Balljoints.

[catalyst.]

Okay, so i finally bought a bmw ...its a 93 e36 325i with 125 on the clock. (pics will be up tomorrow if i can find my camera charger.)

anyway.. it needs new balljoints. i have the parts, and im contemplating doing it myself, but i honestly have no idea what is involved.. im going to go get a service manual asap.

if i ended up paying a mechanic to do this how much should it cost? the guys who inspected the car qouted 600 bux.

[Autotechnica]

$600?!

The parts are about $80 for both sides at most. Labour would be anywhere from 1-2 hours, depending on the shop. You shouldn't pay more than $200 for parts and labour.

Can you do this yourself? Nobody but you knows what mechanical skills you poses, so I have no idea if you can change them yourself. However, whenever you do anything, the most important thing is to make sure you have the right tools. If you plan on doing things yourself, just hope that your nuts and bolts aren't seized.

Good luck.

Bry

[BMDub325is]

If you are just doing the ball joints and not balljoints/control arms you will need a ball joint press.... If you do not have one Autozone will let you borrow one with like a 100$ deposit...... You will also need a socket set (preferably air tools) and a good pry bar.... Not sure if any special sockets are needed for a BMW but I doubt it.... It's not too hard..... I did have one car though, that after I was done pressing them in they kept falling out so i had to tack weld them in place... It has been 2 years on that car and they are still in tact.... Oh yeah, I did have to use an air hammer to get them out of that car but the press should help you get them out..... Good luck and dont expect it to be a quick job if you have not done it before.

[mostwired]

And do yourself a favor, put full-metal ball joints, like on M3s (those fit too). Ebay prices are around 50 bucks a pair, or buy at bavauto.com for $30 each. If you decided to keep the car for a long run, the stock plastic ones will fail after a while.

P.S.: 600 bucks is BS

more like 120$ with your own parts.