ball joint replacement cost? and other front end q's

[notsonic]

im just over 180k and am on a mission to replace everything that can wear and be replaced.

as far as i can tell my ball joints are probably still good, but it cant hurt (except the wallet.)

cost of parts isnt TERRIBLE, but its up there.

i know its not a typical do it yourselfer kind of job, since they have to be pressed in properly. just wondering what a shop would charge for the labor vs trying to figure out how to do it myself.

also are control arm bushings dificult to replace? anything tricky about them?

what about outer tie rod ends? is that something you can do yourself easily, and then just go get an alignment?

are inner tie rods a wear item?

[ssms5411]

Re: ball joint replacement cost? and other front end q's

Usually the outter tie end rods go out , along with the lower A arm bushing and upper A arm bushing. Outter tie end rod is easy(mark where it is at,unscrew and screw the new ones in) , upper A arm you grind/cut out the rivets and the new ones come with 3 bolts/washers/nuts , not really that hard. The lower A arm can be a pain and thats the one I would have paid someone to do. Also a good idea to have a allighnment afterwards.