Lower ball joints/part numbers

I'm trying to follow all of this. I have a 2002 access cab 4wd. 158,000 miles and I believe the ball joints have never been replaced. I have watched videos of replacing the lower balljoints. I used the epic parts finder site. If I purchase parts 43330-39466 and 43340-39356 then I wouldn't have to deal with removing the ball joint from the socket? Is that correct? I can't find just the ball joints on the epic site. Here is my Vin so shifty can tell me how right or wrong I am.
5TBBT48112S308744 (I think I tagged correct here) I also think I would be able to just change the ball joints if I could figure out the part number. Is replacing the entire assembly might be enough easier to make the cost difference worth it?
Then I would also need the correct 8 new bolts which I also didn't figure out on the epic site. I hate that this question makes me sound like I don't know anything. I maintain/repair 99% of my own stuff. From House to Motorcycles, Automotive, etc. At 63 I've been fixing things for more than 50 years.

 

I can see where you are coming from. I was confused too because in the past when I replace a ball joint, I just replace a ball joint. Not the weirdo assembly Toyota makes.

the 4 bolts are bolted to the spindle. The ball joint part that has to separate that people complain about is a bolt to the lower control arm. The little arm on the ball joint assembly that you are looking to buy connects to the tie rod.

the only way you could avoid removing the ball joint with various force, heat, hammer techniques is to replace the LCA with it. Which to be honest isn’t terrible but comes with its own can of worms.

 

WTF peeps. The LBJ is a ball and socket piece of hardware. Think hip joint. The ball is attached to a tapered bolt the passes through the LCC and the socket is part of a metal plate the bolts with 4 bolts to the spindle. They are a poor design in that the ball is mounted to the socket in tension. Replace every 100K and only use OEM.

 

10/4 @bfunke. We're on the same page. Turns out the shop I went to was NOT replacing the ball joints (thank the heavens) and it was just some loose bushings. ball joints are solid, still OEM, with no play currently. Still need to replace though. What's the best way to figure out which 2003 part #'s to go with? I guess it depends on month of manufacture?

 

Use your vin to see which ones fit. That’s how I ordered the replacements for my 2003.

 

Curious... am I the only one here who hasn't replaced LBJs? Early 2000 with 300k miles.

 

this is after less than 100k miles.

Even if you don’t worry about them falling apart, I like my alignment and not tearing up tires.

https://youtube.com/shorts/TeiItm1fdsI

 

I went 304 on my 2000 OEMs (build date 5/9/00) before replacing for the first time. Although now that you know, you can't plead ignorance any longer

 

Why haven't you?
Here's my LBJ failure scenario:
https://www.tundras.com/threads/lbj-failure-public-service-announcement.154342/

 

I've posted this before and I'll post it again. Just like mine, it's because it's a 2000 and had the one off good ball joints. The 2000 was never affected by the recall. That's why I was able to go 23 years and 304k. In fact, I have yet to find a confirmed lower ball joint failure on a 2000 with original ball joints. But I don not recommend being the first.

 

Never had an alignment problem (alignment about every 70k with each new set of Michelins). The last set of Michelins went 70k. The current set of Michelins installed about 3 years ago with over 30k miles look good. Truck drives straight, quiet and smooth.

Don't misunderstand, I'm not suggesting that preventative maintenance is a bad thing. I was just curious if I was the only one here at 300k miles on my Tundra with the original LBJs.

 

Honestly, have never been told by Toyota dealer mechanics or my private mechanic that my truck needed LBJs. First 200k miles truck service at Toyota dealer where I purchased it. Last 100k miles at private mechanic.

 

Interesting.

Absent removal, are there reliable checks a mechanic can do to verify the condition of LBJs?

 

None that are 100% @G_unit3000 is a good example of a well maintained truck that checked out great at every maintenance interval and then just like that, out of nowhere, kachow.

 

Yes. I think it was @des2mtn who shared Toyota's spec tolerance is 0.2mm of play. Yes, there are tools out there which can detect that. I'm highly skeptical any human would be able to detect that by hand, or with a jiggle test. You definitely won't be able to detect that with the load it's under. Numerous anecdotal reports from members on here (me included) that their LBJ only showed signs of play after removing it from the truck. YMMV always applies, but in my world, "better safe and reasonable than sorry" is king.

I've been away working on our new house in midcoast Maine for the past week+, so just now seeing this and trying to work back thru posts.

I ran your VIN thru the EPC, and it spit out the following for OEM joints, but note, as you'll see in the EPC, there are different bolt part numbers for your specific year. I'd see earlier in the thread for your bolt choices as posted by @NickB_01TRD

• Driver is 43340-39356
• Passenger is 43330-39466

There's a 25% off sale going on at the dealer I linked and if you're not an Alabama resident, they'll do no tax to go along with the typical free shipping and major discount. Note the full discount won't show until you get to the Checkout page, as seen here, this should be your price to your door if you order within the next 6-7 days from them while the sale is happening (basically ~50% off MSRP, not bad!):

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