Last year I was told(at a Ford dealer shop) that I should replace the lower ball joints on my 97 Expedition.
I think it had 75000 miles at the time. In March I replace the tires. The Les Schwab tire guy said he did not think the lower ***** joints should be replaced.
I'm not sure who is correct. Is the replacement of lower ball joints something I should expect when the vehicle has 75 to 90000 miles?
To me the vehicle drives the same as always.
Thanks for any replies.

 

I had mine replaced at 70K miles since they did not pass the yearly MA inspection. They had vertical play and that is how they are inspected, however, the Ford specification is for no more than .030 play in the horizontal direction (parallel to the ground). I've heard of some owners who never changed them at over 120k miles, others say they are a wear item on 4x4s at 60-70k. I did not notice any difference after they were replaced. It's a $4-500 job. Ask your Ford dealer to inspect them per the Ford procedure and then you'll know.
-98 4x4

 

Thanks for the reply. What are the consequences of not fixing lower ball joints that do not meet specs? Are there safety issues? Tire wear problems?

 

tire wear, alignment, and eventually failure of the ball joint itself resulting in potentially catastrophic losses. (If the wheel falls off at 70 mph while towing, it's not going to be good)

If it fails the inspection, you have to replace it. If a techie tells you it's bad, ask him/her to show you. Any movement aside from the normal rotation is bad. Vertical and horizontal movement are not supposed to be there with a ball joint.

If a human had a bad ball joint, they would replace their hip or have shoulder surgery.

-Joe

 

Actually, and this was pointed out to me when I was investigating the worn ball joints, these ball joints have an internal spring and are designed for some vertical movement. That is why the old vertical pry bar test is not applicable to newer ball joints. Although, there must be some correlation between vertical movement and the side to side max. .030 play since new ball joints do not seem to have vertical movement. Here's a good overview: <http://www.babcox.com/editorial/bf/bf90144.htm>