Anyone had experience of replacement Lower Ball Joints

[The_Gordons]

Our Bong passed it's MOT yesterday however due to the recently introduced MOT changes we have an advisory notice on the lower ball joints as the boots are split .

Does anyone have any experience with these replacement ball joints:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MAZDA-BONGO-L ... 1c23df451a

As Mazda don't sell the ball joint separately and the the wishbones themselves are in good condition I wondered if I can get away with changing the ball joints or will I have the same issue in a couple of years time?

Paul

[dave_aber]

Have you got a press?

[The_Gordons]

There is a small garage in our village who service and repair imported vehicles that I use. They allow me to supply my own parts and will fit them.

Paul

[dave_aber]

Should be no problem then. As far as I can see, the only issues with replacing the balljoint on its own are - the wishbone is corroded or the socket hole becomes oval.

As the wishbone isn't corroded, then all you have to worry about is the hole at the end, and as long as the old one is pressed out square, and the new one pressed in square then you should have no issues there either. It looks a simple enough joint to press in, so any decent garage should be able to do that no problem - not like pressing in 2CV kingpins where there isn't a flat surface to be seen to press against!

[The_Gordons]

The guys in the garage had a look in their usual places for ball joints but could only get the complete wishbones. They thought that if I could get hold of the ball joints on their own then there should be no problem with fitting them. The main problem is the splitting of the boots. Under the old MOT rules it was only an issue if there was excessive movement but under the new recently introduced rules the condition of various boots and bushes are now checked and if a split is found it is at the testers discretion whether to fail the vehicle or not. Luckily the garage that did our MOT classed them as advisory and not a failure.

Paul

[dave_aber]

Pity you can't find a suitable boot. Self-amalgamating tape?

[321Away]

I've fitted a few in the past and never had an issue with 1, as said press it out and press new in, lots of people talk about the mounting hole being out of shape etc personally never seen it even on cars that look like they've been parked on a beach all their lives! Most garages will always go for the whole arm as they make more on the part and its an easier/quicker job.

Julian

[teenmal]

Hi,

If the ball joints are sound,you could just replace the rubber boots.Any decent motor factors should be able to supply them,or go down the e bay route.


http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=b ... m270.l1313

Cheers..

[dave_aber]

That looks like a good solution - certainly better than self-amalgamating tape!

[brorabongo]

Oggy, my brother-in-law done his own ball joint, after seeing the other one done at a well loved garage in Wigan........No press needed....... It can be Knocked out/in.

[321Away]

Oggy, my brother-in-law done his own ball joint, after seeing the other one done at a well loved garage in Wigan........No press needed....... It can be Knocked out/in.

They can be knocked in, at minimum make sure you place a socket over it, as if you actually hit the bottom of the joint you'll kill it!

Julian

[helen&tony]

Hi
Both myself and another member on here bought balljoints off e-bay...I forget the seller, so it's no good asking, BUT, to be fair, it may just have been a duff batch supplied from their wholesaler, but we both had them fail within a year...and I only do 6- 8 thousand kilometers in a year , but I got the second one from Allan's Vehicle services, who advertise on here...and he only sells quality gear...new joint popped in locally...SUPER...My viewpoint on replacement is: If you aren't aware how long the dust cover has been broken, you have no idea how long grit and grunge have been grinding away at the joint, so get it replaced!
Good luck
Cheers
Helen

[The_Gordons]

Thanks for all the feedback.

One of the ball joints has some movement so needs replaced anyway so will be replacing them both as I agree with Helen's thoughts.

In the end I didn't go for the ones on fleabay as when I called up one of the well know Bongo parts dealers to order rear drop links and anti-roll bar bushes they had replacement ball joints even though they weren'ty on their website.

I guess that under the new MOT rules there will be a few people caught out with split boots and bushes.

Paul

[brorabongo]

Oggy, my brother-in-law done his own ball joint, after seeing the other one done at a well loved garage in Wigan........No press needed....... It can be Knocked out/in.

They can be knocked in, at minimum make sure you place a socket over it, as if you actually hit the bottom of the joint you'll kill it!

Julian

and I believe plenty of "copper slip" for lube.

[Northern Bongolow]

ive done a few with good success, the problem is what dave was talking about, it isnt straight to push out or refit, its on an angle to the wishbone surface, but if you take some time its easy.
ive just had an advisory on mine (driverside) it was torn, the tester said if its showing signs of loosing grease then its a fail, mine wasnt so he passed it.
i just sourced some cheap boots from the local factors to fit if the joint is ok once stripped and checked.

the problem seems to be that the individual components to the wishbone, the wishbone itself, the 2 mounting rubber bushes and the balljoint, if bought seperately cost a bloody fortune. the whole thing complete from mazda is far lower in price, and should last years. .