How Much Grease To Pump In When Lubricating Chassis

[jbeall]

Hi All,

 

My Hayne's manual says when lubricating the chassis, "Pump the gun until the component is completely lubricated. On balljoints, stop pumping when the rubber seal is firm to the touch. Do not pump too much grease into the fitting as it could rupture the seal. For all other suspension and steering components, continue pumping grease into the fitting until it oozes out of the joint between the two components."

 

Seems reasonable to me, but I've had others tell me that you should never pump until it oozes out, you've blown the seal, and that you should *never* pump until it oozes out, just pump until you feel the resistance increase.

 

The implication from the quote in the manual seems to be that balljoints have seals that could rupture, and the other components that you grease do not have seals that could rupture if you pump in a lot of grease.

 

So, who is right here?

 

This is on a 2003 Yukon XL.

 

-Josh

[txab]

You can rupture the rubber boots any joint you grease, if, you over grease it. But you won't necessarily rupture it if you over do it. The older the boot, the more likely you are to damage it. Grease can usually escape the boot without rupture. The description of "rubber seal being firm to the touch" is one way. Just by watching the boot expand while you fill it, I think you'll be able to tell when it's full. Once you've done it a time or 2, you'll know how much is enough.