Questions and Answers

Honda Civic Broken Ball Joint Q. I have an 1985 Honda Civic CRX and the lower ball joint came out of its socket while I was making a very sharp, slow turn. is there an easy way to reattach this or do I have to go to the shop?

Thanks in advance for any reply you can offer.

A. In theory you can just pop the joint back in and it should be okay. The question is: why did it come out in the first place. Did someone replace it and forget to put in a new cotter pin? Or did it snap in half?

If it snapped right above the grease fitting (in the picture) then the joint is shot and needs to be replaced.

It's not difficult to replace. Just take the cotter pin and nut off the ball joint. Separate the ball joint(you can rent one) from the steering knuckle. Now since the ball joint and the lower control are an assembly, remove the lower control nuts and bolts and remove the ball joint/control arm.

Stick in the new ball joint/control arm and put it all back together. When you put it back together make sure you use a new cotter pin on the ball joint.

If you don't feel comfortable doing this, then take it in and have it done.