How hard is it to change the ball joints on on 05 screw? Mine must be terrible every bump I hit jerks the wheel bad!

 

It doesn't take long, me and a bud did them on my 05 screw in a few hours, just make sure you have the ball joint tool! you can rent one for fairly cheap. and it's not a particularly hard job.

 

Uppers are pretty easy its just replacing the upper control arm. Lowers you can pound out with a hammer but need pressed back in.

 

DO not pound out the lower ball joints with a hammer. This method is only acceptable on vehicles with steel lower CA's. Our control arms 2004-2008 are aluminum. There is a high risk of damaging the lower control arm.

 

If you say so..

 

You wont get them out by banging them out with a hammer, they are tighter than an SOB....

 

Myself and the 11 other techs i work with have Been doing since the 04 to 08 body style came out. But what does a 13 yr senior ford master tech know . Why bother giving advice on here someone will always tell you ur way is the wrong way and there's is better..

 

And a cup style press will cause more damage then a hammer due to the ball joint being so close to the edge not allowing the cup to set level to push the joint out. Call tech hot line and the engineers will only advise a press only for installation.. and yes some are very tight.. take a torch heat just the ball joint two taps they fall right out. Put the new one in a freezer for a few hours it'll go right in.. these are the ways I've been doing it for yrs. Never once damaged a CA. You can tell me its wrong that's fine. But don't say these are unacceptable methods. All are tried and true methods.

 

Although my mustang had steel control arms ^ thats how i sid mine and it worked great i did the same thing when i removed and reinstalled my carrier bearings on the rear diff i heated the bearings and froze my differential case and froze my pinnion and heated its bearings they fell right on

 

I agree with dieseltech. A good application of heat and accurate strike of the hammer will get them right out. I use the freezer method and it works wonders. I used that method recently to press in a set of control arm bushings on a Cobalt.