lower ball joint

[dynaguy]

I am in the process of dissasssembling and inspecting the front end on my '69 2000. Every thing seems tight except the lower ball joint. It is tight side-to- side. But has about 1mm play up and down. Is this normal or acceptable wear? Car drove well prior to this work. Any thoughts appreciated. Pat Mahoney

[S Allen]

Pat,

Ideally you want zero play but 1mm of play is pretty minimal. At the cost of ball joints I would put it back together and run with it. You can always replace it later if you develop a noticeable problem. Once you have torn one of these cars apart you realize how easy they are to work on. Granted pulling an engine to do a clutch seems a bit involved but even that is not that big of a deal. My 2 cents anyway. It sounds like you are getting close to having her all back together.

Steve

[toolsnob]

Pat,

I would put new boots on it and grease it and start driving. The lower ball joint and upper spindle take most of the abuse on theses cars so a little up and down would make sense.

Alexi

[Guest]

Thanks for the info. My next question was going to be about the wear on the upper spindle. New boots and grease are planned, along with new shocks, GR2's. I plan on changing to a 3.90 rear end and go through the brake system before spring. Dont really want to get done with winter projects too quickly as lots of snow and cold temps still expected here in Idaho. Pat

[S Allen]

Pat,

I forgot it was winter in the rest of the country. It has not been too sunny here in California but a little rain never hurt anyone. We did a little mini run last Saturday and except for a bit of fog it was a blast.

Steve