GW Lower Ball Joint (Heavy-Duty Adjustable) [Bus/Vanagon]

Product:GVW-251-407-187
Works With:1968-1991
Manufacturer:GoWesty/Quality Aftermarket
Difficulty:

Requires a full tool set and broad mechanical knowledge.

3 Reviews
$59.95

Proposition 65: This product may contain chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm.

Introducing the GoWesty Heavy Duty Lower Ball Joint (LBJ) for all Bus & Vanagon. All-steel construction, fully adjustable and greaseable. These will be the last lower ball joints you will ever have to purchase!

Features: 
• Bombproof All-Steel Construction
• No-Clunk Micro-Adjustable 
• Low-Profile Grease Fitting with Protective Rubber Dust Cap
• Heavy-Duty Neoprene Grease Boot
• Lifetime Warranty - See "Warranty" tab for info

Fits: 
• 1968-79 Bus (replaces 211-405-371A) - (4) Four required per vehicle
• 
1980-91 Vanagon models (2WD & 4WD) - (2) Two required per vehicle

Replacing an LBJ on a Bus, or a 2WD/4WD Vanagon is very labor intensive. It requires disassembly of pretty much the entire front suspension. It is so costly on the labor-side that you do not want to pay a mechanic $150+/hr to do it again… and again.

That is the problem with all the other ball joints on the market: hit one decent-sized pothole and clunk clunk clunk goes your suspension. The relatively soft cap and malleable plastic internal parts can only take one good hit—and that’s it. It probably won’t completely fail (although that can happen, too), but the noise that ensues is maddening. That's why we came up with the GoWesty all-steel lower ball joint.

There is nothing soft or malleable about this ball joint. It can take hit after hit after hit without a whisper of a clunk. Tried and true over thousands of miles running the NORRA Mexican 1000, these LBJs are virtually indestructible—and when they develop a small amount of play, they can be easily adjusted back to snug and quiet.  

Plus, these ball joints are greaseable, too. Grab a Right-Angle Grease Gun Nozzle for easier access to the low-profile grease fitting (required for Syncro), or simply replace the provided low-profile grease fitting with a standard zerk fitting (included), refer to PDF instructions. 

Service Interval: We recommend checking for excessive play (adjust only if/as needed) and greasing these ball joints every 3500-5000 miles. Checking them when you change your oil is a great way to remember!

Important: Do not over-torque the nut! Factory spec is only 74 ft-lbsNever use impact to tighten the nut.

Critical Note: The pins (the part the big nut screws onto) on these all-metal ball joints are much harder than the regular ball joints. This makes them very wear resistant, but also makes them more sensitive to over-torquing. It is never a good idea to use an impact wrench to tighten any ball joint, but it is especially important not to do that to these ball joints. DO NOT TIGHTEN these lower ball joints with an impact wrench. You can use an impact to get the pin taper to seat (stop spinning), but once the pin stops spinning: STOP and use a torque wrench to tighten them the rest of the way to 74 ft-lb factory specification.

Installation Instructions for GoWesty Heavy-Duty Lower Ball Joint

Install Tip: No special pressing tools are needed to press in just the body of the ball joint into the spindle or ball joint insert. If you don’t have the special pressing tools needed, it takes only about a minute to disassemble the ball joint - you can even leave the boot in place, it does not interfere during the pressing procedure. After the body of the joint is pressed in and secured with the snap ring, reassembly is just as easy as taking it apart---and there is no special orientation of the various components to keep track of!

Limited Lifetime Warranty for the original purchaser. Warranty covers all steel parts. Excludes rubber grease boot and dust cap.

GW Lower Ball Joint (Heavy-Duty Adjustable) [Bus/Vanagon] Wrench Rating


DIY — Requires a full tool set and broad mechanical knowledge.




All Wrench Ratings



Plug 'n' Play — Requires no or basic hand tools and no mechanical knowledge.


Handy — Requires some hand & power tools and minimal mechanical knowledge.


DIY — Requires a full tool set and broad mechanical knowledge.


Pro — Requires professional-level tools, talent and experience.