i've putting all new bushings/brake pads and rotors/ball joints in my '92 prelude and i just wanna know how to tell which ball joints are bad?

do i just look for good fluid movement and good condition boots on the ball joints or what? my lower ones are shot but the upper ones and the tie-rod ones i want to be sure on, before i put it all together.

thanks!

 

Good movement and boot condition are important. But play is also important. You need to stick a pry bar between the two members connected by the ball joint in question and see if there is any detectable play. If there is, then the ball joint is bad.

 

well, i seperated the ball joints from what they were connected to..ex: i seperated the lower arm from the knuckle and i hold hte knuckle and move the ball joint around with my hand and some of them feel fluid while other's do not.

the one is a tie rod ball joint which i can't buy unless i get the whole tie rod. could i get away with packing it with new grease?

 

you can only pack it with grease if it has a grease fitting.

 

i thought you can just pull open the boot a little and pack grease in there?

 

Alroight I am telling you once and telling ya good. First determine if it is a sealed or zerked ball joint add grease either by zerk or by a needle adapter from your grease gun to the zerk. The use of a pry bar is only needed on loaded suspensions if it is an unloaded style suspension you can usually just do it from the tire but if really difficult use a pry bar. You shouold have less than an 1/8 inch of movement up and down. Make sure that you notice what is loose and what is still while someone shakes it for you. I have seen lower ball jkoints so bad that it looked like a bad outer tierod. Hope this could help.

Deimos

 

i have another question: i bought new ball joints and they have no freeplay. i can't move them around at all left or right. why? do i need to grease the new ones or are they pregreased?

 

bump