VW T3 / T25 / Vanagon - Ball Joint Replacement

[@chriskrzych3140]

On different note , your mastery of filliming makes such huge difference , so clear and sharp and just brilliant , many thanks James !

[@TheApalachian]

very, very much appreciated, mate. My confidence to work on my t3 is growing thanks to you. thank you very much!

[@vwthings]

Glad the broom handle worked for you. I used to do it on Beetles in the 1980s. Its a very old fashioned but effective method - likewise using a spirit level across wheel rim to get camber more or less spot on - Ralph (Covkid) x

[@vveerrgg416]

That front end looks SOOO buttery smooth now .... DAMN !!! Like everyone else here... Thank you for posting the series... I literally am about to jump into doing my front end on a '91 T3 this year (2022) and was hunting for a series showing all the various steps. Your vids have been heaven sent. All the best ... and stay awesome.

[@johnarnold2104]

mate you seem to be replacing everything i am and these videos have helped me SOOOO much. Cheers from Canada

[@jeromefrance4019]

Your videos and explanations are really really great and helpful, keep going! thank you!

[@adventurehypelife3819]

Thank you for making all these videos. I hope you continue to make them on your Vanagon.

[@nmartin5551]

Another super helpful video.! Re: copper grease - I have a Vanagon mechanic friend whose back ground is aviation mechanics. He is adamant that unless you see a VW manual telling you to add such stuff, do NOT add it. He has a story about a part failure they were seeing repeatedly on a certain plane. Happened to get to watch mechanic replacing it, and he put something on the bolt before install. That was messing up the engineering of the part and it was failing. Asked the guy where in the manual it said to do it. “I just always do it.” Caused a failure. Fortunately, a vanagon isn’t going to fall out of he sky if bolt loosens… I hope. But I see lots of people who can’t be bothered with torque specs. Food for thought.

[@heart4Pahoa]

Really enjoying your thorough videos, thank you for taking the time to film, edit and share them.

[@chriskrzych3140]

excellent tutorial - for those who also struggle with stubborn nuts & bolts I recommend 'plumbers' gas torch to heat up metal , it makes nuts and bolts to get loos 50% easier 75% faster

[@BrentWeide]

James. Much appreciation for the work you put into your van and into putting the work into sharing your knowledge with us. Well done.

[@JamesAkers]

Thanks Brent!

[@dlm4587]

Great well-thought-out video James. You might find it easier to remove the cotter pins with a pair of side cutters as you can lever the cotter pin out without breaking it usually. But as you demonstrated you can always overpower the cotter pin with a big wrench when you are replacing the ball joint. Thank you for making Vanagon repairs seem so easy without having to read the manual. As you mentioned T3 techniques is a great source in the US for parts you promote.

[@JamesAkers]

Thank you. That cotter pin was a right pain!

[@kailuafrog]

Thank you for taking the time to make that very helpful video. Greetings from California!

[@JamesMeparishvili]

Thanks a lot James for sharing this videos !good job. all the best wishes and gratings from Georgia.

[@nathanielcullen1472]

I guess Im randomly asking but does anybody know a way to get back into an Instagram account..? I stupidly forgot the account password. I would appreciate any assistance you can offer me.

[@alexkeenan2575]

@Nathaniel Cullen Instablaster =)

[@nathanielcullen1472]

@Alex Keenan thanks for your reply. I got to the site on google and im trying it out now. Seems to take quite some time so I will reply here later with my results.

[@nathanielcullen1472]

@Alex Keenan it worked and I actually got access to my account again. I am so happy! Thanks so much you really help me out !

[@alexkeenan2575]

@Nathaniel Cullen glad I could help xD

[@nicholaswilson8415]

I just paid $330 to have just the lower ball joints replaced, and I supplied the parts. Now I'm halfway through replacing the uppers. Had trouble loosening the brake line from the caliper. I'm replacing the rubber brake hoses too. My 11mm flare nut wrench is boogered, and it rounded the peaks on the hex. Had to use small vise grips to get it loose. I don't know where I'm going to find that short piece of steel tube flares that connect the rubber hose to the caliper. Will probably have to re-use the boogered one and use the vise grips to tighten it down. Thanks for the video, which is one of three that I watched before starting the job.

[@adamkline4358]

This is great ! Thank you and please keep at it ! So helpful . Cheers

[@rodclark5831]

Nicely done James, speedo cable & the bird excellent extras

[@pawelpodgajny3412]

Excellent video James, I was debating if I should do bushings replacement myself or send my bus to the shop, and guess what! After watching your video I am doing it myself. Thanks James

[@JamesAkers]

Brilliant. Hope it all goes well! 👍

[@scottfreeman523]

Well done J.! Your tutorials are quite excellent, really among the best! Will you ever get back to making videos? Have you fallen out with antique VW's? Wishing you well whatever the case...😉🤙 and thanks!

[@chrisbarkhouse816]

Good video James. Cooper slip or grease the nuts & threads after fitting. Won't affect torque settings and will protect the thread from rust

[@JamesAkers]

Thanks Chris. I'll be doing it for any further work!

[@keithflynn1969]

Top video as always James, great quality, clear and easy to follow :)

[@alexnerzhaveikin9523]

Thank ! Very good video tutorial. I wish you success in the future!)))

[@yukselardananc4205]

thanks james...

[@dunemaster3179]

Well done mate!

[@waynesitarz424]

Replacing the LBJ, I removed the boot from the LBJ and the open end of the C-clamp fits over the BJ. A shallow receiving tube and an end disc fits over the bottom and works with the C-clamp without having to cut any tool pieces. The knuckle, BJ and tool pieces secured in a vice , I ran the BJ in using an electric impact wrench (easy), then replaced the boot and clip.(and you can add more grease) I pounded my BJs out with a sledge and smaller ball-peen hammer with the knucle free standing (leaning) against my table saw stand (with spindle wrapped). Of course it is easier using a vice. Why didn't I think of that?

[@JamesAkers]

Great tip Wayne. Taking the boot off would have made things easier and sped things up a bit.

[@Aircooledbliss]

Thank you so much James, did you also notice harder stegring after changing all the balljoints? 😄

[@makarone]

Thanks for posting such detailed video! Super useful guide! Many thanks!

[@k_clack]

Great video!

[@derricktremblay5603]

Excellent job 👏 👍 👌

[@garyp.7501]

I'm impressed! But given the right tools looks like a job I could do.

[@irishbayrisch1376]

When the hex is damaged you can try to hammer in a double hex socket. Sometimes it works.

[@JamesAkers]

Great tip. Would have given that a go. Took me a ridiculous amount of time to get off!

[@joshuaoverland7218]

Just as everyone else has said, thank you so much for posting such wonderful and informative videos. Absolutely great stuff! Wondering about your paint prep and paint used? How has it held up? I will be undertaking this job soon and looking for same results. Thanks again James!

[@tobiasmech1078]

Hi Mate great vid will give it a try,

[@JamesMeparishvili]

Thanks James for your amazing videos! Could you please write what engine do you have?

[@TommySveum78]

Excellent! Thank you

[@AnthonyBroome]

great work just a question when you clean the area up you spray a black substance what is this please

[@jamesallan361]

Very good thanks great help.

[@Italjohn]

Nicely done 😃

[@JamesAkers]

Cheers Jonny! You actually get a mention at the end of my next one. I used the Mercedes locking hub nuts you shared.

[@Italjohn]

Excellent 😀

[@WTC_2U]

Very basic question for the community here - how/when do you know you need this kind of update? Major telltale signs? Visual cues? "Feel" cues? Noise cues? thanks all

[@robertopenheimer1451]

how did this work out for you two years later? Did the new ball joints hold up? How is the ride?

[@beemsquar1]

Very helpful video, thank you. Question though, if you only wanted to replace the lower ball joint dust cover, do you still need to remove the whole lower arm?

[@glenneduardo3806]

James, have you got a link for the 3051 tool please ?

[@JamesAkers]

I got that one off eBay secondhand. I think you can get it new through Snapon (vw.snapon.com/SpecialToolsDetail.aspx?itemid=28450108) and maybe through special order. It's one of the reasons I tried alternative methods so more people could see how to do it without the 3051. The modified manual press worked really well.

[@brentonsmith-pw2rp]

Leave the nut on so the clamp can’t damage the thread on the track rod end

[@T_ndhlovunator]

I'm a bit confused, some of the nuts you put in didn't have washers but the on the opposite side there were washer

[@derricktremblay5603]

Three in one oil is what I use.

[@kieferngruen]

Thanks a lot for the video! Which book did you use for instruction? Can you recommend it?

[@JamesAkers]

It's the Bentley Official Factory Manual, I definitely recommend it. Check out the workshop manuals here: vwt25.blog/files/

[@kieferngruen]

Thank you!

[@guyC30]

👍

[@type2523]

So you have any link for the extractor ( the tie rod puller or how it’s called )

[@JamesAkers]

On the tie rod ends I used a ball joint separator like this Draper one: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00E58ZA8U/

[@fastbike9845]

Cripes, that's some serious tool abuse going on there. Instead of a hammer, use penetrating oil to loosen the rust, and then an impact tool.

[@JamesAkers]

Agreed, but there are isn't the clearance for an impact tool on some of them.

[@chriskrzych3140]

27:00 cut it with anglerinder cupple of cm ;)

[@fraggle23]

Mind-blowing, as soon as I saw you try to push a broken cotter pin I could tell which way this was gonna go, but why in hell was the flat bit of steel suddenly not good enough when you decided to chop up a brand new tool ? Which I'll bet money, has a configuration that would have worked out to press in or out the lower ball joint ??

[@JamesAkers]

1. It cost £20 and was already the right shape and size. 2. No other configuration worked. Let me know how you get on when you do it.