I had a mild ball joint problem in my 190D in 1994. Over a month, the noise got a little worse. One day, in a parking garage in Chicago, the ball joint cut loose and I ended up with a wheel attached only to the shock and an arm driven into the ground via the spring. Thankfully, I was only going 5 mph when it happened. My suggestion is to replace them as soon as practicable.

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Jovan

'84 (11/83) 190D 2.2 5-Speed; Silver/Blue; Motor No. 00354, 402k mi (340+kmi mine)

'89 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe; Black/Black; 53kmi
'05 BMW 530i 6-Speed; 302kmi
'19 Range Rover; 30kmi