40 replies to this topic

[booton]

ok i have a 1982 mini mayfair

the bottom ball joint has just snapped out side a friends house, when my misses turned full lock.
snaped the ball joint in to. which is very strange, their must have been a floor in the steel.

just want to know any times on how to change this as quick as possible as the car not really in a good place.

will get the part asap in the morning.

been looking through the haynes manual and it says you need to remove the hub to change the hub. is this correct or can i do it with the hub on the car,

any tips that will speed things up will be great.

can;t believe this just happend.

[booton]

p.s what size spanner is needed the biggest i have is a 1" spanner

[Jordie]

You can change a balljoint without removing the hub.

You will need a balljoint kit.
A 1.5" deep socket or spanner
some basic tools - socket set etc
Grease gun + grease.

[booton]

1" and a half tha could be a problem.

will see if i can find one tomz.

[bmcecosse]

The joint comes under extreme stress if the suspension is set very low and if there are NO bump stops on the suspension - this loading could I suppose show up later - as you have found. Lucky it didn't happen at speed. It is easiest to work on the hub on a bench - but it 'can' be done on the car. You will need a ball-joint splitter, and a large spanner or socket to loosen the ball-nut that secures the joint. If the car has no bump stop or rebound stop - you should fit these urgently - and raise the suspension if it's too low.

[booton]

it has bump stop and is sitting on standard height gaz shocks.

i think it because they have just put a lot of speed bumps on the road going to my house.

splitter won;t work now due to it broen in to will have to heat up and be knocked out.

[samsfern]

you will need to remove the swivel hub and put it in a vice to do it properly, youll need an 1 1/2" deep socket or ring spanner for the balljoint dome nut thing, and a 34mm (i think) for the driveshaft/hubnut, and a ballot seperator for the remaining balljoint, should take about 2-3 hours to do, make sure you shim it correctly and grease them.

i had a bottom balljoint go big style somtime last week, was doing 60ish at the time, wasnt as lucky as you, nor was my mini, i rolled it twice as a result of losing control and hitting a bank!! luckily i walked away with just a few bruises, sadly my mini is a write off, although being re-shelled at the mo...

[bmcecosse]

Yes - the broken part - but you will need to undo the other joint and the track rod end to get the hub off - and undo the large nut on the CV joint - and unbolt the caliper of course.

[booton]

so you would recommend taking the hub of then.

also forgot to mention the drive shaft has poped out of the pot.

nothing wrong with poping it bac in with some grease is there with a new clip

[Jordie]

Driveshaft yeah. Check the balls are there, no dirt etc in there. Grease, push back in and reclip.

You can do it either on the car or take the hub off.

Personally I find doing them on the car no bother, but it seems others perfer the bench.

[bmcecosse]

As long as you wipe it all clean and regrease - and make sure ALL the balls are present!

[booton]

well hopefully the motor factors will have them in stock or get them asap.

don;t like leaving the car were it is not a good place,

Edited by booton, 12 November 2009 - 09:21 PM.

[booton]

is there anything i can do to prevent this from happening in the future.

[Jordie]

Preventative maintenance..... Grease often and reshim when required.

Jordie

[booton]

i'm new to classic car you say when you need to reshim.

can you explain please