Most commonly a clunking sound over bumpy roads or when braking. Don't ignore noises like that. If one of them separates they will find you splattered against a tree or the front of a Mack truck!
Many tire and alignment shops will perform inspections for free or at low cost. You can learn to inspect ball joints and tie rod ends yourself when you do other maintenance but it's somewhat hard to describe over a computer. It's easier to do with someone showing and pointing while you watch.
Sloppy ball joints and tie rod ends also make it impossible to hold the wheels in perfect alignment. Ford has way more than their share of alignment problems already, and one of the worst as far as trucks are concerned is the smaller Bronco II. Your full-size Bronco does not have that tire wear history. I should qualify my earlier statement too about separating ball joints. If you have a solid I-beam or twin I-beam front axle, the ball joints can't separate and leave you sailing through the ditch. It's much better in that respect than Ford's front-wheel-drive cars.
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Sunday, June 12th, 2011 AT 5:57 AM
