Hey guys,
first time posting on thirdgen.org. I hope this is the correct part of the forum for my posting.

So the passenger side ball joint broke end of last year. My mechanic replaced it but I was wondering what other major steering or hardware maintenance I should do since that incident could have been catastrophic on the freeway!

I also posted about this on earlythirdgen.com. Some helpful guys on there mentioned replacing the whole front end steering system since a ball joint breaking was pretty rare and there might be bigger issues going on.

Also before the ball joint broke, there was a lot of metal creaking noise coming from the front of the car, whenever I was braking and that stopped when it was replaced. Now I'm starting to hear the same creaking noise again, albeit much less than before. Any thoughts?

 

If one ball joint was bad then 9 times put of 10 it's time to replace the other side as well. And steering linkage from one tie rod to the other isn't that expensive. I've just replaced all the steering linkage on mine, including the steering box and the idler arm. Next I'm doing ball joints and control arm bushings.

 

good call! Yeah I replaced both of them then. Forgot to mention that

 

If you're down there I'd just change most of the steering out. Center Link, Idler Arm, both Tie Rod ends, sway arm bushings, etc. I did my shocks and springs at the same time, too. The car drives and handles like new!

 

What are the best brands for parts? Any suggestions?

 

Moog makes good OEM replacements from my personal experience.

 

I triple that suggestion. Napa gold line or whatever there premium series is called it pretty good too.

 

thanks for your help and suggestions guys!
I'm on it.