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Today I was checking out my newly acquired 89 244, preparing to get it inspected, and discovered that it needed a left ball joint, due to a torn boot. I went to go get one---first stop: Carquest. They had it in stock, for $ 71, but when I looked at it, I found it to be completely bogus. Not a counterfeit or anything, just a really stupid design. The name on the box was Moog, and on the bottom of the part itself it said "MOOG PROBLEM SOLVER", but, wait a minute, where's the boot?? It was in a plastic bag, along with the hardware, and here's where it really gets weird---the boot was just a rubber cup with a hole in it for the tapered spindle, and no means of attachment to the body of the ball joint. It closely resembled the setup on the tie rod ends of a 444, if you've ever seen one of those. It would in no way make a watertight seal, and would rely on frequent applications of grease through an included fitting to keep it from rusting solid. Seems to me this one should have been labeled "problem CAUSER" not problem solver. Naturally, I didn't buy it. I went half a mile down the road to my second stop: the Volvo dealer. The parts counter man didn't really know what he was doing---he found the correct page on the computer, but there was no part number for the ball joint, so he tried to sell me a control arm instead, assuming the ball joint would be included with it (which, of course, it wouldn't) I said something about the unlikelihood of needing to replace a control arm, unless you had been playing rally-racer and smashed it on a rock. Finally, he found another section, labeled "repair kits" or something like that. Apparently they don't sell the ball joint separately, only in a kit with mounting hardware. Fair enough. $106 and change, not in stock, we can have it for you some time tomorrow. No thanks. Third stop: Advance Auto Parts. Not in stock. Choice of two different ones. One for $30 something, one for $52. The picture showed the correct OEM type with a metal retaining ring securing the boot to the body of the part. Have it for you tomorrow. On to the fourth stop: Autozone. Not in stock. $48. Have it for you tomorrow, no, wait a minute, it's after 3 o'clock, it won't be until the next day. Back to Advance, ordered the more expensive of the two, supposed to be made by TRW, an OEM supplier to Volvo at one time. I was told it would be there when they opened, at 7:30 AM---too bad it will be raining tomorrow, and I won't be able to put it on..........
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