Hey y'all, I've got a 2002 4 door blazer 2wd with 2" suspension and 2" body lift with 31" tires. I'm looking to replace all 4 upper and lower ball joints very soon. Instead of only replacing the ball joints alone I want to replace both upper and lower control arms with the ball joints already included. Looking for a website to get all the parts from, I prefer a name brand if possible. Are OEM parts my only option? The ride is pretty stiff with the rough country lift springs in there. Either way the goal is a solid and new front end with out worry of snapping ball joints. Truck is very well taken care of and has 126k and has been lifted for one year. Any tips or suggestions will be appreciated, thanks.

 

As I'm sure you're aware, lift kits put substantially more stress on certain steering & suspension parts, (ball joints are one of them). That's why they fail prematurely. The control arm assemblies commonly found on Amazon & Ebay, the ones that come with the bushings and ball joint already installed, are pretty much junk. The bushings are cheap quality and a lot of them don't even have a grease fitting on the ball joint. They would probably last a while if you only drove it on and off a trailer at car shows, but don't bet on it If you choose to go that route, do yourself a favor & at least replace the ball joints with Moog "Problem Solver" before you install the arms. FYI: The Moog control arm assemblies don't have the good quality "Problem Solver" line of ball joints in them.

 

Hey man thanks for the response. Yes I am aware of the added strain the lift adds. That being the reason why I want to replace the old with new. I'm certainly not planning on buying these important parts from eBay or Amazon haha. Problem is all I can find is junk, I'm interested in the problem solver but I don't want to remove ball joints manually that's why I want to get control arms with ball joints already in. Know any good part websites?

 

Waaay easier, (and safer) to replace the ball joints, than to replace the control arms. The springs must be compressed before removing the arms. Get the Moog joints, most auto parts stores rent a tool kit for pressing the joints out and in. Not a bad job at all.

 

Thanks for the advise man!!

 

So about how long to do all ball joints from start to finish?

 

2002, 2WD, both uppers and both lowers, 4.2 hours, plus a wheel alignment.

 

and about how long for 4wd? Something that can be tackled in my driveway other than the alignment? Special tools?