Hi all,

Just had the front upper and lower ball joints on my '05 Excursion replaced
under warranty, at 33,200 miles. Took it in for an alignment and they said
the joints were bad. A friend who had a '00 Superduty diesel said he had the
same thing happen, they wore really fast. Only the uppers have grease
fittings. Has anyone heard of this? I had no problems with my '02 V10.

--
---
Matt Macchiarolo
mlmacchiarolo at comcast dot net

"We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty."
"We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home."
-Edward R. Murrow

"There are two kinds of people in the world:
those who believe there are two kinds of people in the world
and those who don't."
- Robert Benchley

On Thu, 29 Mar 2007 07:09:09 -0400, "Matt Macchiarolo"
<matt (AT) nospamplease (DOT) com> wrote:


It is not that rare though you usually get more miles than you did. It
has to do with the weight of the diesel engine up front which places a
lot more strain on front end and if you are running oversized tires it
adds extra stress to front end too. Ford is not alone with this
problem as Dodge had a lot of problem with it too in later years with
CTD powered 4x4's. Their solution was to switch to a different axle
design in 03. Be glad yours failed under warranty and not out of it.
-----------------
TheSnoMan.com

"SnoMan" <admin (AT) snoman (DOT) com> wrote

My experience on a 94CTD with plow and ball joint replacement was at 65K.
That truck I owned, others I changed out the bj, the lowest was 50K with big
tires.

On Thu, 29 Mar 2007 10:27:16 -0400, "Roy" <Roy (AT) home (DOT) net> wrote:

A 94 had a different style joint that was more durable. You would not
likely have gotten that service out of a 98 thru 2002 whith a cheaper
joint design.In 03 Dodge went to a AAM front axle with larger ball
joints to better deal with this but jury is still out on this upgrade
(Dodge was really tight lipped about this a upgrade too) I have never
had to replace the ball joints or pivots (if you want to call them
that) on gas powered plow truck with stock tires and I have one
retired truck that is now 28 years old and joints on the D44 are still
pretty tight (steering box is going bad though now). Like it or not, a
deisel does shorten front end life because they use same front end
with a gas or diesel engine. GM can have ball joint issues with a
Dmax. On tip if they are greaseable, use a moly based grease with ball
joint as it will extend their service life.
-----------------
TheSnoMan.com

"SnoMan" <admin (AT) snoman (DOT) com> wrote

WTF! What am I doing dealing with a guy who speculates? Likely this and
maybe that. You preach it was like gospel.
My 20004X4 CTD w/plow and big summer tires had over 50K. You haven't owned
any of the trucks in question nor have you done much wrench turning on them.
You just speculate, and guess, just to have something to say. You are the
ultimate friggin troll. But you did sucker me this time.

On Thu, 29 Mar 2007 14:38:18 -0400, "Roy" <Roy (AT) home (DOT) net> wrote:


I knew that troll in you would come back. You just keep on believing
how great it is to have a 1300 lb motor and a plow on the front of a
P/U. I have pulled a few of those boat anchors out of the ditch over
the years with my gas trucks. We had a big storm here in feb and I saw
3 dead plow trucks being hauled to dealer for repairs in the cold snow
temps (it was around minus 10 a few times). Two were CTD's and one was
a new PS. All had been winched up on trailers and hauled in. About 6
years ago a CTD 4x4 dualie got stuck in front of my house in country
trying to pull a car out on a badly drifted road. I pulled it out with
my 79 J20 with little effort (much to disbelief of owner) and then got
car out too. Three years ago I ran across a Chevy with a plow and a
bed mounted speader in the ditch on a badly drifted road in early
morning darkness while in route to a client. His friend with a new CTD
had tried in vain to pull him out and could not do it as there was
spin ruts all over the road. I offered to try for a fee and they said
sure because they figured I would fail to. They were quite surprized
when I got it out on second try on a dead pull with no jerking. The
first attempt failed because the tow strap broke. Guess what no posi
either but see I can easily ballast may truck to have more weght on
rear axle and better balance truck for best traction. (you rear axle
is your strongest axle so you want your weight and traction there) If
you gave me a plow truck with a CTD or any diesel I would sell it and
get a gas motor. I have been at this for well over 20 years and I know
what works and I keep my trucks a long time too. Guess what I do not
need 4x4 drive either in bad weather to transport because I do not
have to push a 5K plus load on front axle through snow. Put your truck
on a scale with plow on and measure front axle weight (I have) and you
will be surprized how much weight is up there and it is not wisest
idea either for plowing.
-----------------
TheSnoMan.com

Stock tires.

"SnoMan" <admin (AT) snoman (DOT) com> wrote

"SnoMan" <admin (AT) snoman (DOT) com> wrote

Yada,yada. WTF does all the above BS have to do with ball joint failure? Let
me help ya, nothing! Just more of your mind numbing I did this, I did that.
You just ramble on and and on. A ton of words but you say nothing that is
relevant.

Time for that sig change again.

In article <fg3o039mf6h8r9mdpfbav6euhlsq7oepq2 (AT) 4ax (DOT) com>,
SnoMan <admin (AT) snoman (DOT) com> wrote:

I knew it wouldn't be long before you got on your soap box again.

I was reminded again yesterday after doing a brake job on a 2000
3/4 ton CTD with 200K miles on it. But for you to understand it
would be like my Aussie understanding calculus.

For you to believe that that makes you any sort of authority is
truly astounding, but not surprising.

In the dead of winter during a snow storm *you* stopped plowing
snow to follow all three trucks to their destination(s) to
ascertain that they had suffered the dreaded 'diesels won't start
in the cold' malady... or maybe they were just being dealer
traded/transported from auction/repossessed/theft recovery/
parking violation or any number of other plausible reasons that a
truck might be trailered.

Same cold snap we had here in Wisconsin, I saw way more than 3
gas powered Chevies get towed in. On the other hand, my buddies
2005 CTD started and ran flawlessly, as did the 97 CTD I sold
last year.
Relate all the home spun anecdotes you want, you'll still fail on
credibility.

Big deal. In 1978 I pulled a 1967 J20 out of a ditch in a
blizzard with a 1971 Plymouth Duster /6 shod with Fleet Farm
tires.
The Duster belonged to me, the J20 belonged to my boss, I put the
J20 in the ditch plowing snow at Empire Generator in Germantown,
Wi.
Oops, looks like I may have revealed that I have a few more years
experience than your 20.

The above has what to do with Diesel engines, ball joints or the
price of Yak meat in Pakistan?

gee, ya think?

Lather, rinse, repeat... (stupid is forever)

Wadda ya mean you "know what works?" You (by your own admission)
send your trucks to the dealership for repair. You, by your own
admission label what I consider a gravy job a PITA. Proof
positive that you wouldn't know a camshaft from John Shaft.

Naturally, you are the only one who can make that claim.

Fair trade off for the sheer entertainment value of passing you
by on the turnpike while you stop for gas every 180 miles.

"aarcuda69062" <nonelson (AT) sbcglobal (DOT) net> wrote

One would think he invented snow plowing. You have been doing it longer than
20 years, I've been plowing snow for over 30. He's running around with a
couple of beaters proclaiming to be some sort of expert. Hell, he was thrown
off the largest snow plowing forum due to his mindless BS. A couple of folks
live near him and never see his "plow trucks" out and about. He's probably
too busy posting BS to plow snow anymore.

I figure he has to be 100 years old to do all the things he claims to have
done. He barely can keep up with all the stories he's spun. Sadly most of
the stories are so transparent a 5 year old can see through them.
But I'm sure we will read more of his expert stories on trucks he's never
owned or for that matter driven. I gues if he looks at one he becomes the
self proclaimed expert on it.