Mondeo mk3 bottom ball joint.

[aryan57]

As some of you know, Ford, in their wisdom, decided to rivet the bottom ball joint to the lower arm, instead of using nuts and bolts. The lower arm has a horizontal fixing at the back end so it can be hard to bend the lower arm down far enough to get the ball joint out of the hole in the steering knuckle. Bend it too far, and it can knacker the lower arm bush.This is the problem I am currently wrestling with. A local garage tells me that their method is to grind through the ball joint. This allows the strut to be moved enough to give clearance to grind off the rivet heads and punch the remains out. The new ball joint is then attached with nuts and bolts.

My questions to you gentlemen is: Have you ever done this job and is there another way of doing it. Thanks.

 

[Burnerman]

How about releasing the strut from the hub, after releasing the pinch bolt - as if you were about to replace a spring......would this allow the ball joint to be pulled out of the hub?
John

 

[Mottie]

Easy. Done loads of 'em. Remove almost completely the front and rear subframe mounting bolts on the side you are removing. Gives you bags more room for the arm to come down and the ball joint out of the stub axle. I don't normally mess about with joints though - I change the whole arm.

 

[aryan57]

Motman. Thanks for the response. I currently have my jack under the front sub-frame. Where should I position my jack so I I can lower the sub-frame a little? I am still very new to a Mondeo, only had it a week. Thanks.

 

[Burnerman]

Great stuff, Mot Keep the tips coming!
John

 

[Mottie]

Motman. Thanks for the response. I currently have my jack under the front sub-frame. Where should I position my jack so I I can lower the sub-frame a little? I am still very new to a Mondeo, only had it a week. Thanks.

Under the chassis rail or the sill although personally I'd have an axle stand there instead of a jack.

 

[aryan57]

Motman, I have now done this job, using the garage suggested process of grinding though the old ball joint. This method has the advantage of avoiding dropped the sub frame and the possibility that a blind nut in a closed box section may break lose, especially on an older car. Also avoids over straining the lower arm and destroying the oil filled bush.The rivets were very hard to drill out, the manufacturing process maybe hardens them. I never want to see another Mondeo MK3 ball joint!

 

[Mottie]

Lol. Yes, there is the possibility of that. I only had it happen once and I had to cut the chassis section open, weld the captive nut and then weld up the section I had removed. That was on a MK1 Mondeo though. You would have been okay on a MK3.