I took my 1995 Ford F150 to a large Ford dealership for a simple inspection. With the truck being in good condition I expected it to be a quick in-and-out job with no findings. What I got was a $800+ estimate to fix the upper and lower ball joints. I was shocked by this because I had seen no sign of ball joint problems. The tires were in great shape, and the front end felt solid. Being a little skeptical, I told the mechanic to go ahead and fail me and took the truck to another garage. The mechanic there took me into the garage and showed me that the joints were fine -- just as I suspected. He passed the inspection with no findings.
When I contacted the original dealership to complain, the service manager asked me to bring the truck back to have someone else look at it. I was surprised to have them confirm that the ball joints were indeed bad. What do ya'll think is going on here? Is it likely to have bad ball joints without any symptoms? Or was this an attempted hijacking?
2006-09-27 07:30:41 · 9 answers · asked by Jeff B 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Car Makes ➔ Ford
Ball joints go bad all the time on these vehicles and are very common and yes they can be worn and you may not realize it. They may me marginal and you might get different opinions.
Sometimes a slow shop will try to sell you something you may not need. Try to find a shop that is not a franchise and the technicians and service writer are not on commission. You need to find an honest repair shop and stick with them.
Dave (Shop Owner)
2006-09-27 07:49:51 · answer #1 · answered by Dave 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you can check the ball joints yourself by putting a floorjack under the control arm and jacking it up until the weight is off of the joint put a pry bar under the tire and lift up and have some look to see if the joint are moving if the there is any movement then they are starting to go bad if there is a lot movement they are bad. i think he was trying to get some work out of you
2006-09-27 07:48:40 · answer #2 · answered by turkey 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would have to see them for myself to say, but I would have the dealer to show me the play in them and see for myself. I will say the ball joints are know to need replacing on that model truck, and keep in mind it is 11 years old. 800 is kinda high to me unless it is a 4x4. Radius arm bushings will wear just as much in this time frame too.
2006-09-27 12:31:21 · answer #3 · answered by Josh S 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there is no way that you have bad ball joints, or at least not all of them , new car dealers do this all the time to people , and there boss will back them up. there are a lot of fish in the sea , but it seems like your are the one that got away good job
2006-09-27 07:51:57 · answer #4 · answered by bradley m 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
most of the time the dealer does a good job because thay know there brand. ball joints are sometimes hard to see symptoms but there are specs the dealers haft to fallow. when you went to the other garage are you sher thay checked the ball joints right.
2006-09-27 09:18:48 · answer #5 · answered by 5.0 time 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it is their policy to fix anything that is 0.002 out of specs cause there are people that want to sue at a drop of a hat,use your own judgement, get on a smooth road and let go of the steering for a second or two if the car pulls hard jack up the tire and pull and push at 9:45,6:00 positions if a lot of slack replace them and usually you boot got sand in it or not enough grease, go to a dealer if you what a in specs car and brake open the bank account.. they are for the people that didn't take automotives in high school!!
2006-09-27 07:47:56 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
type into search box how to check ball jpint how to check control arm bushing how to replace ball joint how to replace control arm bushing both can be done at home with right tools will stil need to be re align way one checks jack it up shake wheel left to right checks between wheels such as tie rod or links shake from top to bottom checks ball joint or control arm bushing feel any slack look at whats is moving its bad easier to pay to have it done but can do it at home youy can find most car repairs by typing how to remove how to replace how to install how to repair how to check name of part sometimes adding video to end might even find one how to remove ball joint video most parts are somewhat the same so knowing one you can figure it out but can also add model how to remove ball joint ford
2016-03-27 13:45:55 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Get Joint Pain Relief Codes!
2016-07-26 00:14:29 · answer #8 · answered by jacquelyn 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Each mechanic uses his own judgment. If its a little loose I tell the customer and usually let it to. If its too loose I'll show them the slack
2006-09-27 13:57:07 · answer #9 · answered by kayef57 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋