Help, ball-joint below rotor issue....
 

Alright I will be as thorough as possible. I put my car up in my stands today for the installation of the coilovers. Installation went through easily and carefully up until the "ball joint" its the best i can describe it, came out of the brake assembly, jacked it up so it would be supported and in place until everything was put back together. When everything was done i assumed the "ball joint" thing would no longer need to be supported.....i was wrong i came apart once more. and would not stay in as opposed my the other side which had no issue. I felt around the ball joint....(bear with me lol) and it was cracked with little pieces of it stuck around inside the little rubber thing(Metal ball is in tact though). Sorry for my lack of terminology i will post up pictures of the issue for those visual people such as myself. well we got it back into place by lowering it into pace as it was adjusted about a 15 min. struggle. Its in place with no obvious issue i drove around for a while no more than 20-25 mph with no obvious effects and it even successfully went up the driveway a few times.

Here are the pictures sorry for how crappy they are it was at night under the car.

http://s368.photobucket.com/albums/o...t=DCFC0813.jpg

http://s368.photobucket.com/albums/o...t=DCFC0817.jpg

I would like to know if its drivable now that its in place even if some of the plastic stuff is broken and the joint wouldn't stay on its own until the car was lowered.. My mechanic shop is located about a 1 mile/ 4 min away would i need to take it to himor is this something i can do on my own? if its the later of the two what parts would i need, Or do i not need to do anything at all...not trying to be cheap just trying not to spend unless necessary because im about a day or two from getting molested my the cost of my damn books at school :eyetwitch . Well any and all usefull information will be greatly appreciated.

anyone???.....sitting here sad n clueless eating cap'n crunch.

I can't see the photos from work, but generally speaking, any type of linkage in the suspension that is broken makes a vehicle undriveable. The only exception being a sway bar connection, in which case the vehicle is driveable, but drastic body roll can occur around corners, so speeds have to be reduced and you need to get it fixed quickly.

I agree with Frontier.
In my opinion, No, the car is not drivable. You can probably maneuver the car into the street and align it for a flat bed, but I wouldn't dare go further than that.

It doesn't look like a common stocked part either.
Best bet is have it towed to your mechanic guy, he should be able to get the correct part and more importantly, install it right too. I've never heard of an 8 needing new ball joint.

You can take your chances driving it down the street, but man I'd be careful or your car may end up on 3 wheels and repair bills of 5x the cost of those books.

yeah i was suspecting that...its the plastic covering around the ball joint thats cracked, the metal ball itself underneath is in tact. Im plotting my course as I type with the least turns and speed bumps.

I made it to the mechanics shop in tact and in one piece only to find out he wasnt there...:squint: :eyetwitch :icon_no2: :banghead: on the plus side i got Mcdonalds on the way home and just noticed the nice drop the coilovers gave :) and i made it home in one piece as well so i found a win in a lose situation. Any further help or advice is greatly appreciated

Ok. Still not at home, but I've flipped through the parts manual to see if I can figure out what you're referring to.

Do me a favor. Is the "ball joint" mounted horizontally or vertically, aka, is the threaded shaft end pointing horizontally, or up/down?

If horizontal, it's a sway bar connection, and the car would be driveable, though safely driveable is debatable... Just don't do anything stupid.

If vertical, then absolutely, positively, do NOT drive that car until it gets fixed. It's either one of the 2 ball joints holding the knuckle in place (lose one completely, and the other will disappear in a hurry, and your wheel falls off, causing your bake line to break, causing you to 3-wheel WITHOUT BRAKES!). Or, it could be the 1 connected to the steering link, in which case, lose it, and you can't steer. At all.

Man I wish I could look at photobucket here at work, so I could actually tell you one way or the other.

I just shot you a PM w/ my email addy so you can send me a pic directly.

He is talking about the ball joint that is pressed into the lower control arm and connects to the bottom of the hub. I don't know if this helps but I will host the pic in this post.

This car should not be driven!

And to tell you the truth I doubt that joint will be sold on it's own because it is pressed into the control arm. You are likely going to need to buy a lower control arm.

PM me and I think I can hook you up with someone that might be able to save you some money.


[EDIT] As you can see from the parts fische there is no part number for that ball joint, you will need to buy the lower control arm (#34-310/34-310Z in the picture).

https://www.mazdamotorsports.com/wcs...16651_1000.gif

[/EDIT]

There was a recall on this problem, so it may be a warranty issue; I agree with everyone above, don't drive the car.

http://www.internetautoguide.com/aut...x-8/index.html

And don't believe anyone who tells you that you can buy the joint and press it in yourself with a vice and a rubber hammer. (A chain tire shop no less)

I have lived the story described earlier (in my old MX-6). Wheel turns 90 degrees to the direction of the vehicle (front passenger wheel), with about the noise you would expect. It takes the brake line out with it. In the ensuing panic the brake pedal is applied firing all of the fluid out of the broken hose.

So, with the only braking supplied by the handbrake and whatever the lowest metal part on that corner of your automobile is (the plastic ones grind off pretty quickly) you will eventually come to rest on a vector that is rougly 35 degrees off your original one and quite distance further along.

In my case it was a fairly level shoulder. If I would have lost the drivers side wheel it would certainly have put me into oncoming traffic.

What I hit was a small difference in height (2 or 3 inches at the most) between new and old pavement. It was just enough to unweight the ball joint and let it slip loose.

So I agree, either tow the car or relocate the mechanic.

Yep. Do NOT drive that car. That ball joint is 1 of only 2 that hold the entire steering knuckle onto your car. Your car (nor your body...) can afford for you to drive it in this condition.

That ball joint has completely seperated/been destroyed.

Again... DON'T DRIVE IT!!!

Pressed ball joints CAN be installed by a home DIY... Assuming it's a pressed ball joint you can actually buy. (I've replaced a lot of press-in ball joints. Then again, I've got the "right" tools for it, too...they make ball joint presses for this very reason...) The trend nowadays is to make "lifetime" ball joints in the control arm, so if the ball joint goes, you replace the whole thing. A replacement ball joint isn't actually sold anywhere for you to buy it when manufacturers do this.

Here's to hopin' your car was a member of the recall, 'cause then you'll get it for FREE!!! Otherwise, buy lots of K-Y jelly, 'cause you'll need it when you find out the cost of a new lower control arm w/ new ball joint!!

ITs part of a recall and should be taken care of by the dealer replacing the control arm.

thanks a lot everyone, yup ball joint on the lower control arm. I talked with my local Mazda and they were clueless...but you guys on the otherhand were right on it!!! What would i do without this forum. I looked around a bit as well on the recalls but I got my car from an auction for cheap with a buyback title other wise id might have ended up with a ...hold on for a sec. :puke: ...with a honda. So i dont know if i qualify for the recall???Do I??? well for now im going to contact you guys that offered for the part and see where i get the best deal. Is this something i can replace in my garage?

you can replace it as long as you have a 14mm socket for endlink,19mm socket for control arm, a 17mm socket for coilover shock, a hammer, a jack , and jack stand. Oh and lug wrench :)


i spend way too much time on these damn cars ....

after thats done i would get an allignment.

sweet!!! dropping some coin for tools is always worth it in the end, i was just worried about getting that damn ball joint in place. yup time always seems to be a factor with these cars the rx8 is not just for enthusiasts its a friggin way of like :)
thanks a lot all you guys are saving me a bundle.

And to think i would have never known if it wasn't for an install of some Tein coilovers.


MODDING SAVES LIVES!!!!

are you replacing the whole control arm or just the ball joint?

ive been reccomended to replace the whole control arm

yea probably best bet as mazda im sure does a better job putting it together than you do. I have a broken control arm with a ball joint still on it if you want it :P

lol i dont know if that would work?

ill go check it out tomorrow, i mean it might who knows lol. If its at all questionable i will let you know.

thanks a lot, I found a lower control arm from ebay for $99 but its from a wrecked rx8, i dont know what to expect and they havent sent me a picture yet. my mechanic told me he can get it installed for $135, i asked if he could get me the part but he said he could but it would be costly special order so my best bet will be elsewhere.

huh i guess my help is not needed here! good job guys!!

naw everyone heres got it down, but every bit helps. Im still waiting on that pic from the ebay seller.... sucks not driving the 8, you kinda get use to the daily compliments.

happy inauguration day!!!

just press it out and repress a new one in
make sure you lube it
and btw "ball joint" is the right terminology