Need ball joints at 33k miles?

[Cummings]

My 2012 Laramie Longhorn pulls slightly to the right. I took the truck to a shop that does truck alignments and they tried to align the front end, after I put 6 new tires on it. They couldn't do an alignment, and said that it would require adjustable ball joint to get it right. This truck is very pampered, and has never been crashed, bumped, or hit anything. The estimate to install adjustable ball joints and align the front end was about $950.00, which seems super high. Are these ball joints covered by the manufacturer's warranty at 33k miles? I have the statement from the front end shop that they need to be replaced.

 

[JLandry]

According to the 2012 3500 Warranty Guide, these parts should be covered under the truck's basic 3 year / 36,000 mile Basic Limited Warranty.

The actual wheel alignment is only covered for 1 year / 12,000 miles, so you may have to pay for that out-of-pocket if suspension parts are replaced.

Good luck,

John L.

 

[Cummings]

Thanks, John. I went to Ram and they said I need to have recall parts installed to fix this, but the parts may not be available for a year or so. So much for being reactive to a recall.

 

[sag2]

what recall are you waiting for? Did the shop give you a print out of the specs?

 

[JWGreen]

I have a 2011 3500 Laramie Longhorn DRW with 41,600 mi. on the odometer. Just replaced the OE General Tire with new Michelins. Shop couldn't do alignment, said ball joints needed replacement. Dealer checked the ball joint play, 0.019" on one side, 0.020" on the other. Chrysler spec says OK to 0.090". I have the Chrysler extended warranty and service contract, was told not covered because not enough wear for replacement. Independent shop says 0.090" is unsafe, wants to use Moog joints with lifetime warranty and grease zerks. Chrysler OE joints are sealed, can't add grease. What to do next????

 

[jhenderson]

There's a big difference between to much play for a good alignment and unsafe. Is it vertical or horizontal play? .020 vertical play is not that bad. I ran ball joints with twice that with no abnormal tire wear. .090 vertical play is safety inspection limit in my state. That's too much for alignment but they aren't likely to fall out until well beyond that. How was your tire wear?

 

[cerberusiam]

Dealer checked the ball joint play, 0.019" on one side, 0.020" on the other. Chrysler spec says OK to 0.090".

Yoiu are going to have to be very specific in demanding and communication WHICH spec is being questioned and used. There are 2 specs on any ball joint, horizontal and vertical. If the dealer and alignment shop and you are not clear on which is which you will just chase your tail. You also need to specify 2x4 or 4x4 because the numbers are radically different.

Per the FSM, measurments are with the front supported on jack stands as far outboard as possible.

2x4

Vertical on the upper - .020
Vertical on the lower - .020

4x4

Horizontal on the upper - .060
Vertical on the lower - .090


If the truck has .019 to .020 in and out play with the weight on the wheels, the uppers are shot in both cases and you will start seeing tire wear on the outsides of the tire. The .060 allowable horizontal movement on the uppers is still way beyond what it should be but that is what is written down so they go by it religiously.

You may have to just bute the bullet like most of us and replace them on your dime with good soild units that won't exhibit the crappy OE tendencies.

 

[Camperman]

I have a 2011 3500 Laramie Longhorn DRW with 41,600 mi. on the odometer. Just replaced the OE General Tire with new Michelins. Shop couldn't do alignment, said ball joints needed replacement. Dealer checked the ball joint play, 0.019" on one side, 0.020" on the other. Chrysler spec says OK to 0.090". I have the Chrysler extended warranty and service contract, was told not covered because not enough wear for replacement. Independent shop says 0.090" is unsafe, wants to use Moog joints with lifetime warranty and grease zerks. Chrysler OE joints are sealed, can't add grease. What to do next????

My sold truck went through 3 sets of upper & lower Ball joints in 62,000 miles. Since warranty covered it all, except alignments, I was pretty much at their mercy. They had installed ones that had grease zerks. Even those wore out prematurely. When the time does come that the ones on my 2012 need replacing, I'll poney up for good ones. figure I'll be money ahead doing it right the first time.

 

[Newt]

Any body use these?

http://www.carlisuspension.com/dodge-ram/components/frontendkit.html

Newt

 

[jhenderson]

Do you know what the search function is?

 

[Tryingit]

Any body use these?

http://www.carlisuspension.com/dodge-ram/components/frontendkit.html

Newt

I have all of those items currently installed in my truck. It made a vast difference especially the ball joints. It took of 2K miles before they broke in but boy when they did it felt/feels great. But the biggest improvement to my truck was the red head steering gear. My factory ball joints with 58K were all still tight with the exception of the right upper. I did the front end piece by piece so got to feel each improvement.

 

[Newt]

Do you know what the search function is?

The following words are either very common, too long, or too short and were not included in your search:
"carli+front+end+kit"

Yes I do. Do you need some assistance with it?

Newt

 

[jhenderson]

Any body use these?

http://www.carlisuspension.com/dodge-ram/components/frontendkit.html

Newt

if you searched you found numerous pages of info on Carli. Why ask ?