bicol,
I may need new bushings as well. I replaced the rear sway bar bushings and links a few months ago, but have yet to do anything on the front, and my car is beginning to feel the worse for it. Could you tell me exactly where you got the bushings, how to replace them and if they fit perfectly, and also what sort of symptoms worn bushings would cause. My car recently has felt extremely loose in the front and I suspect I might need to do more than just bushings or ball joints. An indie car guy I went to last week said my vibration and rough ride seemed to be caused by worn ball joints, but I'm not positive that that's all that's wrong. I feel a heavy vibration when braking, all throughout the car and in the wheel and pedal. When I hit bumps, it feels very loose and the car responds poorly. Often, on grooved pavement or bumpy roads, there is a considerable amount of shimmy, and the car is feeling less and less stable at high speeds. While I was at the shop with this guy, we put my car on the lift and tried to move the wheels around, and the ball joints are definitely shot, but there didn't seem to be too much give in the bushings. Is there another way to tell what's going on or should I just replace the ball joints and go from there? Would the ball joints be causing all of these problems or does it sound like more is prbably wrong? And, last but not least, do any of you know a good source for the joints or should I just get them from the dealer? They're not insanely overpriced at $117 each, but I know the labor's going to be up there, so any savings I can get would be helpful. Thanks anyone that can help.