2001 Sequoia lower Ball Joint

[Ryker]

Hello. I have the above rig and one of the few items I don’t have a history on is the lower ball joints. I’m aware that there were some catostrophic failures in the past and I don’t believe I have any symptoms of a failing joint. I don’t even know if they are OEM or aftermarket. The vehicle has 276,000 miles. What can I do to make sure I’m not going to fall victim to this issue? I do not have a major lift and I do not do any serious rock crawling, just BLM type roads to kayak and explore.
any assistance is appreciated.

 

[Jim SoG]

I have an 05 Tree, lifted and tires and that put more stress on the LBJ's for sure, Call a Toyota dealer service department and give your vin, they can see if they have been changed out (By a dealer) and when, In my case 70k miles ago, time for a new set and OEM is what the owners of Sequoias say to use, so I ordered mine ($220 delivered)......

Same as timing belt, replace before failure and if in doubt, do it.......

Jim

 

[Ryker]

I have an 05 Tree, lifted and tires and that put more stress on the LBJ's for sure, Call a Toyota dealer service department and give your vin, they can see if they have been changed out (By a dealer) and when, In my case 70k miles ago, time for a new set and OEM is what the owners of Sequoias say to use, so I ordered mine ($220 delivered)......

Same as timing belt, replace before failure and if in doubt, do it.......

Jim

Hey thanks for the reply. I’ve read a few of your build threads and really like your 05.

Timing belt is done.
How hard is the lower ball joint job? I can DIY decently.

Thanks.

 

[Dilldog]

The first indications of ball joints issues will be very subtle tire wear irregularities, a slight wander and cluncking when turning and going over bumps. To check in the shop jack up the front end and grab a long pry bar. Place the bar under the wheel and pry up then let things relax. If you feel any movement at all have someone move the pry bar and look at all of your suspension components closely.

But like Jim said above, if in doubt just replace it.

As far as difficulty, generally speaking you will need a way to unload or capture the springs so they don't cause injury once you separate the lower control arm from the steering knuckle. I'm not familiar with that era of Toyota suspension so you will need to research what that looks like. Other than that, you will need a picklefork or ball joint seperator, big hammer and sockets/ wrenches to fit the fasteners. I would recomend watching a few youtube videos to get a better idea.

 

[smritte]

I totally agree with what has been said. Vehicles are built for the stresses you would see on the street. We drive them on dirt roads, add in heavier tires and stress the crap out of things. Some manufactures build parts heavier than needed and some it seems lighter than they should. With that in mind I've seen ball joints fail (with off road driving) at around 150k and know of vehicles with the originals at 300k. If your not sure, replace it. If possible, learn how to check them yourself.

"Most" of the time when ball joints fail, you had plenty of warning. You would be surprised how many mechanics either don't know how or choose not to check ball joints.

 

[Ryker]

The first indications of ball joints issues will be very subtle tire wear irregularities, a slight wander and cluncking when turning and going over bumps. To check in the shop jack up the front end and grab a long pry bar. Place the bar under the wheel and pry up then let things relax. If you feel any movement at all have someone move the pry bar and look at all of your suspension components closely.

But like Jim said above, if in doubt just replace it.

As far as difficulty, generally speaking you will need a way to unload or capture the springs so they don't cause injury once you separate the lower control arm from the steering knuckle. I'm not familiar with that era of Toyota suspension so you will need to research what that looks like. Other than that, you will need a picklefork or ball joint seperator, big hammer and sockets/ wrenches to fit the fasteners. I would recomend watching a few youtube videos to get a better idea.

Thank,you for your reply, that’s some good feedback.

 

[Ryker]

I totally agree with what has been said. Vehicles are built for the stresses you would see on the street. We drive them on dirt roads, add in heavier tires and stress the crap out of things. Some manufactures build parts heavier than needed and some it seems lighter than they should. With that in mind I've seen ball joints fail (with off road driving) at around 150k and know of vehicles with the originals at 300k. If your not sure, replace it. If possible, learn how to check them yourself.

"Most" of the time when ball joints fail, you had plenty of warning. You would be surprised how many mechanics either don't know how or choose not to check ball joints.

I was never sure how big of an issue that was for people not doing extreme things with their vehicle. When in doubt, change it out. Thanks for the reply.

 

[smritte]

Just to put it into perspective, "IF" you brake one on the trail, odds are your being trailered from that spot.

I helped with moderately large off road events for a couple of decades. 200-500 vehicles in a "non" racing format. Mostly trail rides that go from easy to extreme. In all that time, I have seen several ball joint failures on the easy rides (I'm not counting extreme). Each one of them required a trailer be brought out with two of them requiring us to drag the vehicle backwards (broken lower suspension digging into the dirt/rocks). One only had to be dragged about 10 yards with the other about 50 yards. The longer one we had to strap the front of the vehicle to a car hood and use it as a sled. This was due to the amount of rocks the suspension kept getting stuck on.

None of us want to make people paranoid but a broken ball joint can turn into a real bad day because the vehicle wont roll any more.

 

[CR-Venturer]

Just to put it into perspective, "IF" you brake one on the trail, odds are your being trailered from that spot.

I helped with moderately large off road events for a couple of decades. 200-500 vehicles in a "non" racing format. Mostly trail rides that go from easy to extreme. In all that time, I have seen several ball joint failures on the easy rides (I'm not counting extreme). Each one of them required a trailer be brought out with two of them requiring us to drag the vehicle backwards (broken lower suspension digging into the dirt/rocks). One only had to be dragged about 10 yards with the other about 50 yards. The longer one we had to strap the front of the vehicle to a car hood and use it as a sled. This was due to the amount of rocks the suspension kept getting stuck on.

None of us want to make people paranoid but a broken ball joint can turn into a real bad day because the vehicle wont roll any more.

Ratchet strap them control arms together and give er! :D

In all seriousness though, yeah, broken ball joints are very bad scoobies.

 

[smritte]

Ratchet strap them control arms together and give er! :D

Interesting idea but how do you keep the knuckle attached to the arm? When the joint breaks, the arm goes down, the knuckle goes out and if your in 4wd the knuckle twists and brakes the drive axle. In one case also ripped the brake line in half.

 

[smritte]

Here's the one we strapped to a hood to drag it.

 

[Ryker]

Here's the one we strapped to a hood to drag it.
That looks like a bad day.


View attachment 234002

 

[Jim SoG]

With the Sequoia DO NOT WAIT for indications, they are good one day and next your wrecked.......

They can be done DIY, sure there are videos online for doing them.

Jim

 

[Dilldog]

With the Sequoia DO NOT WAIT for indications, they are good one day and next your wrecked.......

They can be done DIY, sure there are videos online for doing them.

Jim

If a ball joint goes without warning, then it is a flawed and dangerous design or at best made with materials that are inadequate. Has there been a recall or any TSBs? If not I would say steer clear of OEM ball joints and look to the aftermarket for something more reliable...
Looks like Icon makes ball joints for the Tundra which might fit the Seqouia as well. I have seen A-arms ripped in half in an accident and the Icon Deltas still hold onto a steering knuckle.

 

[Jim SoG]

If a ball joint goes without warning, then it is a flawed and dangerous design or at best made with materials that are inadequate. Has there been a recall or any TSBs? If not I would say steer clear of OEM ball joints and look to the aftermarket for something more reliable...
Looks like Icon makes ball joints for the Tundra which might fit the Seqouia as well. I have seen A-arms ripped in half in an accident and the Icon Deltas still hold onto a steering knuckle.

All I can say is, every Sequoia owner will tell you the same thing I did, OEM and do not wait.... 1st Gen Owners groups on fb will say the same........

But You do what you want.

GL

Jim

 

[Smileyshaun]

They usually fail thankfully at lower speeds when turning due to the larger amount of stress being put on them . But when they do fail it can take out and damage a lot of stuff . It’s not a terribly hard job unless you live in the rust belt then every job is a hard job . Set aside a day for it if you have never done it b4 so you don’t feel rushed and try to cut corners .

 

[CR-Venturer]

Interesting idea but how do you keep the knuckle attached to the arm? When the joint breaks, the arm goes down, the knuckle goes out and if your in 4wd the knuckle twists and brakes the drive axle. In one case also ripped the brake line in half.

Yeah, it definitely depends how much carnage happens when it lets go. I have actually seen guys smush the ball joint back into the socket and ratchet strap the upper and lower control arms together. If I recall correctly, they also took the CV axle and lashed it to the control arm and let the diff turn the other one. YMMV of course.

 

[Shakes355]

In my experience, these joints don't fail out of nowhere. Excluding some excessive stress like hitting a curb or deep pothole at speed, most have slop/symptoms long before they become a safety issue. Toyota essentially admits as much in their recall. They just wear faster than would be expected.

Lots of places just don't inspect them the proper way and thus fail "unexpectedly". The Tacoma/4Runner has the same issue but far less weight and beef in the suspension components. The trick is loading the suspension before checking. This can be done with the vehicle on the ground if you're so inclined. Otherwise, a jack of some sort is required to load the lower control arm with it in the air.

 

[Visiontrd]

Lower ball joints are super easy on these trucks. 4 bolts and the joint nut. And ur out . Should take about an hr ( depending mechanical level)