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Steering gear/without ball head from vika
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By tantivy
link hidden, please login to view supplies a whole range of automotive parts and services for Volkswagen, Skoda, Audi, and SEAT models. vika DPA continue to expand our product portfolio with the market insights gained by our product experts, and maintain a leading position in our target market segments.
vika DPA customers in more than 100 countries and regions, vika DPA has a profound understanding of their actual needs from product R&D to sales in local markets.
For more information of vika parts, please visit
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By Counterman
MEMA, The Vehicle Suppliers Association, announced the members of the steering committee of the Center for Sustainability, launched in January.
Committee members were selected to represent the diverse membership of the organization, covering automotive and commercial vehicle, original equipment and aftermarket, large and small companies, and the remanufacturing community.
Members of the steering committee will provide guidance and oversight for the center’s leadership. In addition, they will support the programming that will be developed for the benefit of all member companies in the organization.
“We are thrilled to have the commitment of these outstanding industry executives as we take the Center for Sustainability from concept to reality,” said John Chalifoux, chief sustainability officer, MEMA, following the inaugural meeting of the steering committee. “I look forward to working with the committee members who will continue to provide their expertise and a balanced perspective for all MEMA members.”
The 10 executives serving on the MEMA Center for Sustainability steering committee are:
Marc Blackman, president and CEO, Gold Eagle, and MEMA chairman Ed Edwards, president and CEO, Circuit Board Medics Maureen Klein, vice president, public affairs and sustainability, Pirelli Tire North America Jill Kupcak, corporate office of sustainability and EHS, North America Region, Robert Bosch LLC Brian Lewallen, president, aftermarket solutions, Daimler Truck North America Santosh Singh, senior vice president, human resources, legal, government relations and corporate communications, North America, DENSOe Volker Weng, president and general manager, drivetrain and battery systems, BorgWarner Shawn Zwicker, global recon general manager, Cummins Bill Long, president and CEO, MEMA John Chalifoux, chief sustainability officer, MEMA, and COO, MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers Learn more about the Center for Sustainability
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By Counterman
When ball joints are on the counter, what’s the No. 1 upsell? Shop rags, latex gloves and floor cleaner, because it’s going to be a messy job!
Seriously, though, it depends on the suspension. For light cars and trucks with strut-type suspension, most ball joints aren’t greaseable, and most of them only have one lower control arm on each side, resulting in only one lower ball joint on each side (multi-link suspensions are another story). Most of these are a cakewalk to replace, and you barely get your hands dirty. But, heavier trucks and older cars with upper-lower A-arm suspension and greaseable joints are a different story. That’s when it gets real.
But before we start wiping up grease, let’s look at two of the stickier aspects of ball joints: inspection and installation. Ball joints have wear specifications, and the maximum allowable play as well as proper inspection procedures can vary considerably between different applications. When checking a ball joint for wear, technically speaking, not only should we confirm the recommended procedure and specifications, but we also are always supposed to check them using a dial indicator. In the real world, that rarely happens.
Most technicians understand that a little bit of play in a ball joint is normal and acceptable. But at the same time, there’s a common misconception that any play in a ball joint means it’s wearing out. The root of the problem goes deeper than this article can cover, but let’s face it: Time is money, and taking the time to look up specs, set up a dial indicator (if you have one) and recording the readings just isn’t realistic, especially when a shop manager is breathing down your neck for a diagnosis.
Another part of the problem is when you check a ball joint for wear, you always can feel even the slightest amount of play – so again, rather than performing the correct procedure, it’s easier to estimate the free play in your mind based on your familiarity with these types of measurements.
You can’t always see the movement when it’s minimal, but the worse it gets, the easier it is to see. Experienced technicians are good at recognizing when the amount of play is still “acceptable,” or when a ball joint is – as we like to call them when the vehicle isn’t safe to drive – “wasted.” When a ball joint exhibits wear but still is acceptable and safe for use, that’s how we represent it to the customer, and we’ll just recommend checking them again at the next service. “Let’s keep an eye on those ball joints,” we might say.
This all might sound like I’m criticizing technicians, but that’s far from the case. I’ve been a tech my whole life and it can be tough to wear our shoes. There’s a lot we need to know – we’re all human – and we do make mistakes. When it comes to parts, we rely on the knowledge of a counterperson more often than you realize. One of the strongest traits of a good technician is understanding that you don’t know everything, and not being afraid to ask questions or accept advice. In the case of ball joints, they usually don’t come with specifications, and there’s rarely any information with them aside from installing the grease fitting. And when they do come with information, does it always get read? You probably can guess the answer. This is the real world of automotive repair.
As crazy as it sounds, when you’re deep into a suspension repair with parts and tools all over the place, it can seem like it takes an eternity to unbox a bunch of parts and remove them from their plastic bags, etc. – so again, it’s no surprise that details are missed should they happen to be included. It’s worth its weight in gold when we learn something we don’t know about any particular part, and we’re always eager to learn.
If the line between misconception and mistake isn’t blurry enough, there’s an extra kicker with ball joints. Some vehicles utilize telescoping ball joints. What this means is that the ball-joint stud telescopes a small amount to compensate for manufacturing tolerances, primarily related to the ears of a steering knuckle.
When you install one of these joints, it may appear as if the stud is too long or too short, potentially causing a technician to think it’s the incorrect joint. Also, since the stud is engineered to slide in and out of the housing, they can exhibit as much as .060” (sixty-thousandths of an inch) of free play. For comparison, .060” is about the thickness of a penny, and while this amount of play rarely would be represented as unsafe, it could easily be misdiagnosed as a worn joint.
This may turn out to be more important in the case of a warranty concern. I’m sure it wouldn’t be the first time you had a part returned as defective and you were surprised by it. This is when your knowledge can save time and money for your company as well as for a technician, shop and the end customer. Information like this often doesn’t make it to a technician level, and it’s a great opportunity for you to educate and build rapport with your customers at the same time.
Replacing Control Arms
Where do control arms come into the picture? Independent suspension, be it front or rear, has been around for a long time. There are many different types, of which upper-lower A-arm, MacPherson strut and multi-link are the most common variations we deal with today. One thing they all have in common is some type of control arm.
To put a simple spin on it, any control arm is nothing more than a link between the fixed frame of a vehicle and the steering knuckle – the component that in turn provides a mounting point for the brakes, wheel bearings and wheels. Control arms move freely up and down in response to suspension movement and not only offer mounting points for springs and sway bars, but they also are integral to suspension design, affecting the alignment angles and suspension travel.
The control arm also carries another distinction: It offers a provision for mounting a ball joint to provide articulation between the arm and steering knuckle. Ball joints are either bolt-on or press-in, and in many cases on newer vehicles, the ball joint is an integral part of the control arm. If you have to replace the ball joint, you have to replace the entire arm.
Control arms are either steel, cast-iron or aluminum, and the most important factor when replacing a press-in style of ball joint is making sure the hole in the control arm isn’t worn. Generally, if there’s no visible damage or corrosion to the control arm and the old ball joint requires considerable force to remove, as long as the new joint requires a similar force to install, the control arm will be OK.
However, since we don’t have the technology (in our shops) to measure the roundness and integrity of the hole, many manufacturers recommend to only replace a press-in style ball joint one time. The next time, the whole arm should be replaced, and this is good advice to pass along to your customer.
As with any type of suspension work, any torque-to-yield fasteners should be replaced, torque specifications always should be utilized, and in the case of control-arm replacement, fasteners should be torqued with the vehicle at ride height.
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By Counterman
The wheel bearings are the backbone of the vehicle suspension. They support the weight of the vehicle, help to keep the wheels in alignment and allow the wheels to rotate with as little friction as possible. But wheel bearings can’t do their job without a strong mounting point, and that’s the knuckle.
What Is the Knuckle?
The knuckle, also known as the spindle, is the suspension component that houses the wheel bearing, and the connection between the wheel and the suspension system. In the past, knuckles typically were made of steel, but today they’re more commonly made of aluminum or another lightweight alloy to save weight.
On the front of the vehicle, the knuckle will pivot on upper and lower pivot points as the driver turns the steering wheel, changing the direction the vehicle is traveling in. In the rear suspension, the knuckle won’t pivot, but instead will travel up and down. Any time you’re removing or replacing a wheel bearing, ball joint, tie-rod end or control arm, you’ll be working on a knuckle.
Since the wheel bearings and the knuckles work together, sometimes it will make more sense to replace them together. This type of assembly is referred to as a “loaded knuckle.” Why would a customer decide to install a loaded knuckle? In most cases, it comes down to one of two reasons: damage or time.
What Can Damage a Knuckle?
They can be damaged during a crash or a collision, or from violently striking a curb or a deep pothole. This type of damage can change the geometry of the suspension, causing a crooked steering wheel, wandering steering feel while travelling straight, or steering bind. If left alone long enough, it even can result in abnormal tire wear down the road.
A knuckle also can be damaged due to a failed CV axle or wheel bearing. In this case, I’m talking about a scenario in which a driver ignores the grinding, metal-on-metal noises from a failing wheel bearing, and continues to drive for a long, long time. I’ve seen this exact scenario in the shop before, and it usually isn’t pretty. Eventually, the wheel-bearing bore becomes deformed thanks to the added stress, and the entire knuckle is only good for scrap.
There’s one more thing that could damage a knuckle: overtightening a ball joint or tie-rod end. Ball joints and tie-rod ends usually feature a tapered seat, which becomes tighter as the fastener is tightened. In older knuckles that were made of steel, that tapered bore would hold up pretty well, even if the fastener was a bit overtightened. But the modern aluminum or alloy knuckles are much softer, and they’re susceptible to damage from over-tightening. If the joint is tightened down but it’s still loose inside the tapered bore, the bore is damaged and the entire knuckle will need to be replaced.
What About Time?
So, we know why a customer might replace a damaged knuckle, but what does time have to do with it? That’s easy: Time is money. This applies to both DIY and DIFM customers. DIY customers are trying to get their vehicle fixed and back on the road as quickly as possible, especially if it’s their one and only vehicle. DIFM customers are trying to maximize their efficiency, and keep the shop running smoothly. In either case, if the customer runs into trouble, the results can be costly.
This is especially prevalent with press-in wheel bearings. This type of bearing is quite labor-intensive to remove and replace. After years of exposure to road debris, grit and salt, they can become stuck in place inside the knuckle. In extreme cases, it could take more time and labor to remove and replace a press-in bearing versus simply replacing the whole thing with a loaded knuckle.
On vehicles with aluminum knuckles, you may find that corrosion will form around a pinch bolt, axle nut or snap ring. This corrosion can make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to remove that fastener. At some point, it makes more sense from a time and money standpoint to simply replace the entire knuckle, rather than get bogged down trying to remove a stubborn fastener.
Advantages of Loaded Knuckles
First and foremost, the nicest thing about a loaded knuckle is that it comes to you pre-pressed, so there’s no need to press out the old bearing, clean everything up and press in the new bearing. There’s no second-guessing if you set the bearing or the hub to the correct depth, or if you inadvertently damaged something by applying too much force with the shop press. That is a huge advantage to the DIY customer who might not have the necessary tools for this type of repair. It’s also helpful to the DIFM customer as it allows them to manage their time much more efficiently.
Customers might think that they can save a little bit of money by only replacing a wheel bearing and reusing the steering knuckle. But those savings can go right out the window if they run into unforeseen troubles during the repair. If they end up damaging other components, or they spend more time than expected simply trying to remove the old bearing, it can spell disaster. DIY customers can end up being without their vehicle for longer than anticipated, and DIFM customers can lose out on other business if the vehicle is stuck on a lift for longer than anticipated.
Replacing the entire knuckle and bearing assembly at the same time reduces the likelihood of a customer comeback, and increases the chances of the repair being completed correctly the first time. Installing a loaded knuckle can reduce installation time by up to 75% depending on the application. Just like a loaded strut, a loaded knuckle can help to take the hassle and guesswork out of a potentially troublesome repair.
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