I was just told by the dealer that I needed lower Ball joints for a 98 C280 with only 55K miles.

I've never had ball joints fail this soon and wondered if this is typical on this model and if not how long should they last?

Also is this something I can do myself without any special Mercedes tools?
I've done Ball joints several times before on american vehicles without any difficulty just didn't want to get it half apart and get surprized

Thanks
Bob