[s-cars] front end looseness

[Dusten Tornow]

Good morning -

Now that my POS drivability issue is resolved, it's time to focus on some front end annoyances.  I'm guessing this is just a common wear item, as they are on e36s.  Here are my symptoms:


-          Stable at high speeds, no shakes or shimmies at speed.

-          Light tramlining, when I let off the gas the car will drift slightly to the right.

-          No unusual behavior when braking.

-          Front end looseness/disconnect in the steering wheel when hitting pot holes/man hole covers at slow to moderate speeds.

Past experience tells me that these symptoms are consistent with bad lower ball joints.  Does that sound right?  Can I replace JUST the ball joints, or do I replace the ball joint and control arm as one piece?  A search of the archive shows a preference towards TRW over Meyle, still the case?

Thanks again!
Dusten Tornow
'95 S6 Avant with the shakes