Need new balljoints (Anyway to grease? Cobra A-Arms?, bumpsteer kit/new tierod ends?)

[91LX_5L]

Well I need new balljoints since mine are now squeaking. Since I am broke as hell right now and saving for travelling is there anyway to grease my stockers so they stop squeaking??? That would be great untill I can afford a nice setup.

Anyways I have heard of ppl puttin in Cobra A-Arms...whats the advantage to this? If I run the cobra A-arms are the balljoints that come with them suffiecent or should I get aftermarket ones? I run coil-overs btw. I also know MM makes a set that are designed for the coil-overs but as I said above money is real tight for me right now...

Anyways at the same time as balljoints should I put in a bumpsteer kit/new tie-rod ends? Anyone have a brand specific that they really like for balljoints & bumpsteer kit/tie rod ends?

But like I said at the very top im really tight on funds, is there a cheap fix for this temporarily?

Thanks

 

[91LX_5L]

oh ya and I dont really need any more turning radius as my front tires (265/35/18s) are allready almost touching my coil-overs I think they even might on full turn. Gotta go 255s next round.

 

[1TallMF]

I was in your exact position last week, I wanted to upgrade all that stuff with better parts, but I'm also saving up to travel in July, so I went the cheap route and just got new balljoints from Ford. They were 64.00 each (CDN $), but the Cobra A-arms were gonna be about 340.00 after tax (friggin rip!). But the new balljoints are greasable! The old ones are sealed and apparently impossible to lube up once they start to squeek.

 

[91LX_5L]

I was thinking of poking a small hole in the boot just big enough for the size of the 'straw' that comes with WD40 cans' etc and putting some lube in there? I know WD40 isnt a good idea, is there a grease in a aresol can that will work?

Or drilling into the bottom and putting in a zerk fitting...?

 

[94YellowStang]

I've got Ford Racing cobra control arms new in the box pm me if interested.

 

[Swarzkopf]

I just went through this! I eventually bought FMS 03 Cobra A-Arms from Summit for $154.99.

To answer you questions specifically:

Well I need new balljoints since mine are now squeaking. Since I am broke as hell right now and saving for travelling is there anyway to grease my stockers so they stop squeaking???

Yes, as a temporary fix, you can poke a small hole in the very top of the rubber boot- provided the boot is still intact. Often, on original ball joints the boot is shredded.

You can buy silicon grease in an aerosol can at any autoparts store, and this should work fine for the time being.

Eventually, the boot will rip apart if you do it this way; furthermore, dirt will slowly get into it and destroy the ball joint. This is only recommended as a temporary fix.

Anyways I have heard of ppl puttin in Cobra A-Arms...whats the advantage to this? If I run the cobra A-arms are the balljoints that come with them suffiecent or should I get aftermarket ones?

They give you a tighter turning radias. The ball joints in the 03 Cobra A-Arms should be fine. I know that my car rides much "smoother" and handling feels significantly crisper since installing these.

Anyways at the same time as balljoints should I put in a bumpsteer kit/new tie-rod ends?

Totally up to you- you don't NEED to do this.

Keep in mind...if you buy balljoints separately, you're going to have to pay a machine shop to press the old balljoints out of your A-Arms and press the new ones in, and it'll end up costing the same as whole new A-Arms anyway.

 

[91LX_5L]

Ok thanks id go with Cobra-A-Arms then and a bumpsteer kit when the time comes. Only thing is are the cobra ones greaseable? I have read you can rent a tool to pop out the old balljoints?

What about using something to seal up the little hole in the rubber after I make it?

 

[SeventyMach1]

Only thing is are the cobra ones greaseable?

Subscibing to this question ..... Can the Cobra one's be greased?

 

[91LX_5L]

hopefully....how are the QA1 ones?

 

[HISSIN50]

Ford normally doesnt use greaseable ball joints. They use low friction units (I think they even did away the wear indicators because they arent feasibly needed).

I would NOT add a zerk to this style of BJ. They are pretty robust and I'd take one any day over a greasable unit. That's just me.

I havent seen the Cobra arms in real life, but it doesnt look like they have a zerk in pics on FRP's site.

BTW, I've used a ball joint press with luck - I liked it enough to buy one. Nice for stubborn U-joints too. That's a real option if only needing ball joints for now..............

 

[91LX_5L]

well dont the balljoints go from lowered cars? if so cobra ones dont make much sence to me unless there greaseable...steeda X2 almost seem like the way to go?

i think im just going to try to grease mine for now...thanks ill let u all know how it works out

 

[Green 94 5.0]

aside from being only $20 or so more than the x2 balljoints, the cobra a-arms come with new bushings as well. im still deciding too since my a-arms are already out and my balljoints are shot.

 

[Swarzkopf]

I'll look at mine when they get home, but I'm 99% sure Hissin is right, they aren't greasable- which doesn't really matter, as they should last ~100K miles as is I'm not too worried about it.

The Cobra A-arms should be fine on lowered cars as well. The balljoint is supposed to be "heavy duty" as compared to our stock GT pieces.

 

[slocomo]

Well I need new balljoints since mine are now squeaking. Since I am broke as hell right now and saving for travelling is there anyway to grease my stockers so they stop squeaking??? That would be great untill I can afford a nice setup.

Anyways I have heard of ppl puttin in Cobra A-Arms...whats the advantage to this? If I run the cobra A-arms are the balljoints that come with them suffiecent or should I get aftermarket ones? I run coil-overs btw. I also know MM makes a set that are designed for the coil-overs but as I said above money is real tight for me right now...

Anyways at the same time as balljoints should I put in a bumpsteer kit/new tie-rod ends? Anyone have a brand specific that they really like for balljoints & bumpsteer kit/tie rod ends?

But like I said at the very top im really tight on funds, is there a cheap fix for this temporarily?

Thanks

drill and tap the stock ball joints and locate some grease fittings and wa la. Do a search of this forum cause I think there's a guy on here that has done it before. The only time you need a bump steer kit is when your inner tie rods are no long parallel to your a arms. Like when you get x-2 ball joints from steeda or the ford racing extended ball joints it raises that spindle causing the inner tie rods to change angle from being parallel to the a-arms. I think sean hyland or steeda says that. I'm not sure which one.

 

[slocomo]

I always believed "one mans trash is another mans treasure" growing up in a trailer park and going dumpster diving. I was thinking about this cause I just threw my stock balljoints away and they were in perfect condition when upgrading to steeda x-2 balljoints. Too bad I didn't have them now I could have just given them to you.

My last boss had one of the greatest ideas I've heard of. It was to start an online community of people who have random extra stuff that everyone could use. LIke say I'm building a fence and I go to the hardware store and get 6 thousand screws and only use 4 thousand. Now I have 2 thousand screws that I have no use for. Well If everyone here is always upgrading everything on there car shouldn't we post everything extra we have in one spot where anyone who has a use for the "crap" we are all throwing away can just ask for and put it to use instead of basicly wasting good used parts? I have a 15lb nos bottle that I'm sure I'm never gonna use and monster fuel and nitrous solennoids I removed the system from my car when I bought it from some guy cause it was installed extremely bad. It was causeing me more head aches by draining my battery every night cause of grounds everywhere. Oh sorry for being off topic but it's an idea worth mentioning I think. It could be like the stangnet junkyard where you can trade or just pick up parts that you don't feel like taking the time to sell or don't care about. or if you care about your used parts but have no use for them like me you could trade.

 

[Methodical]

I was in your exact position last week, I wanted to upgrade all that stuff with better parts, but I'm also saving up to travel in July, so I went the cheap route and just got new balljoints from Ford. They were 64.00 each (CDN $), but the Cobra A-arms were gonna be about 340.00 after tax (friggin rip!). But the new balljoints are greasable! The old ones are sealed and apparently impossible to lube up once they start to squeek.

I hate to burst your bubble, but when you bought those ball joints you just purchase the '03-'04 Cobra A arms. They are about $150 at Summit Racing.

And no they are not greaseable and the ride is excellent and the turn radius is great and my car is slammed.

 

[91LX_5L]

UPDATE....HELP.

Ok well your gonna laugh at me...I dont think the ball joints were ever the cause of the squeaking, I think it was the outer-tie-rod-ends DOES THIS MAKE SENCE?

I greased the ball joints (in the a-arm's, poked a hole in the boot) then remember it was still squeaking so I went back underneith again and got a buddy to turn the wheel while I injected more lithium grease, I remember I couldnt find the hole so I poked a new one (BUT NOT IN THE BALL JOINT BOOT, I was looking at a diffrent boot...dont ask what I was smoking) I did it in the boot thats at the very end of the tie rod end at the top. I dont know how I got mixed up but either way THATS WHAT DID IT, stopped the squeaking. It wasnt the balljoints in the long run, it was the outer-tie-rod ends that were squeaking!!!

Now my question is what should I replace here, my tie-rod ends? Should I get 03' Cobra A-Arms as well...good idea? What about bushings while im in that area...wanna make a list here of what I should buy.

Keep in mind I have coil-overs in the front so its pretty slammed like 2+".

THANKS!

 

[1TallMF]

I hate to burst your bubble, but when you bought those ball joints you just purchase the '03-'04 Cobra A arms. They are about $150 at Summit Racing.

Yes, I know that, but up here in the great white north, there is no such thing as "free shipping", so with the exchange rate, border fees, shipping and local tax, they would have ended up costing me around $300 (CDN $) easily. Plus they probably would have taken a week to get here, and I was in desperate need of a fix, sounded like the front end was about to fall apart. Those ones I bought from the dealer were about 100 U.S. dollars for both, so I don't feel like I busted a nut on that deal. I still would have liked to have the Cobra arms, but **** happens and money was tight.

 

[HISSIN50]

Matt, the outer tie rods was a very good possibility - glad to hear you got it whipped.

Your call on the rest. On my fox, I started out to just do a rack and before I knew it, I had it stripped down to the frame.

Good luck.

 

[Methodical]

Yes, I know that, but up here in the great white north, there is no such thing as "free shipping", so with the exchange rate, border fees, shipping and local tax, they would have ended up costing me around $300 (CDN $) easily. Plus they probably would have taken a week to get here, and I was in desperate need of a fix, sounded like the front end was about to fall apart. Those ones I bought from the dealer were about 100 U.S. dollars for both, so I don't feel like I busted a nut on that deal. I still would have liked to have the Cobra arms, but **** happens and money was tight.

Hey I understand, you did what you had to. I didn't realize you were in Canada.

Peace