i know this is sounds like a newb question and i''ve seen a couple of threads already where this has happened and people have crashed and all the years of driving i've never had this problem. the reason i ask is my car is 93 civic hatch and well it kind of concerns me. is this something i need to replace every x amount of miles?

 

you can typically tell if your ball join needs replacement if you can jiggle the wheel when its off the ground.

so test it and if that happens replace it, i dont think you should be toooooo concered about it unless you have some issues like vibration or weird noises in the front

 

witrh the car off of the grond and the wheels on, take a pry bar between the rin and the ball joint, and pry downwards. if it compresses, it needs to be replaced.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 93egsedan &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">you can typically tell if your ball join needs replacement if you can jiggle the wheel when its off the ground.

so test it and if that happens replace it, i dont think you should be toooooo concered about it unless you have some issues like vibration or weird noises in the front</TD></TR></TABLE>

its funny that you say weird vibration or noises. i have a small vibration that i thought was from my broken motor mount, and i have a funny noise (like a tapping) when i brake (only when i brake), which i can't figure out, but now on the topic of broken ball joint i will definatley check it out and test the joints. thanks

 

i have a bad vibration and a clunk when i hit my brakes as well, but my balljoin test doesnt show anything, i might try that other guys test.

it could also be my suspension that causes mine, 210k miles on stock suspension and they creak real bad when lifting and lowering the car.

good luck with it tho man!