- 1). Loosen the front wheel lug nuts. Turn them 1/4 turn counterclockwise with a tire wrench.
- 2). Place the jack under the front jack point of the Dodge Ram and jack it off the ground. The front jack point is technically also the front crossmember, which is a large beam that runs across the front of the truck.
- 3). Finish removing the lug nuts and pull the wheels off the wheel hub assembly.
- 4). Remove the cotter pin from the axle nut with a pair of pliers.
- 5). Remove the axle nut with an impact wrench. Turn the nut counterclockwise to remove.
- 6). Tap the end of the axle with a rubber mallet. Be sure to use a rubber mallet and not a hammer so that you do not damage the end of the axle. The axle should start to slide back into the hub and give you room to work on the ball joints.
- 7). Locate the ball joints. There are two of them. They are seated on the upper and lower control arms of the Ram. As its name suggests, they look like ball and cup joint and it will have a rubber protective boot covering the actual joint.
- 8). Remove the mounting bolts on the caliper and pull the caliper off the brake rotor. Secure the caliper assembly to the coil springs above the brake assembly with zip-ties. Pull the rotor off the wheel hub.
- 9). Pull out the cotter pin from the mounting nut on the upper ball joint with a pair of pliers.
- 10
Remove the ball joint mounting nut with a socket wrench. - 11
Wedge the two teeth of the ball joint removal tool between the ball joint and the steering knuckle. Hit the end of the handle of the ball joint removal tool with a hammer to separate the ball joint from the knuckle. - 12
Push the axle into the hub to back it out and pull the hub away from the axle. In the process, you will be removing the steering knuckle also. - 13
Take the snap ring off the ball joint casing by pressing the clip apart and pulling up on the clip with a pair of pliers. - 14
Place the ball joint press tool over the top of the ball joint. Turn the handle of the press to clamp down on the joint and continue turning the handle to press the joint out of the control arm. Make note the orientation of the ball joint as you are removing it. - 15
Install the new ball joint. Installation is the reverse of removal. - 16
Re-install the snap ring. - 17
Reassemble the suspension. Assembly is the reverse of disassembly. Tighten the axle nut on the hub assembly 255 ft .lbs. with a torque wrench. Set the dial on the torque wrench to 255 lb-ft and turn the nut clockwise until the wrench clicks, indicating that the proper torque value has been reached.
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