I was told I needed new lower ball joints on both sides when I got new front tires. They quoted me $414 to do it and also the alignment. That does not seem too bad, but I know I can do this myself if I really want to. How do I tell if the tie rods, control arms, and shocks may need to be replaced as well? I think the shocks are fine, but do i just look for excessive play in the upper ball joints and tie rods?

I see that Advanced Auto parts will loan their ball joint press, but will they loan that tool without buying the parts there? I buy plenty of things there, but Rock Auto prices are so much lower that its hard to pass up the savings, but I need the press.

 

Advanced Auto does "loan" any of their tools out, whether or not you buy anything else from them. You just pay for the tool, use it, and are refunded the money when you bring it back. Make sure they give you the right tool before you leave. I needed a two jaw puller for my tie-rod ends and they kept giving me the wrong tool.

To check all of the joints, lift the wheel off the ground and try to move the wheel with your hands in the 9&3 and then 12&6 position (top/bottom and left/right). If there's play left/right, then you need tie-rod ends. If there's play top/bottom, then you need some balljoints. All very common on this truck. I recommend replacing with Moog parts that have a zerk fitting for grease. Easier to grease the joints during routine maintenance than to replace the OEM parts so often LoL

For the shocks, I would replace them regardless, but it's really up to you. The stock shocks on these trucks really suck, as-is the opinion of many of the other members here. If one of your shocks was bad though, you'd notice a lot of "boating" whenever you hit bumps. Try jumping down hard on your bumper and see how many times the truck bounces up and down before it levels out again.

 

thx - I have the following in my shopping cart at Rock Auto.

Suspension : Ball Joint
MOOG Part # K7411
Front Lower

Suspension : Control Arm
MOOG Part # K7424
Front Upper

Steering : Tie Rod End
MEVOTECH Part # MES3538
Front Outer

I will see what kind of play I have and then modify the cart as needed. I can't get the truck to bounce, but I might not be doing it hard enough. I do notice some issues when driving, but this may be more related to the ball joints. I will look into the shocks as well - its going to be a week before I can get to the ball joints anyways.

 

Looks good, though I don't know much about Mevotech. If it were me, I'd get the Moog tierod ends as well (part# ES3538), but I'm just super picky about these sorts of things. Moog is known for exceptional reliabilty, so I believe there must be a reason the Mevotech parts are half the price, even though they also have a zerk fitting. Also, the Moog parts come with a limited lifetime warranty.