I have a 2000 Ford Taurus and I need to replace the ball joints, and the inner and outer tie rods. Money being tight, I only have enough for one and I'm going to pay to have it done. What should I do first? Does it matter? I need a wheel alignment too, hopefully I can do one and then the other.
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2Really, if you need to do both, neither is better to do first. Safety wise, the tie rod ends would be better to do first, then the ball joints, but I wouldn't put either off, as it will cause further wear to tires and other suspension components.– Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 ♦Commented Aug 6, 2016 at 15:14
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@Sonia The way I read your question you were asking about ball joints vs. tie rods. I edited accordingly. Edit or let me know if this was not what you meant. (I wasn't sure if you were asking about joints vs. rods, or inner vs. outer rods, or joints/rods vs. alignment.)– Jason CCommented Aug 6, 2016 at 15:58
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4 Answers
If things are really this tight and you really can't do both, replace the tie rods first. It is better to lose a wheel completely (via broken ball joint) than to have a tie rod break and steer the car sharply.
Either way, limit your driving to essential driving only, and if your financial situation does not improve, consider parking or selling the car.
IMO you'd be better getting them all done together, then once done the alignment can be done.
If you really must have everything done separately, perhaps explain your predicament to the garage, just so that your not charged for an alignment check after each component replacement.
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Most shops won't do an alignment if there is play in either of those components, so if you only do one, you will be stuck driving it when it is out of alignment. This can cause extreme tire wear, and unpredictable handling.– MobiusCommented Aug 10, 2016 at 20:32
Don't cut corners. If the car is unsafe, stop driving it. Your safety is the most important priority. When you've got the money to do all the work, have it done by a reputable shop. Any ball joint or tie rod replacement, makes an alignment necessary. Note: Ask the shop to use ball joints/tie rod ends with grease fittings on them, if they are available for your car.
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Absolutely...Safety is definitely priority one - Good Advice. +1 Commented Aug 23, 2017 at 4:21
Sonia- just out of curiosity, how many miles on the Taurus? I also drove a 2000 Taurus (wagon). I previously opted to do the least when it came to the front end and subsequently wore out other parts much faster.
If you've done an outer tie rod replacement before I would do inners and ball joints next (in addition to outers). If you only do the outers while the other front end components need to be replaced, the outers will last only 20K miles before they go bad again. My Taurus blasted through front end parts if everything wasn't all tight.
Remember to align after doing tie rods (ball joints not as important).
