plattey

Hi, got a 1989 Sr5 pickup with the 3vze with stock suspension. Drivers side upper ball joint is creaking badly and gonna replace it soon. I sourced a moog replacement for $80 and a masterpro replacement for $20. Both come with lifetime warranty. Should I opt for name brand and suck it up? Are there other brand ball joints that others have used here successfully?

hoghead420

Not 100 % on ball joints, I've heard you wanna stick with oem toyota equipment thru the forums. They had a thread about replacing 4runner ball joints with oem tundra or tacoma ball joints. Someone said the moog and autozone ones are softer metal and fail quicker. I'm gonna do mine soon and have been doing a little research. Now I have no idea what an oem ball j costs .. I haven't done it yet.

SPARKS89

iTrader: (1)

To a degree, it's hit or miss. Some people buy the cheap stuff and have no problems. Others swear by OEM. I prefer to stick with brands that I know are backed by quality. I shy away from names I don't know. Moog has never let me down on any vehicle I've put those parts on....but you pay for it. I do like the OEM Toyota parts also. I'd stick to one of those. If you want links to places to buy OEM parts shoot me a PM. I've found quite a few places you can get the parts for a good bit cheaper.

93Xtra-Cab

Toyota OEM or Moog. Whatever you end up getting, make sure they have grease fittings.

Terrys87

iTrader: (1)

If you are just daily driving, you could probably get away with an aftermarket ball joint, if you were doing alot of wheeling I would suggest going Toyota factory parts. There are places that sell factory parts alot cheaper then the dealer and they are not all at the same place, I know of a few places but not on the ball joints.

250000_yota

I would go with the moog, if your not gonna spring for OEM, base on the stand point of a technician. I've warranties moog parts that I've looked the customer dead in the eye and said they might not take it. Moog stands behind their products. That's why I put moog ball joints on my truck. I also use moog tie rods. Ibent one last summer on a wheeling trip. Dropped most of the weight of the truck off a rock onto the right wheel, bent the inner tie rod almost into a L. Got the truck home, pulled it and walked it to the store, and walked out with a new one. That simple.

toyota4x4907

Moog for $80? I just bought 4 OEM ball joints for $83 a piece. I will bet OEM prices are similar in your area. I buy most parts OEM. Aftermarket and OEM prices for most parts are very close in price in my area.

plattey

Thank you for the input guys, I really appreciate it! Guess I'll be getting Moog; good quality and lifetime warranty. I could go cheap and get the masterpro that have the lifetime warranty on them too, but who knows how long those will last. Time's worth something too lol

highonpottery

iTrader: (1)

Aside from OEM Toyota parts, any aftermarket with grease zerk fittings is pretty good as long as you get a Japanese part or something like Moog. I believe the preferred Japanese part is made by "555" - Beck Arnley reboxes these parts. Though lifetime warranty, the Moog seems to be hit or miss with some people. I got my B.A. BJs on Amazon for like $30 each - cheaper than any local auto parts store could get me some for, and they're "555" brand. Don't get the masterpro

hoghead420

Good answers, ill keep this info in mind when I do mine, thanks

snobdds

231,000 on the origional OEM's and still going strong. Being the smart guy I am...when these go I will promptly go and get another set and be good for another 230,000+ miles.

karter9907

**""Balljoints!!! I have a 94 4x4 5sp 22re pavement princess.
Drive good roads, NOT OFF-ROAD. 310,000 MILES
I am on 3rd set of LBJs......orig went 250,000. Cheap balljoints are JUNK....REAL JUNK!!
THEN i heard about Senkei555 from NAPA. Supposed to be exact same as oe Toyota!! Installed lowers, and 40-50k and they are loose, and truck wanders !! Every other frontend part is NEW!
TODAY i bought oem toyota lowers!! Wholesale $170 pair
Ouch.
If these are crap, then i will go back to Senkei555 & change them often.
Grease:. FSM says moly disulfide grease. Any parts store has it. Same as Ford chassis i think....use the CORRECT GREASE!!!

arlindsay1992

iTrader: (8)

Old thread, but you experiences are accurate. Moog, 555, and the other brands I've used are all junk. They last a few thousand miles. OEM ones will last 200,000 or 300,000 miles. Everyone should know this as most of our trucks are this age. I replaced my OEM joints on my 4Runner after 320,000 miles. After a couple different cheap brands I went with OEM. They lasted over 100,000 miles until I did my SAS. They were still tight so I swapped them onto my Pickup which was approaching 240,000 miles on its original set.

I repeat this info every time I see a thread about ball joints. People say the OEM stuff is way more expensive, but it's not really true. Sure some of the cheap brands have a "lifetime warranty", but you'll be swapping them out every year. And when you eventually come to realize that nothing is worth your money besides OEM, you'll have spent more than if you had just bought OEM to begin with. You know what they say, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.

If people didn't accept or buy junk, then the aftermarket would be forced to build suitable products. But it's a free country so people can buy whatever junk they want. It's hard for people to see past the lower price tag.