How to Replace Jeep Ball Joints

What Is A Ball Joint?

The Jeep’s ball joint is the element that connects the wheel hub and the suspension arm, which is responsible for turning the car’s wheel. The first sign of failure of this system is the occurrence of extraneous knocks when operating your Jeep. Jeep recommends replacing the Jeep’s levers and ball joints every 100,000 kilometers wound on the speedometer since this system is considered quite reliable and durable. But sometimes a similar procedure has to be performed earlier. The cause of premature failure of the ball joints on your Jeep most often becomes an increase in the gap between the pin and the body.

The following can lead to this:

• Dust cap rupture and lack of lubricants;
• Wear of one of the elements;
• Constant operation of the Jeep in severe road conditions, driving over bumps and potholes, on roads with poor pavement quality;
• Use of previously used parts or poor quality products in the system.

In most cases, it is damage to the dust cover that is the main cause of Jeep ball joint failure, so it is recommended to periodically check the integrity of this particular element to avoid repairing other mated units before time. To make sure that it is the Jeep’s ball joint that is the cause of the side knocking, it is recommended to perform the following actions:

• Raise the Jeep wheel, using a car jack for this purpose. Try to stagger the wheel with your hands, making backward/forward movements. If you feel a loose movement when doing this, then the ball joint should be removed and a new one should be installed.
• Get under the underside of the Jeep. Insert a crowbar between the suspension arm and the ball joint. Perform the procedure to check for play by firmly pushing the peculiar lever downward. If detected, perform a replacement.

Replacement Process

The method of replacing the ball joints of Jeep:

• With the help of a special puller.
• With the use of an ordinary hammer.

In addition to these tools, you will also need to have on hand a ball and socket wrench, grease, and a jack. In any case, you will initially need to raise the Jeep on the side where you want to perform the replacement and securely fix the car. How is the replacement of Jeep ball joints performed using a special puller:

• The wheel is disassembled.
• On the ball joint pin, the nut is unscrewed and removed
• The two mounting nuts are removed.
• Puller is installed between the lever and the casing of the support.
• With the help of rotary movements, the support is removed.
• Before installing a new part on the Jeep, it is necessary to remove its dust cover and fill it with a large amount of lubricant.
• Installation of the new part is performed completely in reverse order.

Jeep Ball Joints Replacement Technique Using An Ordinary Hammer:

• Similarly, the wheel is removed in order to gain access to the mechanisms to be replaced.
• Using a wrench, the nut located on the Jeep ball joint pin is unscrewed. But the nut is not removed completely but is only removed until it aligns with the axle of the Jeep ball joint pin.
• A crowbar is taken and the lever is pulled down.
• By tapping on the lever with a hammer, the item is pulled down to the nut.
• Finally, all the nuts are unscrewed and the jeep’s ball joint together with the lever is removed.

Important Tip

When installing the new ball joint and levers on the Jeep, you should not forget to use a lubricant. In the final step, the process of securing the Jeep ball joint pin nut may cause some complications, as it may start to twist. In order to avoid this, you will need to once again use a tire iron to securely lock it in place and prevent such rotation. In addition to replacing this assembly, you can also have the Jeep arm and ball joint repaired:

Convert the non-disassembled version of the ball joint into a collapsible one. Perform liner replacement and grind the ball.
Perform injection of specially softened plastic mass into the existing gap that can be observed between the ball and the housing to reduce it.

Bottom Line

Any of these options for the restoration of the ball joint Jeep requires a person to have a certain skill and perform a number of quite complex processes (in the first case, making new metal parts, threading, welding work, in the second – work with hot plastic). Specialists advise not even to start such a restoration procedure if the pin can be easily taken out of the support without any disassembly – such a unit cannot be repaired, and requires only replacement, as too large a hole can cause an accident.