Ball joints rubbing rotors.

Well it's undone and that's what the alignment people would have had to do they do that everyday so I guess this is common in your area that kind of rust they don't charge extra for that if they can't get it undone then they cut it off and order an enter in an outer or whatever they're going to replace I mean that stuff is not very expensive these days even for name brand Heck even some of the Toyota parts this stuff is new old stock now.

 

crazy that they install the control arms that way without struggling to fit it in.. kudos to the idiots on that shop your new control arms could have a stressed out bushing and clearly lost most of it's useful life..

 

I'd replace that ball joint - wouldn't trust my life on it, after that fiasco.
Drill with a steel wire wheel and plenty of penetrating fluid usually works to break the rust. Heating is usually a last resort for me, just knocking all the rust off the threads usually will do it.

 

I like Eric O's rust-loosening tactic: he puts his heavy-duty pneumatic air hammer (fondly referred to as "Big Nasty”) on the hub face, gives it a few braaaps. Rust is practically jumping off. He's a YouTuber in upstate New York.

 

Yes if you got something to smack on you're in good shape like knocking a rotor off a hub face but when you're on tie rod ends and things like that it's kind of hard to do I guess you could take a piece of steel and put it beside the nut on the shredded shaft you're working on and smack it with a hammer with your other hand spray some croil on it about 20 minutes before you really need to work it usually that'll get you through but some stuff some of this new stuff is made so cheap the metal layers just flake away like I don't know man crescent rolls or something It's unbelievable

 

No I think you were supposed to swap the ball joints not the control arms The ball joints needed to be flipped over or something I'm not even sure man I have to go back and look at your pictures

 

Yeah and they're not in this thread so I'm not going to hunt them down I didn't think you had to flop the control arms around but I can't see the pictures now when you get this right it won't be doing that You know the ball joint mounts at three places as a stud that goes at the top of the triangle and then two bolts or it's too studs and one bolt whichever it is they all have to go in properly and those things have to line up with those holes yours was pushed forward and bolted in two places or something like that oh boy

 

Yes they are I'd have to look at your pictures again to see what all the hullabaloo was about there's apparently two posts we're dealing with so that's why I can't see them quickly anyway that's right The control arms go on the right and left of the car The ball joints should flip over and go on either side of the car so now you've got the control arms I don't know they had them turned around did they tear up the mounts I guess not so then you must have control arms that are too long so you're only showing me the ball joint slamming into the back of the brake backing plate I can't see the lower control arms and/or the ball joints which pretty much only are going to go in one way facing up so they can accept the hub and the two studs of the two holes in the studs automatically line up with the control arm but their length you have no control over if the ball joint is incorrect as in the ball joint center from the stud in the center is a different length than that's also going to give you more negative camber so the bottom of the tire will be facing farther out towards the road and in at the top kind of look like the funny Honda's at all the kids are driving wearing out tires every week but probably not as bad and without part numbers and what was ordered and so on and so forth I can't even advise I can give you measurements from the center of the ball joint stud to the top whole of the triangle of the mounting plate for a fixed reference I don't think you can get longer lower control arms but I'm not positive of that they're not for the generation too but I mean you might could be able to get control arms from a Corolla to incorrectly mount on the Prius but I think they mount to the frame differently because they're chassis are different. So there's something else going on here right now

 

Generally those measurements will be real close on each side One shouldn't look way out than another You want it's like figure out why that is have your alignment guy take a look at it and see what he says maybe it's adjusted wrong from the get-go I don't know. So I'm out here looking at this 2005 that when I put the car down it was steering and driving perfectly when it was driving No alignment issues both of the tie rods are about have about 7 to 9 threads showing on each side so the difference from side to side is maybe two threads possibly three It's hard to see. And same over here on my lifted 2008 that hasn't had an alignment yet but the measurements look to be about the same.

 

Info attached:

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