Hi all ,

Well  there's a noise coming from the front left side of my gv
When I bounce the front up and down there's a sort of metal grind noise .I'm sure it's the ball joint. Has anyone replaced them yet/before? My gv has 163k and I'm sure they're originals as I took ownership of her at 107k. It looks like a straight forward job. Compress spring, remove bolts at frame end, then ball joint . I'm thinking that I should be able to swing the arm away and off without removing the cv/axel ? I don't have a manual so I'm looking for experience. Any input ??

Any input ??

On the GV, the lower ball joint is intergal to the A-arm.  You replace the entire A-arm on these. See pic below:



autopartswarehouse.com has them for about $100 w/free shipping.

If one is bad, replace both as preventative maintenance, as the other is prolly long in the tooth.  Kinda involved.  Must remove the steering knuckle from the arm, spring pops out, yada yada.

Good time to install a Calmini lift, and these replace the old arms with new ones that have replaceable ball joints. Tell your wife, if you have one, its the smarter way to fix it.

Thanks for the info.
 What would a Calmini lift be worth? I've always wanted to lift the truck but I've also read that you can only go so high, maybe only 1.5"  keeping spec. with camber adj? Is it a big job or could I complete it through a weekend? I'm going to read a bit more on the lift as I'm sure it will change the ride of my gv.
Does anyone know of a place I can use off the net to view a shop manual or an exploded view of the assembly?
Thanks again.

Silver Penney.... my 2 cents.... 2" is the general rule for lifting these trucks unless you use diff drop extenders to drop the front diff to reduce the CV angle.  I've used the coil spacers to raise my truck 2" and I used a set of OME sprinigs on another truck recently.  IF I had it ALL to do over again I would go with a set of OME springs with a pair of their OME struts and a set of rear shocks made for a Ford Crown Victoria for the rear.  About all shocks use nitrogen pressure anymore and the Crown Vic shocks from Monroe or Gabriel ($40 pair) provide a fine ride.  Throw in the cost of new set of OEM (factory) front A-arms and I think you'll still come in at/cheaper than Calmini's 2.5" lift kit.  The OME will give you 1.25" more travel and lift AND give you a "more better" ride in the end.   These trucks look better with a little more ground clearance anyway.  With the OME spring lift your stock stabilizer bolts back up nicely and the truck handling remains smooth and predicatable.   You gain a little ground clearance on the body which provides you frame/body clearance if you do venture off road on some trails. 

IF a "more better" road ride and handling isn't a large issue with you and you off-road your truck often/more than you road it, then maybe the Calmini kit may be more appealing to you.  Read some of the recent threads from members who have purchased or tried to purchase the Calmini lifts.  Great reviews on their A-arms... but not much else.  Sadly, they don't yet offer their A-arms as a separate purchase.  They'd make a killing on them!   If you DO intend to venture off road regularly consider buying a set of front and rear skids plates (AFTERMARKET 4X4 makes GOOD ones) to add to your truck to protect your investment.  These trucks have alot of potential off-road in their stock trim but they don't come properly equipped from the factory with quality armor.  Some form of locker in the rear diff would be another consideration for later if you do run trails alot.

Changing the arms is pretty straight forward (not easy) but you can expect one or two of the four bolts holding your front A-arms will be frozen into their bushings and it will take alot of finesse to get them out (no doubt with 163K miles on your rig).  I had about 80K on both of the trucks I have/had.  One actually BROKE off while attempting to remove it.  So consider ordering a couple of these bolts when you order the A-arms at the dealership.  If one does break on you or you have to cut one out, the dealer will delay the reassembly by having to order the replacement bolts.  You might even consider coating the bolt sleeves (that sit inside the bushings) with some anti-seize compund for future disassembly ease when you do the swap.

Silver Penny - make sure you check your sway bar end links before you go and replace the suspension arms.  Simply pulling/pushing on each link will reveal if the small ball joint is toast.  I've had two go (same side) and I'm at 119k miles on stock suspension.  I've only found them through the dealership for around $50 if I remember correctly but I didn't search too hard. 

The calmini arms are nice though!

I've only found them through the dealership for around $50 if I remember correctly but I didn't search too hard. 

FYI -  RockAuto.com has ACDelco links for $30.  Saves a little.

FYI -  RockAuto.com has ACDelco links for $30.  Saves a little.
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Thanks - good to know.