Ok so I have always stalked the forum, great info here so I joined up! I have an 06 ram, 1500 slt bighorn edition.. 4.7L 4wd 85k miles

I parked the truck today as the front end has been Rough, even with new struts and newer tires. I grabbed the upper ball joint around the boot, and pushed on the tire with my shoulder..the tire moved and the ballpoint was clicking around in the socket... So I'm going to replace it, along with the lower ball joint, tie rod,and hub assembly while I have it ripped apart... So here are my questions:

1. I know upper control arm needs replaced to replace the ball joint... Anyone use eBay brand ball joints? I can get moogs for 80 bucks so I will probably go with that.
2.when replacing the upper control arm, is it straight forward and just pull the 2 bolts and ball joint stem out? How hard are they to get out/back in?

3. Hub assembly, also wondering about eBay brand hubs? I know to probably not trust ball joints, but the hub assemblies in eBay are half of what I can get in a store.... Any ideas here?

4. Do I have the abs sensor/wire running from the hub assembly? How do I tell? Only big features on my truck are power locks, and a 6 disc changer lol

Never done ball joints on a newer truck, assuming they are close to the same as the rest... Any tips, video links or how to's are appreciated, I know it's a lot to read but I appreciate the response!!!

 

First off welcome to the forum .....lol
ebay brand stuff I would trust with important things like ball joints.I once bought fro0nt end parts for my dads van on ebay and it wasn't the right stuff played heck getting my refund.As far as changing out the upper control arm.Yes its pretty much straight forward.you might have to fight the ball joint itself coming out.but going in should be easy. try this place.i bought my upper arms from them.they were cheaper than around town and they were really fast on shipping rockauto.com

 

Say you would or wouldn't trust ebay? Thanks for the welcome!

 

Many people are soft spoken when they say "when it comes to ball joints, I only use MOOG or similar quality"

I wont be...ONLY USE MOOG OR RAYBESTOS!!!!!!!!!! Period full stop.

Ive been waiting for the right time to post this story so here goes...long story short, I purchased a mid-level brand lower ball joint, installed it...about 100mi later it SNAPPED at the shaft (basically impossible to cause this via an install error). The only thing I notice was a slight resistance in the steering wheel while returning to center. Thankfully it happened while parking, so no damage short of a bent tie-rod, had it towed home and installed a "Driveworks" brand lower ball joint purchased locally. On this unit, Im having nothing but problems with the zerk (comes loose constantly), and for some reason the balljoint will no longer accept grease from the gun (zerk is NOT clogged). Dont forget I needed to pay for an alignment after all this as well.

The remaining ball joint from company X on passenger side is still working, but the boot design is CRAP and I greased them recently and pushed a lot of water out of the boot. The driveworks boot is fine (no water), but it is these little details that are really important for parts like this.

Mind you, after contacting them and sending pics they sent me all new parts that were damaged (didnt use them, bought MOOG LOL), so kudos to them. Doesnt change the fact that I couldve died.

Again, my brand was middle of the road, NOT eBay crap...CAVEAT EMPTOR.

These are the parts that support the weight of the ENTIRE truck, while pivoting about their axis constantly. These parts are not rocket science (ok MOOG and Raybestos employ a different material choice for the contact area between the ball and the joint), making metallurgy and quality control paramount. Combine that with the fact that they are a relative PIA to replace and you need an alignment after install, and you have a no brainer. The extra couple of hundred spent now is worth the peace of mind.

Edit pls PM me if you want the brand name...reluctant to post not sure if there is any reason why not but you never know

Edit...seeing is believing...taken while waiting for the tow truck after I jacked it up and moved the wheel and spindle assy (being held on only by the upper bj and tie rod) back into position

 

Sorry i wouldn't trust ebay. Stupid iPhone auto correct

 

I would not use the moog ball joints. The quality has changed over the years because of them manufacturing them overseas. The XRF ball joints have a lifetime million mile warranty. I added a link check them out, I hope this helps you.







http://www.thetireclub.com/content.w...ation_ram.html

http://www.xrfchassis.com/parts-overview.htm

 

In this situation you get what you pay for...

 

There was a guy in the 2nd gen section that had an XRF tie rod snap in two on him. I hit a small bump down the highway and it just snapped.

So you can't say XRF has a zero failure rate either. I think OP just needs to find what will work the most reliably.

 

Although moog does do te whole "worldwide suppliers and manufacturers" thing (all of them do), the UCAs that I'm running from them have a unique stamp on the upper cap of the bj "Moog Problem Solver Made in USA". Neither the OEM or brand x UCA have anything stamped on the upper cap.

I know people have reported theirs don't read made in USA, just make sure you see it before you buy.

When I have to replace the Bjs again I'm going Raybestos. I'm sold on the benefits of their composite self lubing sleeve.

 

Can I see the abs wire with the wheel still on?