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Tough ball joint tactics?
Richard123vmt
Member Posts: 6
I have the passenger side ball joint, the clamp bolt out and the shaft is out almost to the point where the groove is, about 1/2 to 3/4 the way out, but there it sits. It will not come out and will not go back up, even with the weight of the car on it. Pounding, prying with bar, did no good. I have taken apart the very same joint a number of times in the past without trouble.
My ideas for tomorrow are: Try to get a vice grip on the exposed shaft and rotate the shaft or try to. The other idea I got online was to use oa pipe clamp, a come along or some means to force the knuckle inward. It is the angle which is wrong.
Anyway, I have used liquid wrench. I can't use heat because the axle boot is right above it. And i don't think heat would do it. I have a screw type ball joint remover but it doesn't fit this design.
Looking for ideas.
My ideas for tomorrow are: Try to get a vice grip on the exposed shaft and rotate the shaft or try to. The other idea I got online was to use oa pipe clamp, a come along or some means to force the knuckle inward. It is the angle which is wrong.
Anyway, I have used liquid wrench. I can't use heat because the axle boot is right above it. And i don't think heat would do it. I have a screw type ball joint remover but it doesn't fit this design.
Looking for ideas.
0
Comments
So, the jack adapter doesn't come down very close to the ground, but room enough to get the TC out. Now the moment of truth. I had just yesterday learned that the sprag clutch within the TC should move in one direction only. Behold, it moves in both directions, hence no torque multiplication. I have gone to the Heart of Darkness and I have found the worm.
What greatly hampered me was the fact that I observed some loose wires from the then perfectly running car ( I had just come from buying new front tires, all smogged and spiffy). But it ran normally. These were the shift solenoid wires.
Then on the way home I felt a sudden change in the driveline but continued to drive home without any indications. But in the morning, zero drive. I was confident of course it was the wires, so I fixed them, expecting to get in and drive . But not so. I went through the solenoids, checked the wiring, replaced the fluid several times over) replaced the TCM. In the end (short run) I POed the car and bought a Saturn. The Saturn is reliable transportation But I \don't feel like I could fix it. The Metro broke constantly but I was able to cope with it by fixing it. It was a bad coping mechanism. Only a year later, did I get the renewed Cahones to forge ahead. As you all here best know, it is not the same repairing your daily transportation and doing a little restoration work.
I have a known good (last driven) TC. Sprag rotates one direction only. But how much work this job is, with crappy jack setup, even doing it the second time was so much work that I am questioning the use of a used converter. The first time I replaced the tranny, (broken starter mounting case of tranny) a reputable transmission mechanic advised me to replace the TC or it might go in a month. It did go in exactly a month. So now I am contemplating using the other TC on the basis the sprag clutch works.
What I want to know is, should I stop the job and order a new TC? Is a torque converter as reliable as most used parts or is it a pitfall? I probably should buy new, even though the car has been a money pit. I wonder what your experience is with used TCs.? I can tell you for sure it is not worth redoing the job for the cost of a new one. On the other hand, I have the used one. But if it is insanity to use it, I won't. That's where I need more opinions. I don't think I've got the consumer reports on torque converter replacement.