Thanks John.

IIRC, the 20K mile "failure" may have been limited to the boot.

Of note, the new Febi ball joints I just got have a see through boot.
(ooooh. See through boooot) It also looks like the boot can be
removed. (Grease-able?)

I saw what looks like a great lower ball joint how to (80-84) with photos here:

http://californiavan.com/frontend/80-84lowerballjoints/

I decided to take the $ plunge and do both uppers. The real $ (for a
rubber part anyway) are the couplers for the steering column/gear box
parts. $46 Cnd/ea ! (3 of mine have several cracks each)

Neil.

On Fri, Nov 14, 2008 at 3:22 PM, John Rodgers <inua@charter.net> wrote:
> I suppose any part can fail earlier in life than expected - but 20,000
> miles? That sounds like there has been some serious abuse. I just changed my
> D-side upper about 5000 back, and there was near 180,000 on it. It had never
> been changed. If you gt good ones, expect them ot last about like factory.
>
> Of course it's always ideal to replace both sides - upper and lower - at the
> same time, to maintain the integrity of the front end. These things tend to
> hold up only and good as the oldest and most worn part.
>
> If you have a place to work, as a do it yourself project it's not that bad.
> The upper is a snap, but the lower takes a bit more effort. You will need to
> grind off a couple of welds, and you will need a press.
>
> Maybe someone has a "How to" website on this one.
>
> Regards,
>
> John Rodgers
> 88 GL Driver
>

>> What is the general life expectancy of an upper ball joint?
>>
>> Curious if I should replace both sides at the same time.

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