Heavy HF steering - upper ball joint failure

[lancialulu]

I have always been used to my HF having heavy steering but over the last 2-3 years I though I needed to start thinking about Gym membership as the effort to turn the steering wheel at low speed was getting almost difficult.

Well this year my MOT man cautioned the upper ball joint boots for being split (note post April 2012 this is a failure).

Being diligent I dismantled the offside upper ball joint to replace the boot (yes you can still get these with difficulty), only to find that the upper joint had collapsed into its housing. The nearside joint had done the same!

After fitting 2 new joints and reassembled I went out for a test and could not believe how the had been transformed.

I looked back at my records as I was sure I had fitted new joints when I rebuilt the car in 2006. And I had so the previous set had lasted somewhat less than 10,000 miles.

Anyone else had the same? I wonder how long the current Frap joints will last? (Frap or Xrap??)

Tim

[chriswgawne]

I am pretty sure I can remember a similar story from the 70's when a S1 Fanalone owner (Eddie Gee rings a bell but I may be wrong?) went over a hump backed bridge reasonably quickly and found he had little or no steering when he hit the ground.....because a ball joint had come apart in the air!! The car was written off.
Beware!
Chris

[16HFS]

Eddie Gee's old Fanalone is sitting in my workshop, its original and never been written off so it can't be that one. It did spend alot of its competition days in the air though. 
Pete.