Just replace them.  Surprisingly, that is one of the easier repair jobs to
perform.  Plus the joints themselves are fairly cheap.  Just remove the
wheels, unscrew the big nut and three small bolts and knock the old one out
and bolt the new one in.  Don't even need to do an alignment when you are
done.

Good luck,
Bill Knight

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com]On Behalf
Of Marshall Ruskin
Sent: Monday, August 30, 1999 11:11 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Newbie Ball Joint Question

Hi Volks:

While swapping my spare onto each corner to eliminiate my thumping problem,
I had the occasion to inspect my upper ball joints.

It seems that the boot or rubber guards around both of them are torn, and
badly. Joints are still nice and tight - to my novice examination.

Any alternative to just replacing the ball joints? If there is, it doesn't
seem obvious to me.

BTW: I think my DS front tire is separated - I'll know better after a more
extensive test drive.

Marshall Ruskin
84 Westy "Iron Igloo"
Founding Member of "Vanagon's Anonymous"