funcrusher

I had a mechanic tell me its going bad and should be replaced soon. Few questions

Do I need an OEM part or can i get it from Auto Zone? Money is an issue right now for me :/

What exactly does the part do? Will i notice a change in anything after replacing?


Thanks Lexus family.

ES300NZ

The lower ball joint, (there is no upper because there is a strut), holds the bottom arm to the hub. If it should fail, the lower arm will come free from the hub, the vehicle will have no support in that corner, so it will ground out on the chassis, the resulting crash will be uncontrollable at speeds over 15-20mph.

non OEM ball joints are generally fine, where they aren't they won't fail in a time frame that would concern anyone.

funcrusher

Thank you. Can someone give me an average price for this job if i bring them the part?

LeX2K

I've had the opposite experience. I only buy OEM or Sankei 555 which is the same as OEM. It's a 1 hour job for me but not sure what a shop would charge.

ES300NZ

yeah, I'm the same I go for OEM out of preference though, but if it's cost prohibitive, non OEM can be fine, we have alot of parts sold through outlets, which are made in china, generally they are ok, but I've had issues from time to time, sometime OEM just isn't even available here in New Zealand,

in example, I needed a maf for a nissan, OEM $2500NZD ($2k usd?), that's just a sensor, from the outlets it ranged from $65+gst - 25% (trade), to $125 + 15% tax (GST).