole control arm if you stick with genuine Nissan parts. This would mean you'd have to deal with removing the torsion bar, which can be tricky in itself for some DIY'ers. The lower ball joint is available on the aftermarket. The ball joint is pressed into the control arm, so one would need a ball joint press in order to replace it. The advantage would be that you may not have to completely remove the torsion bar, just unload the tension, you would not have to remove the control arm, and the cost of a ball joint is much cheaper than the cost of a control arm. FIY: control arm assys. are available on the aftermarket, as well.


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## gcturp (Feb 11, 2008)

*Resolution*

Well, I was hoping for an easy answer, but I expected the above responses (Thanks for taking the time to respond). I will probably just replace the entire control arm with lower ball joints on both sides. And as long as I am working in the area I will replace the upper ball joints, new shocks, and the tie rods on both sides (all still have the original 17 year old ones!). My truck has only 130K miles. Parts will cost around ~$300 and will only take a few weekends...

Next task: learn about the torsion rod, get a new can of PB blaster, bigger hammer . . .


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## speedygo87 (Apr 13, 2011)

Yea, you can always check with a Nissan dealer to see how its sold. I also found this website helpful to check how parts are sold.

Any Nissan Part + Nissan Parts - Nissan Parts, NISMO and Nissan Accessories - anynissanpart.com


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