"Pete C." wrote in news:50991faa$0$18837$a8266bb1
@newsreader.readnews.com:


If the ball joints need to be replaced, I believe you will need to
remove the axle half shafts in order to get access to replace the ball
joints.

That may be. I've never done it on a 4WD vehicle.

I would expect at that age every ball joint, tie rod end and suspension
bushing will be bad. Expect a full weekend project to replace them all
if you have the right tools and decent workspace. You can get a full
replacement kit of urethane suspension bushings fairly cheap. None of
the ball joints or rod ends should be particularly expensive either.
You're probably looking at $300 in parts and a lot of labor to replace
it all and have a solid, stable front end again.

Agreed, although I think there's a good chance his Pittman arm is OK, even with mileage
that high. They're pretty robust, and it's difficult to stack that many miles on even a 16-yo
vehicle without doing a fair amount of highway driving (which isn't real tough on parts).