Did a search and read many of the write-ups on changing a front axle but didn't find anything that specifically addressed my problem.

Just wanted a little input on this situation. I was changing the front axles and when I was re-attaching the lower control arm to the ball joint, I broke one of the four bolts.

I haven't replaced it yet (and I'm not driving the truck). The end of the bolt is sticking out a bit at the top of the ball joint and I'm thinking of trying to grab it with some pliers to thread it all the way up and through, but if that doesn't work, it'll mess up the threads for extracting it downwards. Should I try to pull it out the top?

Am I using the right torque value? It seems like a LOT of torque for that small of a bolt. I mean, I keep just cranking and cranking with no click on my wrench. I'm afraid to keep cranking on the other bolts for fear of breaking all of them.

Should I get the new bolt from Toyota? I'm afraid that if I go to a harder/stronger bolt, I'll run the risk of stripping the ball joint instead of just breaking the bolt. Any input is appreciated.

Anyone else have problems getting these bolts torqued all the way to 105???

'95 Pickup
4X4

 

The 105 your referring to it the large nut on the bottom of the ball joint. I just gave mine hell then aligned it so i could throw a cotter pin through it.

The 4 bolts on top of the lower ball joint are 26ft lbs

 

Make sure you're looking at the ft-lbf number in the FSM. That kind of torque is usually for something that's 16mm+ in diameter... IIRC the balljoints are somewhere around 60.

 

Are we talking the same bolts? Mine go in from the bottom, upward.

Probably the same. I feel stupid, but after studying the list, I swore I picked the right torque spec. So I should go ahead and replace them all since I've probably compromised their strength. Hope the ball joint threads are OK. Crap...

One more question. Is thread lock recommended on this connection? The FSM doesn't mention any but was wondering if there were different opinions out there on this one.

 

Dang! Never again will I rely solely on the Haynes manual. Couldn't find my FSM so I started without it. Had I taken the time to find it, I would have seen this:

(c) Connect the lower ball joint to the steering knuckle and install and torque the four bolts.
Torque: 58 N–m (590 kgf–cm, 43 ft–Ibf )

Because these are the bolts I was talking about (I described it wrong in the thread title):


Thanks for the replies that helped me think through my mistake.

So, do you think the threads in the steering knuckle are OK?

 

I didnt use loctite on those bolts because they had lock washers on em.

That big castle nut on the bottom, I just gave it hell and threw a cotter pin in it. The 4 bolts I torqued down to a specific torque.

You can download the FSM on here by the way.

 

From the factory, mine just have flat washers, no split washer. Maybe I'll use a little medium locktite just in case I enlarged the threads a little by cranking so hard. I'll definitely keep an eye on the connection for a while to make sure I didn't damage the knuckle threads.

Didn't have to mess with the ball joint itself since I was just trying to gain a little clearance for the axleshaft r&r.

Thanks. Just downloaded the FSM and put it on Google docs so I can't lose it. Wish I could find my printed version though.

 

I think its far more likely that you compromised the fastener and not the threaded hole. Replacing them would not be a bad idea.

 

43 ft/lbs

 

I did the uppers and used the following guidelines: the 4 retaining nuts should be gutentite and the big castle nut should be damntite. Those values may vary but should suffice.

 

Damn 105 lbs/ft into those small bolts? I'm amazed three of them actually took the torque! I'm kind of surprised you removed these bolts in the first place to replace the axle, why didn't you just seperate the balljoint from the lower control arm? But anyways to answer your question, yes I think the threads in the knuckle are fine, just replace the bolts if you're a bit paranoid about it... Oh and I really don't think loctite is necessary on these.

 

Actually,the poor little things did not take the torque. I stopped trying after the one broke.

I took the four bolts off because I saw that recommended numerous times on the boards but never saw a recommendation for taking off the ball joint nut. Is that easier? I know at the very least I would have to get a new cotter pin for the castle nut, right? The four bolts were not at all hard to get off and back on, and when using the right torque value, they're easy to tighten too!

Still waiting on the new bolts from Toyota so I haven't tried to extract the broken one yet...wish me luck.

In the meantime, I did the other side and it went well. It's still a bit of a tight fit even with loosening the control arm, but I didn't have to pound out any bolts from the diff mounting flange. When I finally got the sucker on there, I actually started talking smack to it (and downed a beer) then cried a little bit.

 

When I replaced my axles I don't even remember disconnecting the balljoints at all (via the castle nut or the 4 mounting bolts). I thought for sure I was able to get them out by unbolting them from the diff first and pulling them out. I think I just unbolted the caliper to give myself some clearance.

It's amazing the difference climate has on vehicles. Where I live things get so badly seized that removing those 4 bolts would be absolute last resort. Just recently I installed some BJ spacers in the front so I removed the spindles and replaced all the balljoints while I was at it. I'd say I spent every bit of 12hrs of my time on those 4 bolts alone. Things are always so seized on my truck that I don't attempt to remove anything without a torch. I had to heat those bolts and spindle to the point where they were red hot and they were still a huge pain to remove. The head of one bolt still stripped (it was like the threads caught on something because I had it 1/2 the way out when it completely binded) so I had to use the torch and vice grips to get it out... Anyways yeah just wanted to vent, you guys have it so lucky. Working on my 4runner never fails to be a nightmare, but it's always worth it in the end

 

Update: Got the broken bolt out pretty easily (don't hate me). A little bit was sticking out the bottom and once I broke it free with a little help from some pliers, I was able to twist it out by hand. I put in the new ones that I got from Toyota, torqued them to 43 and that was that.

I also had to replace the sway bar end-links since I broke one of them when trying to take off the nut. It was all rusted at the bottom and kind of corroded or worn away.

It's really odd how much play there is where the end-link bolt goes through the lower control arm. The diameter of the hole is much larger than the diameter of the bolt. Of course when you tighten it, it can't move around but when the wheel is articulating, it seems like there is a lot of opportunity for the bolt to rub against the edges of the hole. I guess it has to have some play for articulation but there is no protection from the metal to metal contact between the bolt and the control arm.