Lower Ball on 1997 Mercury Grand Marquis, can I replace it myself?

Question

Haynes repair manual says to have a shop do it for me and Autozones's on-line repair guide says it's not replacable, but they sell the ball joint. My daughter drives my grandson around in this car and is flat broke. I need to save money but don't want to put anyones life at risk.

The ball joint has failed completely. The lower section is stuck in the control arm and the upper section isstill on the wheel hub. The wheel hub is tilted due to the seperation, so there is no tension on the ball joint.

Answer 1

If you have never done a ball joint replacement, now is not the time to do it yourself. A mechanic should be able to replace @ 1 hour of labor. You should also have a front end align done when replacing front end parts.

Answer 2

About the only suspension part(s) the DIY mechanic can do are the tie rod ends (even that requires a front end alignment).

No, ball joints are out of the question, there exists a lot of pressure and you could seriously injure or kill yourself.

Answer 3

in case you replace one, do the different and the two factors as nicely for piece of ideas. in case you want to envision them placed a jack below the administration arm and wiggle wheel up and all the way down to establish if there is play. area to area play would be a tie rod difficulty. bear in ideas that when changing the top ball joint(you're able to desire to mark the two nuts on appropriate), in case you don't get it precisely appropriate, an alignment would be required. If the shop doing the alignment exhibits a ball joint or tie rod with play they won't align it without alternative-so verify them first so which you do no longer sense stupid at a save.

Answer 4

Have a pro do it. You are dealing with pressed in parts and a tremendous amount of spring tension. If you do it yourself the life at risk would be yours.