First ... the squeaking is more likely coming from the upper control arm
bushings.

If your upper ball joints need replacing, it is something you can do at
home and realignment isn't necessary ... assuming your alignment was
good before the joints needed replacing.  The link you provided, by Tom
Carrington, is an excellent resource.

FWIW, I replaced the upper ball joints on my '85 and thought it was a
relatively quick and easy job.  They were replaced due to play in the
joints, though.  There was no associated squeaking in my case.

Mike

dusty edwards wrote:
> i've been meaning to get my '90 westy into the shop to have the upper
> ball joints replaced.  i believe this is the repair that my mechanic
> suggested to fix the creaking in the front end, and if i'm
> right..........well, apparently this job isn't as complicated as i
> thought it to be.  i'm no master mechanic, but i try to do what i can
> on my own.  i located this website:
> http://volksweb.relitech.com/uballjnt.htm
>
> is it this simple?  is there no realignment needed
> afterwards???.....which is mostly why i was going to let my mechanic do
> the work.  if so, (my next question) what preventative maintenance is
> recommended while doing this job.  i believe that i've heard somebody
> say that while you're in there you should replace the struts, etc...
> (???)
>
> thanks for the help!
> dusty.
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