Moonface joints still holding strong - been on over a year now.

 

Need to do this asap...

Thinking about buying the ENERGY SUSPENSION boot and filling it with grease and stuffing it back in...

Any objections?

 

Are these the ebay balljoints everyone is talking about? most of the links are expired

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-INFINITI-G35-NISSAN-350Z-FRONT-LOWER-BALL-JOINT-JOINTS-KIT-PAIR-2003-2009-/271289920864?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Model%3A350Z&hash=item3f2a23ad60&vxp=mtr

Are these the autozone ones?

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/par...3648_376835_0_

 

I ordered a CZP ball joints set with seats from another vendor in this forum months ago and they are still not here yet.

I hate waiting.

 

Seems like there is an option on rockauto.com

MEVOTECH Part # MS30500
Front Lower

Any experience?

 

Yes, I have experience...on a Dodge ram...

Looked good new:


Not so good:


Luckily I was just backing into a spot and didnt die, so I emailed them and they sent replacements of all items that were damaged, but to do this I had to hunt out their exec group emails online...If you call them directly a blonde sounding girl will stubbornly tell you repeatedly "you need to contact your vendor." Anyway eventually they did send replacements (which I didnt use), and the other balljoint on the pass side was fine, except on that one the boot wouldnt seal and so I had to grease frequently to keep from squeaking. And also the zerk doesnt always accept grease (not a clogged zerk).

Their replacement parts (lower control arm with balljoint, inner tie rod, UCA w/bj) left a lot to be desired. Casting imperfections on the UCA, crazy hacked metal on the LCA, and the tie rod that when compared to the Raybestos equivalent didnt pass muster. Not to mention that these manufacturers use a boot design that doesnt articulate at angles properly, which leads to the boot pulling off the BJ allowing for intrusion of the elements (a good way to kill a BJ very quickly).

This experience prompted a lot of research on chassis parts. Mevotech is cheap china, quality control is questionable, all this from a brand that is supposed to be "middle of the road" in terms of price/quality. What you will find is that even the good brands never commit to an origin of manufacture because their party line is "globally sourced products and manufacturing centers." I did find that the MOOG UCA I purchased clearly did have Made in the USA on the box, so thats no to say that you cant find US made parts, its just you have to look at the physical box before you buy. In the end parts like this are made or broken on design, metallurgy and quality control, although Raybestos does have some innovative information on their chassis parts design:



Unfortunately the two best balljoint manufacturers (IMO, based on my research), MOOG and Raybestos, do not offer balljoints for the Z that I can find.

What most people say for chassis work is "do it right, do it once." I learned the hard way. It is a shame that so many are using eBay options for their BJs on the Z...I hope they hold up. That said I would say Mevotech is a better option than eBay.

Also a reason why the price of the Moonface units is a number that just blows my mind. Yes, theyre supposed to improve your roll center, however there is no literature that I can find on the most important part, the actual balljoint design and function.

 

Great thread...i've been meaning to change out my ball joints since they've torn but still on the fence with the Megan ones. Has anyone definitively figured out if the ebay Ball joints are the same? $200 is quite pricey for Megan but it does the same as the Moonface which is outrageously priced. I am prepping my car to track quite often so before I corner balance and align my car I want to make sure I make the right decision. Thanks guys for your input!

 

Duralast balljoints on the left. Cheap EBAY chinese crap on the right. The EBAY boots tore in 6 months. The duralast rubber looks and feels a lot different and seems like theyre better quality. Plus I like the fact that theyre made in japan.

 

It looks like you can buy the entire control arm with bushings from Dorman and Raybestos (on amazon.com) for less than the cost of new bushings as priced in this thread. Should make install much easier. Just a heads up...

 

this is pressed onto the knuckle not a control arm, the whole knuckle new would be a lot more than these replacements.

 

Does anyone know the size of the cotter pin is? I plan to just try out the energy suspension dust boots as mentioned earlier in the thread. If anyone has had any luck with these please chime in. Thanks!

http://www.energysuspensionparts.com...?prod=9.13130#

 

FYI...

I got off the phone with Megan Racing a few minutes ago to ask if they sell replacement boots for their Roll Center Adjusters (Ball Joints) They specifically said they don't. If anyone is looking to explore this option. DON'T save your $200 as this is a wearable part and if it rips again...that's another $200 if you want another.

Just thought I would give people who read the entire thread and those still subscribed a heads up.

 

How did those dura last hold up for you? I had originally gone this route and realized afterward that the duralast ball joint is simply a straight rod whereas the oem balljoint had a sort of umbrella seat. That was a point of concern for me so I held off on installing the duralast.

 

Had anyone tried these?

http://www.czp.us/cart/description.p...5466.249.73.78

 

Bump for long-term use reviews and thoughts on CZP ball joints. My driver's side is leaking and I'm looking for a long-term solution.

 

^For a long term solution...IMO with balljoints especially and chassis parts in general if no high quality option is available then OEM is the choice.

It would appear Nissan doesnt sell separately, so either buy a new OEM knuckle, or find a shop that will get you to a reasonable price on installing a new ball joint. It is reasonably simple with the correct tools also if that is an option. Personally I would use this one until other options become available: BECK/ARNLEY Part # 1017664

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,ca...parttype,10070

If you are doing the labor yourself, at roughly $600 shipped for both new OEM knuckles it will more than pay for itself considering you are getting a new OEM ball joint, and the job requires less tools since you dont need to remove/install the bj.


EDIT - But I do like the CZP boot design...it is OEM style which is superior

 

I did not have them but am local to them & every transaction I had was flawless including Akebono caliper mounts. Coz is a good guy.

 

Has anyone found a good solution for this??? Just to clarify you guys are talking about the ball joint that goes from the transverse link (lower front control arm) to the control arm frame thats attached to the hub right?? Both of the seals are ripped on mine, im changing the bushings on the control arm anyways and really want to grab these to do them at the same time! im just curious the end of the ball joint that is pressed into the arm seems larger on mine than the images i've been seeing. 03 G35 sedan.

 

A torn boot is just a torn boot. If the joint itself isnt loose or making noise its fine.

I would sooner try to get a new boot on the existing balljoint and repack than install an ebay bj, which I think has been discussed previously.

If you think it sucks to have to deal with this at 80-100k mi...a cheap replacement BJ service life is *significantly* shorter, making it a guarantee you will have to revisit the job sooner rather than later

 

Mine is currently torn only, no noise or play. I'm trying to prolong it as long as I can to put a new boot on it rather than getting a new ball joint.
This post: https://my350z.com/forum/9159208-post130.html has the ball joint measurements and the best fitting energy suspension boots would be part # 13009, which measures: top: 18.55 mm, base: 41.25 mm, height: 27.75 mm.
Has anyone installed this boot on their OEM ball joint? And does the extra .3mm top opening seal at all?