T4 ball joints...

[Seano]

Ha! I paid about $35 each so I'm cool with that...yeah the Meyle stuff seems quite decent in terms of quality.

[t4tradie]

I have replaced both upper & lower ball joints with genuine TRW in the last 12 months.

There in no need to remove or loosen the driveshaft, wedging the upper arm with a modified bolster or a long series socket will work.

A lot of the U.K. guys remove them without the tool using a little brute force. A VW tech I know used a length of water pipe & lowered the van on the hoist slightly to 'pop' the joint. This was the preferred method at his dealership.

I have since replace one of my new ball joints due to a squeak developing. Upon removal is was clear it was that there was substantial wear with no signs of external damage. This was surprising given you think you are doing the right thing given my original factory fitted ball joints were TRW & had travelled in excess of 320k & were in surprisingly good condition. All others check out ok, maybe I got a factory dud.

It may pay to check whether the lower joints have the factory multi spline bolts prior.

Lower rear arm bushes also wear & are pretty easy to check by turning lock to lock with the wheels on the ground. You will see the arm move forward & backwards on the rear bush if they are worn. These are a voided bush & collapse with time. The front bushes a a full bush & pretty robust. Some replacement lower rear bushes are full bushes & are a lot better than the OE bush.

Ball joints & bushes tighten the front end up considerablely, reduce squeaks & groans & give a much better drive.


By all accounts OE or Meyle HD are the parts of choice.