87 taurus axle

i'm going to fix my grandmas car tomorrow. left axle outer boot has been torn for a long time and the axle is noisy. anyway i'm just curious about how bad the ball joints are to separate. i've mostly worked on hondas and other japanese cars that are pretty easy.

what tool do you guys use to separate the ball joint. with my civic i just pry between the control arm and knuckle and they always pop.

i dont have a manual in front of me and she's 90miles from me, otherwise i wouldnt have asked, and internet search results were poor.

thank you

first you'll need a pickle fork to let you seperate lower ball joint because there is only one the stut acks as a upper ball joint. before you seperate you need to take the bolt out at the lower ball joint,take calaper off also knock your outer tierod loose also it's easier then take big nut off of axle. going to put new half shaft right? after you do all this should come right out. be carful if your not doing on a lift be carful could fall on you if you don't use jack stands...

good luck.......

Do not use a picklefork,I call them "boot rippers" and "boot destroyers".smack the side where the ball joint goes into with a BFH instead.You do not have to disconnect the tierod or caliper at al,I do with them still connected.You pul down with a big bar and have a second person helping you with this.You do need a special tool to put the axle in the wheel bearing and it is a must.It does not slide in easy into the wheel bearing.

thanks for your help guys. i got the left axle changed in about 2 1/2 hrs. it was so easy. hardest part was getting the control arm ball joint stud down enough to clear. anyway thanks again.

i'm glad a website like this exists. you all are wonderful for helping.

for a third time, thanks all.
Dario