Ball Joints & Gas Mileage Questions

[SW20]

I just bought a lifted ranger, the upper balljoints are bad. Will the upper ball joints fit in aftermarket upper control arm? Im not sure the brand right now but I can find out.


Also, I have a 3.0l flex fuel lifted with 35" Mickey Thompsons, and Im gettin about 13mpg. Does that sound right? Seems low to me. But this is my first lifted truck with big tires so i dont know what to expect. I usually slam cars and stretch tires


Thanks

 

[Big Jim M]

13 MPG is more than I would expect from 35 inchers! My opinion is you are doing great!
Big JIm

 

[fourwheelford]

I thought the control arms and ball joints came as one piece.

 

[pillen140]

i have 35's with a 3.0 and get 14-15mpg... i only have 3.73's though!

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

from my own experiences ive found that upper control arms on 2wd coil spring IFS have provisions to replace the ball joints, but on 4x4 torsion bar IFS the upper ball joints are cast into the arm and it has to be replaced as an assembly. these are just my experiences, there may be exceptions to what ive found, like weight that determines whether you get 10" drums or 9" drums on a 7.5" axle.

 

[McCormack]

If your ball joints are worn then there's a good possibility that your toe-in is off, and that may be having an effect on your fuel mileage. Get a tape measure and a couple of straight edges and have a friend help you check your toe to see if it's off or not.

 

[SW20]

upper ball joint on my drivers side is completely shot. i plan on doing all upper and lower balljoints though. i bought the upper balljoints seperate from the control arms, because the upper control arms i have on already look good and must have came with the previous owners lift kit. as long as they are able to press in and out then ill be fine.

my truck is 2wd btw