Board/ Dealership Terminology

Seed

Seed

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I just got back from a routine oil change on 01 LS V6 w/ 87,073 miles on it

Dealership said i need
Rear Swaybar end links
Front knuckles and
Rear Toe Adjustes

I search thru the thread and i see alot ppl saying Swaybar Bushings or whatever but I don't know if that's the same as what i need. I honestly need some assistance on how to find these parts.. i appreciate you answers in advance. thank you...
 
Rear sway bar end links are very cheap and most likely can be bought at any parts store. Maybe 15-20 dollars per side. Unless they are snapped in half no need to replace. These are at both ends of the swaybar that attach it to the body of the car.

Front knuckles they most likely mean "lower ball joints". Ford does not sell the lowerball joints seperate from the knuckle. So you have to buy knuckle ,which only wear part on the knuckle is lower ball joint. You can buy just lower ball joints on Ebay like I did for 120 a pair. You need to know if you have 14mm or 16mm joints first if they mean those.

Rear toe adjusters are the link rods that keep the rear tires str8. You will see a round bar going from center of car to the wheel hub area rear side. These are like inside the back wheel lip area.What happens is the rubber boots crack and they will say "replace" I just siliconed my boots up good and be done if there is no play in them. These are like 110 dollars a side from MAX on here and thats way cheaper then FORD.
 
I don't know what mm i have. Man this is a pain, everyone is saying something different. Autozone said the Toe adjusters meant i needed an alignment. I was happy at that point b/c that's no problem but now it's an actual part...

So pricing for the swaybar end links were $30.99 each at AutoZone. Knuckles are $963 at Dealership (I will not be getting it from them). Also nobody has new knuckles.
 
I just did rear toe adjusters on a friends car didn't take long maybe an hour to an hour and a half tops. 2 bolts hold it on. If you have a hoist you don't even have to take the wheels off. The sway bar end links might take you 20minutes longer. They are easy I would atleast do those yourself All you need is some metric wrenches. (and if you can borrow or have one, a torque wrench). I replaced 2 new lower ball joints and 2 wheel bearing I think I had 500 in parts. It took me all day. But if you don't have the right tool for the job don't do this one.
I used a stove to heat the entire knuckle evenly, fridge freezer to make the new bearing and ball joint smaller, impact c-clamp type press and some scotch bright. Worked great!
Good Luck
 
Also, which MAX person are you referring to. I did a search but numerous came up
 
The rear toe thing, I would think, means you need it aligned. Depends on if it said "adjusted" or "adjusters". The word "adjustes" could mean anything.
 
ALSO you will need an alignment after the toe adjusters but do ALL the work first because you will be taking everything off the front to get the knuckle off. It would be best to get one done after that.
 
LS_Monk said:
I just did rear toe adjusters on a friends car didn't take long maybe an hour to an hour and a half tops. 2 bolts hold it on. If you have a hoist you don't even have to take the wheels off. The sway bar end links might take you 20minutes longer. They are easy I would atleast do those yourself All you need is some metric wrenches. (and if you can borrow or have one, a torque wrench). I replaced 2 new lower ball joints and 2 wheel bearing I think I had 500 in parts. It took me all day. But if you don't have the right tool for the job don't do this one.
I used a stove to heat the entire knuckle evenly, fridge freezer to make the new bearing and ball joint smaller, impact c-clamp type press and some scotch bright. Worked great!
Good Luck
Click to expand...


I probably try the first two to save money but knuckles I'll just have to swallow cost
 
NYC LS8 said:
The rear toe thing, I would think, means you need it aligned. Depends on if it said "adjusted" or "adjusters". The word "adjustes" could mean anything.
Click to expand...


I called and he said i need the adjusters. He also said they're called rear tie rods.

All i hear most of the time was $$ sound while reading off every part i needed...
 
Seed said:
Also, which MAX person are you referring to. I did a search but numerous came up
Click to expand...

add five star ford to your search
Max is the parts guy at fivestar ford

he helps out this community with great pricing.
 
but a 900 dollar knuckle, I wouldn't expect a MIRACLE from max.
but definatley give him a shout

keep in mind that on high dollar items like this, you can often get a very VERY good price from Max because you dont have to pay sales tax.
 
Okay, i'll check out MAXX... How can i find out whether i have 14MM or 16mm?
 
Didn't you read my post. You DO NOT need knuckles. You only need lower balljoints which are 120 a pair. What year is your car? Plus if you ask dealer to check for you they run VIN and tell you what size you have. 2002 up I think they went 16mm.
 
Right on the Mark said:
Didn't you read my post. You DO NOT need knuckles. You only need lower balljoints which are 120 a pair. What year is your car? Plus if you ask dealer to check for you they run VIN and tell you what size you have. 2002 up I think they went 16mm.
Click to expand...

2001
 
You have 14 mm then. Also who you gonna trust AutoZone or the LS pros here. LOL Every LS I look at I check the rear tie rod arms to see if rubber boots are cracked and they are. I never seen good set in boneyard either if I did I would grab them.
 
Seed said:
MAXX is the best!!!!! cost like $634.98
Click to expand...

sounds much more like it! About 300 a piece. depending on mileage you may want to replace the hubs at the same time. They tend to go on these cars about the same time. Our hubs are fine, but the wheel bearings are what goes and you have to buy em all in one.
 
hub assembly discontinued according to Maxx... I'm going to take "Right on the Mark" advice and just buy the lower ball joint. Also, will Maxx have the cheaper price on Rear Tie Rods
 
tie rods were released to the aftermarket so you can get them for cheaper than ford... same with the hubs. I've heard the separate ball joints go both ways. Be ready to press them into the control arm.
 
check this out

never heard of knuckles going bad...........the 01's had bad lower ball joints and there is a recall on them. check out the recall first. :D
 
Unless they are snapped in half no need to replace.
Click to expand...

The ball joins in the end links wear out and make a clunking sound. Just like a ball joint on a control arm will. They will wear just like any other moving part on the car.
 
Yep just checked that the LS uses the more pricey ball and socket type rear sway bar end links.
 
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