What Are The Symptoms Of A Bad Ball Joint

[blueapple]

I checked everything and now I nailed it down to two things:

Ball joints, or control arm bushing.

What I've been experiencing is. When taking off from a stop, (fast, or quickly) it clunks, somewhere from the front. feels like it's from under the foot.

when shift fast, fast engage before the RPM matches, usually when it's higher than the wheel speed, again, same clunk ( even when it's 500 RPM difference ). When traveling at low speed, slam on the brake, it clunks, same clunk. when going over a pump fast, left side clunks, only the left side.

So, what kind of symptoms does a bad ball joint has? How can I check it? It seems to be under spring load, dont know how I can shake it to see if it's loose.

Thanks!

[dwardu]

try applying some oil to the ball junction and see if it behaves the same. do this by using an oil gun since ball joints usually have a below. If the clunk reduces than most probably it's the ball joint

[cozmo]

So, what kind of symptoms does a bad ball joint has? How can I check it? It seems to be under spring load, dont know how I can shake it to see if it's loose.

Thanks!

Yeah, I had the same sounds in my Toyota - and it was bad ball joint. I tought that something is bad with my CV joint, or wheel, or transmission... but it was ball joint. It was in very bad condition. I've replaced it and now my car is totaly quiet (it feels like I have a new suspension in front). You can check it by yourself. Grab the tire and shake it left-right, up and down and you will hear some clicking or clunking noises. Also when you lift the wheel and grab the tire - shake it up and down and you will see that it has some play in it.

Best regards,

Ivan