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Got flagged on Va state inspection for lower.

Tiny
ANONYMOUS
  • MEMBER
  • 2003 FORD EDGE
  • 30,000 MILES
Got flagged on Va state inspection for lower front ball joint to loose. I bought parts to replace lower and upper control arm ball joint and rented tools. I have loosened upper not and bolt to control arm and taken them out. I loosened crown nut on lower ball joint and left it on the end. I have been trying like crazy to get the caliper to loosen and come down the bolt on the lower ball joint. I have been using the 16 inch pickle fork and pounding on it with a regular hammer. It has barely moved 1/2 inch. I am really wondering if I have missed something or is this caliper/arm frozen forever. I have used liquid wrench spray and a lot more pounding with hammer on pickle fork and joint. No luck. Any practical suggestions are appreciated. I am on a limited budget unemployed. Thank you so much!
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Thursday, October 25th, 2012 AT 7:41 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,873 POSTS
Can't find any reference to a 2003 Edge. Other models I looked up don't use an upper ball joint. The lower ones do not use a tapered stud. They have straight studs with a groove for a pinch bolt. A pickle fork will run out of thickness before the stud comes out all the way. You need to use a really long pry bar to pry the lower control arm down while pounding on it. I use a five-foot-long drag link from a Ford truck with a notch cut in the end of it.

If it is still stuck, check if the top of the stud is mushroomed over. If not, you may have to use a flat chisel and hammer to open up the gap that the pinch bolt had squeezed tight.
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Thursday, October 25th, 2012 AT 8:23 PM

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