If memory serves, the upper ball joints are integral to the control arms, so it's a question of replacing the control arm in toto. My local guy checking out my 107 (145K) finds one ball joint loose enough to consider replacing, the other OK.

First of all, if the steering and ride are up to par, you may not need to do anything. If the steering's loose and you're doing the work yourself, see how much play there is in the ball joints when you've got the car up; if it's not much, you might try just doing the bushings and checking how it drives after that.

__________________
Craig Bethune

'97 SL500, 40th anniversary edition

'04 Olds Bravada (SWMBO's)
'06 Lexus ES330
'89 560SL (sold)


SL--Anything else is just a Mercedes.
(Kudos to whoever said it first)