yer

Its been awhile sinse i posted, hell its been awhile sinse i worked on my rx-7. But I'm back at it again for the sumer! woo!
Anyway, I need to replace my ball joints. Nappa sells them for 56$ each! ebay has them for $40 a pair. (sweeeet) Also, is there anything else I should replace while I'm at it? like the bushing at the other end of the control arm? If so, where is a good place to get whatever parts I need? I read this thread https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/replacing-ball-joints-502398/ and I feel fairly confident that this will be a painless prosess. I just wanted to check with the "pros" first!

Scott1982

Be careful, some of these press in don't fit in as well as new and can work their way out. This why some folks just hit them with a tack weld (so they don't work there way out). I went with new ones which cost big bucks but give me presence of mind.

If I had been thinking, I would have pressed them in and bought a welder - would have been same price and just as good.

And I had one that was ridiculously loose, had been moving around in the arm for who knows how long. Really unsafe...

Scott

yer

Thanks for the reply, Scott, I also have a '82.
I don't have a welder and I don't know how to weld. The ball joints I'm looking at on ebay are new, and I am planning on renting a press to put them in. They have a cotter pin that goes through them so i don't think that they will fall out. But is there anything else I should replace at the same time? such as the control arm bushing or somthing?

XLR8

iTrader: (52)

www.rockauto.com

Great source for balljoints and tie rods/ends.
I would probably just press in new ones and put a beed on them. If you don't have a welder then don't sweet it. A local shop should do it for cheap.

I would also recommend replacing the control arm bushing while the control arm is out.
You can find bushings here: http://www.mrcmfg.com/respeed/catalog/index.php

Honestly, it is much easier to replace them all at once. Fairly inexpensive as well.

Good luck.

Scott1982

XLR8 actually gave a more complete answer than i did for both the spot weld as well as the other parts to replace while you are in there.... The part that fails is the press into the arm - there usually isn't a cotter pin for that (although some have a special locking mechanism so I hear).

Struts, tie rods, bushings, etc. it is up to you... Since I intend to keep mine forever... I put all new in and used rubber not the urethane...

Scott

-=DanK=-

For what its worth, I did the upper and lower ball joints on my 1965 chevy impala less than 6000 miles ago and they are already sloppy and dont hold grease as well as they should, I bought the napa "premium" line.
If you can find them elsewhere, I would suggest doing it.
my $.02

yer

Awsome. Thanks for the replys everyone.
I plan to replace ball joints and control arm bushings at the same time, I will order them on friday when i get paid But before then I need to find out which kind of bushing to get. So, whats the diference between polyurthane and rubber bushings? I would imagine that polyurthane is a harder material, wouldnt that be better?

XLR8

iTrader: (52)

Polyurathane does not flex as easily, and will create a stiffer feel. It will not break down from the elements and will maintain the same tensil strength for years.

The front being stiff is a good thing. It will increase response and handling of the car so I would recommend all poly in the front.

The rear of the car depends on the application. Though poly bushings are made for the Watts and rear control arms, I would not recommend them for street. The rearend being overly stiff will induce oversteer and make the car a handful in the twisties. If the car is being built for straight line speed then they are great for stability and launch.

yer

Thanks XLR8, I'll get poly bushings for the front.
Now what's this that I just read in the service manual?

"Note:
The suspension arm and ball joint cannot be disassem-
bled from each other.
If either is defective, replace the suspension arm and
ball joint as an assembly. "

Does this mean that I have to replace the control arms?

Scott1982

If the old balljoints are tight in the control arm, the new ones should be okay. Note the should - that is why the tack weld to make it positive. If the old ball joints were rattling around within the control arm (don't laugh - mine was and it passed inspection when I first bought it) - find another one....

Scott