Can a bad Ball Joint cause problems installing new brakes. I bought all new brake parts and everything was going fine until the final brake pad install on the passenger side. Pads wouldn't fit. My mechanic said the new calipers had the wrong pistons in them. He swapped the old pistons from my old calipers to the new and the pads fit. While test driving, I heard a 'clunk' on that side when hitting the brakes. Turns out the Ball Joint on that side was bad. Could a bad ball joint 'tweek' things enough to cause the new brake pads to not fit?