s40 2006 track control arm ball joint size ?????

[jamie311]

hi guys sorry if this has been asked many times before but i cant find info



hoping someone out there can help me ive been getting a hell of a lot of rattling and knocking from the front so upon inspection i found the bushes on the rear of the track control arms ( wishbones if you like ) were badly deteriorated so i decide to change them myself relatively straight forward so phoned parts shop guy said yep no prob what size ball joint 18mm or 21mm ?????? good question so i phoned local volvo they said 18mm for my age of car (2006 2.0d sport ) great thanks so bought the 18mm ones fitted them today easy peasy .......... but after rebuilding it all went for a drive and its almost worse than before to dark to try sort now but i wonder could it be the 21mm ball joint ones i need ??? can someone please offer any advice . i wouldnt know where to start with messuring the old ones thanks

[Guru]

Hi,

Bushes are bushes, and ball joints are ball joints .. so are we talking A,B or C?



"A" is the ball joint that differs from 18mm to 21mm depending on the chassis no., not the age of the car:

S40 CH up to 209290, V50 CH up to 214682 = 18 mm
S40 CH 209291 - onwards, V50 CH 214683 - onwards = 21 mm

So check the last 6 digits on your VIN code, that will be the chassis no.

"B" is the rear control arm bushing and those do not differ whether the ball joint "A" is 18 or 21.

[Guru]

Btw., a deteriorating control arm ball joint would cause rattling and knocking, so would a worn out stabilizer drop end-link "most common cause!", and so would the steering rack end ball joint.

A deteriorating rear control arm bushing wouldn't cause such noises unless it's completely bare of rubber and totally worn out which is very unlikely.

[jamie311]

thanks for the info guru

right it was component B that was completely worn I mean almost void of all rubber . but ive changed the whole arm an the rattle over rough ground and speed bumps is almost worse than before new arms its the ball joint component A that my confusion is with regarding 18mm or 21mm. I know it sounds daft but it sounds very ball jointy ( if you know what I mean ) my last six digts of the vin are 190860 any help is most appreciated thanks

[Guru]

Since your ch. no. is 190860, then 18mm is correct.. surely you've noticed that it was a tight fit re-mating the ball joint with the steering knuckle?

There are 5 ball joints on the front:
.One on the control arm
.One outer tie-rod ball joint which connects the inner tie rod to the knuckle.
.One inner tie-rod ball joint "which is more like a ball and socket" that connect the steering rack to the outer tie rod.
.Two /upper and lower/ ball joints on the front stabilizer link.

Those stabilizer links are the most common cause of rattle and knocking as I mentioned earlier, I recently changed mine with MEYLE heavy duty ones, part no. 7160600014/HD, and can recommend them.. £30 for a pair on flee bay.

Tie rod ball joints can be examined for free play by jacking up one front end of the car at a time, and then wiggling the wheel to sense for play or knocking noises.

Hope this helps

[jamie311]

guru you truly are a diamond .

I have the car in bits as wee speak and yes you are right the ball joints were snug but not really tight to get in . ive tried having a swing on the stabilizer links and there doesn't really seem to be any play but im just going to change them any way . by any chance do you think it could be the strut top mounts ??? im going to try those next if the stabilizer links don't cure it lol

[Guru]

Thank you, glad I can assist I overhauled my entire front end just last month so all the bits and pieces and procedures are still fresh in my mind.

I don't think the top strut mounts would cause a knocking noise, not unless the three bolts holding the strut assembly to the strut tower became loose but I can't imagine that happening. The top mounts when damaged or worn would cause a squeaky crunchy noise while turning the steering wheel.

Stabilizer links can seem solid while still mounted from both their ends because they are under load and tight in position .. to examine them properly, you'll need to unbolt them.

Good luck

[jamie311]

ya wee dancer lol. thanks for the help guru

changed the drop links ..........perfect the rattle crack bang wallop has gone . but off to get the tracking done now as its searching ie(tracking) the road a bit under load but otherwise a happy man cheers for the help

[joeyyule313]

Would anyone know the ball joint size for a C30? its a 2008 2.0D chassis number is 2066088 i think. Thats the end of the VIN

[x DTR x]

Originally Posted by Guru

Hi,

Bushes are bushes, and ball joints are ball joints .. so are we talking A,B or C?



"A" is the ball joint that differs from 18mm to 21mm depending on the chassis no., not the age of the car:

S40 CH up to 209290, V50 CH up to 214682 = 18 mm
S40 CH 209291 - onwards, V50 CH 214683 - onwards = 21 mm

So check the last 6 digits on your VIN code, that will be the chassis no.

"B" is the rear control arm bushing and those do not differ whether the ball joint "A" is 18 or 21.

hi sorry to drag an old thread back up but I just wanted to be sure as I need to replace the offside lower arm on my 2005 V50. I'm sure it's an 18mm going by the figures above but to make sure, the last 6 digits for mine is 107962. Also, I know it's advisable to replace them as a pair but I only want to do the one for now, will I need the tracking done after?

Many thanks