ball joints, i need to replace my upper and lowers, do the uppers come out of the control arm, they look like they are pressed in but i was told that you need to buy the whole arm/ball joint?

 

Man... haven't seen the upper balljoints wear out yet on the 99' & up trucks yet. The lowers are more common to fail. Anyways, the lowers are pressed in, not too sure about the uppers. I know the Ford trucks have to have the entire upper control arm replaced to replace the balljoint. Not too sure about the GM truck's upper balljoints.
Go to your nearest auto parts store and see if they have just the balljoint for it. If not, then you will have to replace the upper control arm.
check with the GM parts department as well.
If you decide to buy from a parts store, purchase the MOOG brand balljoints.
They are among the best out there.
Are your inner and outer tie rods good? I would think a few of those would have failed as well. The best way to check them is with the tires on and front end up. Then shake the tires side to side to check for play.


Jim