When doing an alignment on a vehicle we used to use a pair of waterpump pliers and compress the joint..... if we saw any side to side movement in the joint as it was compressed we replaced it... . the thought was that as the joints bounced down the road, that this side to side movement would cause premature wear on the tires, and would shake the steering wheel... .
Please remember I'm going back a few years. . Im my younger days I ran a tire store for one of the national brands... . It was factory operation and during that short time I got some great training... . just didn't care for the 6 days a week they expected... .
Hope this helps...
Jim