fair price for ball joint replacement?

I was quoted $600 for replacing both front ball joints on my 2001
Civic. The price also includes wheel alignment, which I'm told would
be necessary with the job. I live in Buffalo, NY. Does this seem
like a fair price? A quick google search leads me to believe that the
quote is high....

 

It appears the ball joints on this vehicle are integral with the steering
knuckle, at least with OEM parts. The price you've been quoted is probably
from a Honda dealer, and includes new knuckles.

There are aftermarket ball joints that can be pressed into the existing
knuckle (closer to your $300 guess), but I think you would regret that
choice in less than two years. Ever had a ball joint break on you?

 

The quote was actually from an independent shop. I failed to ask
exactly what parts would be replaced.

What would happen if the shop only replaced the ball joint and not the
knuckle? Are you suggesting that pressing a new ball joint into the
knuckle would weaken the interface and cause it to fail again
prematurely?

 

<proper crossposting added to alt.autos.honda>

Then you should ask and tell. Otherwise you may mislead others here and
receive useless advice.

That would be the danger, yes. That would be why Honda does not offer
separate ball joints for this model. Ball joints are under considerable
stress in operation.

See here for more fun information:
<http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/lowerballjoint/index.html>

 

1. what symptoms are you experiencing - why do you think you need to
have them replaced?

2. please learn to cross-post.

 

I took it to the shop for my mandatory NY State safety inspection, and
they told me the lower ball joints were loose, and recommended
replacement. Seems kind of early for a car with 70K miles, huh?

 

somewhat. i'd get a second opinion.

here in kalifornistan, a lot of inspection stations are "test only" and
/not allowed/ to do repairs. thus they have no incentive to find things
wrong.

if you have something like that in your state, that's where i'd go.
especially now that money is tight, i expect more "problems" to be found
on otherwise healthy cars.

 

Yup. Way early. Get a second opinion.

 

Seems kind of early for a car with 70K miles, huh?

My '99 Accord LX 4 dr 5 spd has 157K miles, and in last couple of
months, I have wondered about the front end. On occasion it will track
slightly to the left. I had the alignment checked, it's okay, it did
not need adjustment. I rotate regularly every 6-7k miles, tire wear is
normal. When I go over harder bumps, I hear / feel more of a clunk
than before. I am concerned that someone needing to do more work, will
go ahead and recommend costly work I can't afford. I have jack stands,
is this something I can self diagnose? How do you really tell if the
ball joints need replacing?

Thanks,
Wade

 

you need to get under the car and check stuff out. check all bolts are
tightened properly, check things like sway bar bushings are ok, then
check ball joints. i've actually had more problems with upper joints
than lower on civics, so check yours on the accord. jack the vehicle up
under the lower swing arm until the wheel is just off the ground, then
lever under the wheel with a crow bar. you should be able to see or
feel looseness if any exists. this works better if you have an
assistant carefully do this while you hold a joint - you can definitely
feel any looseness then.

 

Yes, the load should be taken off the lower control arm to check the
load-carrying ball joint (lower).

But Jim -- it's interesting that the non-load-carrying upper joints
were giving you more problems. If these don't run dry, I would think
they'll outlast the lower joints. No?

 

well, they're not as big as the lower ones, plus, if you think about it,
because of the fact that they're on a much longer lever arm on the
steering knuckle from the wheel center compared to the lower one,
reaction force to braking and cornering is going to be much greater.
besides, as a crazed lover of 88-91 civics/crx's, and someone that's had
no fewer than six of them in higher mileage conditions [up to 300k!],
three have needed upper ball joint replacements - not one has needed
lower unless the boot has been trashed by a pickle fork.

 

Up in the Rust Belt, it's weather that kills the lower ones.
They fail all the time here.

 

No idea if "martin lynch" will ever check in on this thread again (I hope
he does, if he hasn't got the work done yet), but I just discovered
something:

Honda had issued a TSB (06-035) which says that Honda has new ball joints
that may be installed into existing steering knuckles on SOME '98-'02
Accords, obviating the need to replace the entire knuckle. The new ball
joint part number is 06523-S84-405. The TSB outlines the exact installation
procedure, which may be performed without removing the knuckle from the
car.

It seems premature ball joint wear is a known issue on these cars. The
original ball joint has a different part number from its replacement,
suggesting different fit, product improvement, or both.

 

Check out my new reply to "martin lynch"'s Sunday message. New info has
surfaced.

 

Much obliged for this message Tegger! I was actually going to call
the mechanic tommorow, so I'm glad I checked on here tonight first.

I actually have a Civic, not Accord, but a search shows a TSB for the
2001-2005 Civic exists as well (04-079). Further google search
shows that some District Managers MIGHT repair the ball joint free,
even out of warranty. I'm not crossing my fingers but it's worth a
shot...

 

And so it does. My mistake, sorry. Same problem, same solution, different
details.

The new Civic ball joint part number is 51220-S5A-305.

This is the sort of situation where it really helps to have a good
relationship with your "stealer$hip". I'm glad I maintain that with my
local dealer, who have been very good to me over these many years.