Seriously, I know that there cant be too many different part numbers for the upper ball joint on a Dana 30. The Jeep is a 1991 4.0L 4x4, 4 door. My Jeep is outa comission (on a hoist) cause the parts department at multiple local parts suppliers cannot get the right joint. I have tried two different Moog variations and a Superior variation. All have too long a shaft.

If someone has the proper Moog part number that would be great.
Or any correct part number, as I dont particularly care what brand.

Thanks
-Jared

Moog part number I came up with was UPPER: K3134T and the LOWER: K3161T. These ball joints are the same from 1990 to 1997 atleast I didnt check other years...hope this helps

Well crapola. I am pretty sure (99.9%)I got a K3134T for the upper and the taper and threaded part of the shaft was too long. It seems when I am tightening the knucke to the balljoints the castle nut will go on too far and not make use of the cotter pin hole. Also gets very tight with about 3/16 left to go. (up the tapered shaft) Measuring the shaft of the old BJ gets me 1.8" from the steel shoulder (boot removed) to the end of the shaft(not offset). New replacements are 2.0" or longer shafts and longer tapered sections.

Am I doing something wrong here? This shouldn't be this complicated.

-Jared

just a thought, but do you know if the axle is proper for the year? If the years vary in part number (if they do going from 9xjsport7's thought) it may have a different bj according to the differing year in axle vs the rest of the xj.....not sure on either of those, but food for thought, and something to check!

Are you saying the axle could be from a different year? I guess that is possible as I am the second owner. The PO was very good to this Jeep as far as I can tell. 360,000Km and no rust, good engine, good drivetrain and good everything actually. I doubt that the axle was changed.

However it is a variable to entertain. Is there any way to confirm the year of the Dana 30? Better yet, does anyone have an old joint lying around that they could measure the length of the stud shaft?

Another new joint is being delivered in the morning and the parts store has my original joint for comparisson. Sheesh I want to resolve this.

-jared

I just looked up some earlier year cherokees and they show the same ball joints I then went to a 91 wrangler and they show the same ball joints and I even tried a 93 grand cherokee and they show the same ball joints.....so i dont have any idea what the difference is or why yours are different......lets us know what u find out

well looks like my idea got shot down, on a side note I have some "OE brand" new joints sitting around, and I measured with the boot off, from where the boot sits, to the end of the threads, and it came out to be 2 1/4 in. :-/

hmm maybe it is the right part number, read through this thread on this link

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=42271

Thanks for the find. Glad im not alone.

I hope the parts guy can find the correct replacement in the morning. I wonder what the deal is with the shorter stud shaft? Original parts maybe, doubtful that they would go almost 360, 000k on original parts. Anyway, I may also try to just install them again and hope I do the Jeep parts voodoo chant right and they will all just fit together. Lol!

I will post up tomorrow with some results.

-Jared

Thanks Storm. This writeup is spot on. The replacement part is installed and fits regardless of the visual differences.

I still have a ball-joint like clunk in the passenger side when I shift from reverse to drive with my foot on the brake though. Also happens when shifting into gear from an incline/decline with my foot on the brake pedal. Any ideas?

Noticed it when I backed out of a parking space at the college.

if you have a clunk when shifting from forward to reverse or vise-versa, then it would be a u-joint, not a ball joint

Nutz...
The joints are only a few months old. Non-greasable cheapos perhaps? I didnt install them but it sure makes sense that they are the cause of the noise.

Any good brand recommendation for replacements? Greaseable or non-greaseable? Also whats the best way to test a hub to see if it needs replacement?

best way to test a hub is to jack up the jeep and pull the wheel off. then rotate the rotor and feel if it is smooth or rough feeling. If still unsure then pull the brake rotor off and try to move the hub up and down. there should be no movement at all.