A few days ago I had the front suspension components on my 2005 XKR coupe redone and had the opportunity to observe just how "easy" front upper and lower ball joints can be broken free from the knuckle. Granted, the guy wielding the hammer has been working on Jags for 25 years. In essence, one-three sharp blows are applied directly to the knuckle while applying a slight upwards pressure on the control arm. The blows are applied where the ball joint taper seats into the knuckle. Remarkably, the ball joint just pops free fully intact. I asked the mechanic if they ever used special ball joint tools to slowly pry out the joint and he indicated that they were not nearly as effective and often caused damage to the rubber casing. I thought this information would be helpful as I know that several FORUM members have had difficult times with ball joints.

By-the-way, this is the very method of freeing up ball joints that Brutal has suggested in the past. Cogent advice that really works.

 

I use medium sized flat screw driver and air chiesel to make ball joint jump right out. You have to understand that doing Jaguar maintenance for poeple that are not car repair professionals is big achivement, so some of us tend to make a big deal out of it

 

good tip to know, I'm sure Reverend Sam will appreciate it, as he is about to attempt their removal.

 

Just a heads-up: No manufacturer recommends either procedure (exactly the opposite, actually) but I agree, almost every pro (including me) either whacks the knuckle with a BFH or uses a pickle fork in an air hammer.

 

I hear you Beav. When the mechanic was going through the procedure of whacking the knuckle I was rolling physics equations around in my head and thinking about all the reasons why it should not be done. But, there is theory and there is practice and when it comes to repairing vehicles I guess I go with the guys who have the feet-on-the-ground experience. Thank you to all the Jag Techs out there that know how to cut through the crap and get the job done.

 

Great... I already bought the ball joint tool.

Actually, I think the tool will be helpful. It's one of the tools that clamps on to the knuckle and pushes on the ball joint bolt which puts pressure on the taper. I'll put the pressure on the bolt then hit the knuckle with a big hammer.

This is going to have to wait a little while, though. I've got too many other projects going on. I'm going to replace all of my bushings while I'm at it, and I now need to buy all new bushings because of the problem that I had with the other ones. I only want to disassemble my front end once and do ball joints and bushings at the same time.

 

Hello Sam. If you are interested I have the lower control arms and the upper shock bushings that were taken out of my car. As it turned out they are still in good condition and all intact. Before you buy any bushings or ball joints I would be happy to offer you a really good deal on my parts with the condition that you would have to be totally satisfied or your money back. If you are interested let me know and I will work something out with you.

Regards

Tim

 

Check your PMs!

 

Just like to add one little item: I've seen a number of threads re: bushing replacement but have yet to notice anyone mentioning that the through bolts should not be tightened until the car is at ride height - meaning 'on the ground'. I realize it's a PITA to access the nuts/bolts when the car is on the ground but the bushings will be quickly destroyed otherwise. Torsilastic bushings - where the rubber is molded between two metal shells - will suffer shearing of the rubber when hyper-twisted beyond engineered limits, i.e. if the rubber is centered while the suspension is dropped then lowered to the ground it is pre-loaded to its engineered limit. Hit a few big bumps and throw the suspension to its upper limits and the bushing has been twisted beyond its engineered limit and the rubber shears from the metal shells - bushing destroyed.

The easiest way to accomplish this would be to slightly snug the fasteners, so nothing falls apart, and drive directly to the alignment shop after you've finished the installation. It's a lot easier to tighten the fasteners at ride height on an alignment rack. Just have the mechanic loosen, bounce the car to settle it and then tighten to spec. It's worth the few extra bucks.

Even though urethane bushings are not torsilastic they still have some tension applied to them as they are compressed by the nuts/bolts/washers that retain them. Personally, I would not recommend them for control arm service but I do understand that they are easier for DIYers to install. Urethane is better suited for stabilizer link & strut rod/radius arm bushings. Stabilizer bar mounts are a toss-up, neither rubber or urethane have an advantage over the other.

 

Good point, Beav. I didn't realize that until I read another thread that discussed it, and I didn't understand why it was bad to tighten the bolts until your explanation above. I'm going to be doing this soon (I keep saying that) and I was thinking that I would just drive the car up onto some ramps in order to access the bolts.

 

Tim, just out of curiosity, what was the actual front end issue if these parts were still in good working order?

 

I was getting a "clunk" noise when negotiating a dip or steep incline where there was a dip/break in the pavement. This had developed over time. My car had gone 50k with with what I thought were the original suspension bushings, so I decided to renew upper and lower control arms and the upper shock bushings as a general PM item. When the upper and lower suspension components were removed we found everything except the sway bar bushings (quite degraded) to be in very good condition. A vin check on the car revealed that at the time Jaguar made the car select edition they had replaced all suspension components at 30k and I did not know this. Unfortunately I had purchased the new suspension components over a six month period and could not return them. So, I had the mechanic install all the new parts. I am planning to sell the parts I removed to any FORUM member that may be interested. The removed parts are in good condition and will be a very good deal for someone.

Regards

Tim

 

Yikes, I did tighten my lower fulcrum bolts when it was up in the air, but I did drive it to the dealer the day I finished for an alignment. But I bet he only worked on the eccentric bolt for adjusting the camber. Just in case, I'm going to mark bolts (can't remember which are eccentric), loosen the nut, bounce the car, and then retighten to spec. Last thing I need is premature bushing failure.

Tim, my first 'clunking' at low speed was also those sway bar bushings, it seems they last only a few years at time. I'm on my second replacements (but I did have some help from that power steering leak degredation). I remember mentioning those as a source for the noise alot a couple years ago when we had many clunking threads, even in the xj section, but I can't recall if you were amongst them.

 

Ok, so it was just the sway bar bushings. I was hoping you found some magic, as I'm chasing something that I thought was the sway bar bushings, but I already changed them, but it didn't cure the issue. One mechanic is thinking it excessive lash in the rack, but I don't buy it. My guess is it is strut bushings, either upper or lower, but at this point, it's hard to say. I just don't want to throw parts at it, especially a $1,100 rack.

 

Well upper and/or lower strut bushings could also cause the problem. I forgot to mention that I also changed out the lower strut bushings and they where noticeably worn. It is fairly easy to press out the old and in with the new. Just a little play in the bottom or top strut bushings will also cause a clunk. If it were the steering rack you could isolate that rather easily if you had the car on a rack.

 

A set of ramps might do almost as good a job. Although nothing beats a walkaround alignment pit. Come to think of it though, the alignment has to be done anyways.

 

You might double check the shock absorber nut(s), I've seen them back off a small amount (< 1 turn) and cause a racket. Even though they're normally nylock nuts they can still loosen. On my car I gave them both a couple licks with a impact wrench then installed a second nut on top of each to keep them locked in position - noise eimlinated.

The stabilizer mount bushings are a source of noise for many vehicles - the thin ones wear and disintegrate, the thick ones wear and gain enough clearance to allow rattles, and some suffer degradation when subjected to contact with petrochemicals. To reduce the effects of wear I have been using Permatex silicone brake grease for years, it's the shnizit for a general purpose automotive grease. Being silicone based it won't react with rubber, it isn't so gooey that it attracts a lot of contamination and it won't wash away from casual water. I use it on almost anything/everything:

http://tinyurl.com/9gvby4
http://tinyurl.com/c577dm

 

Thanks Beav, really appreciate the sage advice.

 

Thanks Beav I will try tightening the upper shock nuts. I've got a slightly rough dirt drive to my shop and I hear a noticable thumping or clunking. On my lift everything looks great; upper and lower control arm bushes, sway bar bushes and links front and rear. The shock bushes "look" good too so I just can't tell. I hate to take things apart without knowing which to fix or get parts for. BTW, the Adaptive shocks aren't leaking either. So I'll try the upper shock nuts...but the noise seems to be coming from the rear!

 

on the rear...try getting the car on the lift, then put a tranny jack on the lower arm...taking most of the weight off the shock. Use your hand (gloved) and hit up ^ on the bottom of the shock with your fist...does it knock? If it does, its the lower bushing. Mine did this and it took FOREVER to find it, because it only did it at low speeds, and when the suspension was extended (jacked or on a lift) it could not be diagnosed.