Ball joint price

[marky38]

Hi there..Our 2007 Liberty has been clunking in the front end for years..When we bought it a few years ago the tires had alot of wear on the inner part of the tires..anyway we got new tires and didnt address the issue and they are pretty worn out on the inner area again..I check for bad lower ball joints before we put the new tires on and really didnt see any movement....But i wanna get this fixed...A shop quoted us 800 to 900 total price for upper and lower on both sides..Does that seem like a fair price?..seems a little steep..Thanks

 

[tommudd]

Well since you can not replace the UBJs and have to replace the whole arm, right there the price of them, their markup and labor all adds up quickly
LBJs are fairly easy to replace ( as are the upper arms ) but if getting good Moog greaseable ones 60-70 each plus again markup and labor
so all in depending on where you live, labor rates maybe high

Front Lower Ball Joint
Manufacturer: MOOG
Part Number: moog-k80767
Price: $64.26 each
( from Moog website )
If having someone do them make sure to use the above

Front Upper Control Arm and Ball Joint
Manufacturer: MOOG
Part Number: moog-ck3198
Price: $134.60 each

of course someone will suggest Detroit Axle or whatever they are called , but it depends on what quality you want.
I just get the best I can

More than likely they will get you for 4 hours or more labor so there is over half of the price quaoted

So are you sure it is ball joints ?
Have you had it to a good alignment shop ? Have they checked it out to see what is loose ? Need to do that first

 

[marky38]

I watched a few videos and the uppers seemed a pain...lowers too cause having to remove the axel to press out the ball joint.. at least that's what the guy on the video had to do...I haven't had anyone look at it..I checked the lower myself and didn't see or feel any play....I haven't check the uppers but plan on it..can bad uppers cause inside tire wear?...an alignment shop is a good idea...thanks

 

[tommudd]

First time doing them takes a little time, I've done a bunch so uppers take 45 minutes to an hour taking my time
Lowers you just remove nut on the CV, pop lower and upper ball joints and pull spindle, ( at least that is what I do ) easy to do and quicker.
I've seen a few You Tube videos and all are funny to me as most make things come like like it is brain surgery instead of a simple repair

 

[MarksmanAkula]

I watched a few videos and the uppers seemed a pain...lowers too cause having to remove the axel to press out the ball joint.. at least that's what the guy on the video had to do...I haven't had anyone look at it..I checked the lower myself and didn't see or feel any play....I haven't check the uppers but plan on it..can bad uppers cause inside tire wear?...an alignment shop is a good idea...thanks

I did my own ball joints with nothing but basic hand tools, a ball joint press and a 4LB sledge hammer. They can be done at home no worries there, if you're up for the job. But YES the upper control arms are a pain to get to.

 

[tommudd]

After installing more than 50 sets of UCAs on lifted and non lifted KJs , I still wonder how people think they are hard to do.