Has anyone replaced a ball joint? If so, can you share the step by step procedure? Much appreciated! Brian
I have not on this car but have done other cars. On a Prius the lower ball joint is mounted on a plate already installed thats then bolted to the lower arm. Easy. Its like $35 each. Not sure about the uppers but I think they can be had already installed on the A arm. Its a bolt in then too. I recommend doing both the upoper and lower the same time as you then will need an alignment only once. Peruse ROCK AUTO.com
Hi Brian Here's the factory repair manual section detailing how to replace the ball joints. Looks like you might have to remove the axle hub to get to it so I'm including that section too. I also tossed in the suspension components section so that you can see all that's under there. Looks like a fairly straight forward procedure. Parts through Rock Auto, Champion ToyotaWorld or Camelback Toyota Parts. Do a write up with picts. Good luck. Mike
Hi Mike, thanks for the excellent material. This is my first post and I could use the help of any experience Prius mechanics. I recently replaced the lower control arm assemblies, ball joints, stabilizer links and sway bar bushings after my dealer told me that the struts and brakes weren't the issue and that the control arm bushing and ball joints had to be replaced prior to determining if the struts were also making noise. The groaning noise went away, but I still hear creaking from the suspension when going around corners and over bumps. Also when making tight donuts I can hear a grinding from the left wheel. I'm trying to get things sorted out before a road trip this weekend. Headed back to the dealer for their free diagnosis again tomorrow. The 06 base model has 120K and started making the groaning noise after I ran over a 2 inch diameter branch on a windy road in a hail storm. Up to that point I heard no unusual noises. Since I had to remove the hubs to replace the ball joints I wonder if one of the bearings may not be seated properly when I torqued the axle nuts. Also how to tell if the noise is coming from the strut assemblies. Any thoughts ?
