I recently took my 04 RAM 1500 (2WD) to get an alignment done. The tech told me he was unable to perform the alignment because I needed to replace numerous parts first. He said I needed to replace; passenger side upper control arm, both lower ball joints, and my driver side inner tie rod. So I have just two questions...

1) How do I determine if those parts listed above are truly bad and need replacing?

2) I know driving dictates, but about how long should these parts normally last?

Thanks for you help

 

Ball Joints: jack the truck up so that the weight is off the side you are testing and place a crowbar or something similar under said tire. Apply an upward pressure as to make the tire move up while looking at the ball joint (or someone else if need be) and see if there is any excessive play in the joint. i.e. The entire assembly should move, not just the tire. Also, if you replace one joint, you should replace all four.

Tie Rod - Upper Control Arm: A general rule of thumb is just look for excessive play or anything out of the norm. Look for cracks, missing bolting or nuts. Again, if you replace the tie rods, you should do both inner and outer.

Disclaimer: I’m not familiar with 2wd truck so I’m not to sure of the setup.

Length of Time Drive under Current Conditions: This is one of those things that should be done ASAP! I drove around for six months with bad ball joints in my 99 ram without any trouble. However, my sister in a LHS found a bad steering component (forget which) and within a week lost her entire wheel assembly, only thing holding the tire on was her control arm... Damned speed bump!