I guess I'm a big nerd but I registered for www.mygmlink.com for whatever reason and it has some nifty maintenance reminders on it.

one of the reminders is "Chassis Lubrication, Lubricate Chassis components, Interval: Every 7500 miles"

What are these items and how difficult would it be for me to do these things myself? We've got a grease gun somewhere.

thanks in advance :)

I honestly have not noticed any zerk fittings on my Eldy. I would like to know their whereabouts. My older 72 car has fittings on the steering linkage, ball joints.

My '97 Deville has 2 fittings on each front wheel but my daughters '99 SLS has none :mad:. I wouldn't be surprised if yours had none either.

My 93 Eldo has 4 fittings on the front end. Each lower ball joint and each tie rod end.

I seem to recall a recent thread here that there might be fittings on the rear end too (I haven't looked for them yet).

Peteski

None in the rear on mine or my daughters but htere are two on each side of my wifes '96 Bonneville.

My '98 Seville has only two zerk fittings. They are on the rear suspension outboard tie rod ends.

These rear tie rod ends are located exactly where any excess grease will drip on the inside wheel flange to gather all manner of dirt, dust, and who knows what, that can upset the wheel balance.

Put your hands together for lifetime lubrication parts.

I have learned from experience on several vehicles that "not seeing zirc fittings" doesn't mean they are not there. The best place to check for locations and lubrication intervals is in the factory service manual for your car and specific year. Also, lubrication warnings do not always mean zirc fittings, there are other chassis and body components that require lubrication that do not come from a grease gun. Consult the proper manual and don't give up because you don't "see" the lubrication point, they get hidden by excess buildup and road grime. I have also learned that lub stations can not possibly know these lube points on all cars and will miss them also because of visual inspection only.
lry99eldo

Thanks for all of your replies everyone. I do have the FSM's for my model year, it's just that these past two weeks we've had an 'invisible hurricane' of events (i work in IT) and all have been "dire emergencies" so i haven't even had time to consult my trusty FSM. When I do find them, if any, i'll post them with pictures if I do the job myself. But this having to work later than 5pm is killin' my car time! :annoyed:

If I do find them in the FSM, i might just call for estimates at the dealer and local shop by my office.

Thanks Again!

I lube my rod and ball joint with KY.

I lube my rod and ball joint with KY.

Your a wisecracker today, aren't ya.

I lube my rod and ball joint with KY.

whoa there killer. that is what i would call TMI. TOO MUCH INFORMATION!!! :thehand: :histeric:

96 Deville, zirk fittings on the ball joints and the tie rods

96 Deville, zirk fittings on the ball joints and the tie rods

ok reading page 0-37 on book one of the FSM:

Wipe off all dirt from the grease fitting before lubricating the joint (duh) Ball joints should not be lubricated unless their temperature is 10*F or higher. Apply grease slowly to the lower ball joints (1) front die rod ends (2) and outer adjustment links (3) while watching the grease seal. Apply grease slowly until grease is seen bleeding from the seal.

alright. now i just need to find pictures of these items. I'm a novice and I don't quite know what all the arms are behind me wheels. I know what all the brake components are, just not these suspension items yet. :hmm: but i'm getting there.

I had the front wheels off this weekend. Payed attention and found some grease fitting on the tie rod ends. Gotta pull out the grease gun sometime, didn't have time this go around.

I wish i knew how the hell to work on my car myself...

You'll learn. My father always had me helping him almost every weekend working on his cars. At first I was the tool gopher. Had to work my way up in his eyes. Alot of experience came from working on an old 72 Olds I bought when I was 22. Kept the car for 8 years, quite a learning experience.

Your age is a good one for learning and slowly acquiring tools.

We were all young and didn't know jack about cars at one point. Buy tools as you need them, get a FSM (factory service manual) and read it. You'll be amazed at what you will learn about how the systems work and it will be invaluable when it comes time to do something. Ask questions, get help and watch. Look at things and see if you can figure out what makes them work and how they go together. I find that if I have to replace something I have nothing to loose by taking it apart and frequently I can repair it rather than replace it, often better than the original. You won't allways be sucessful and sometimes you may even break something and cost yourself more money but you'll learn a lesson you won't soon forget. Remember the tuition in the school of hard knocks is sometimes high and the test usually comes before the lesson.

We were all young and didn't know jack about cars at one point.

When I first started working on cars I bought an automotive encylopedia to learn from. It's a great tool for learning the basics of automotive concepts of mechanical and electronic systems. Although it's about 30yrs old, I still have the kids that want to learn auto repair read it before I start teaching them.

alright. i fould 2 of those grease points on the front outter tie rod fittings. i put my grease gun on it, but i dont think i'm doing it right? do i have to open the grease points like you do bleeder valves on a brake caliper?

i apparently still don't know jack about my car's grease points ;)

No, you don't open anything. There is a spring loaded check ball in the tip to keep the grease in. When you apply pressure with grease, it opens and allows the grease in. Wipe it off first lest you inject dirt that has accumulated and sometimes prevent the check ball from closing and allowing the grease to ooze back out. Watch the rubber boot as you inject grease and you should see it expand if the fitting is taking grease. If you see grease squirt out at the grease gun tip then you are not squarely on the fitting.

alright. i fould 2 of those grease points on the front outter tie rod fittings. i put my grease gun on it, but i dont think i'm doing it right? do i have to open the grease points like you do bleeder valves on a brake caliper?

i apparently still don't know jack about my car's grease points ;)

There are no grease gun fittings under the front end of a '98 Seville!!

None.

Zero.

no grease gun fittings!? now i'm really confused. what is the chassis lubrication the FSM speaks of and what is this that is circled here?? :hmm:

http://www.msu.edu/~tarquin4/temp/IMG_2286.JPG

somebody straighten me out here! :thepan:

You have yourself a grease fitting there, I reckon. That is the same one I just found. Never saw it from the bottom of the car.

no grease gun fittings!? now i'm really confused. what is the chassis lubrication the FSM speaks of and what is this that is circled here?? ....

The one and only way I can bail myself out of this..... Your tire rod end(s) are aftermarket replacement part(s)??

The one and only way I can bail myself out of this..... Your tire rod end(s) are aftermarket replacement part(s)??

Don't worry, Jim. But i have NO idea if they are aftermarket. I bought the car from my local dealer in February. I have a carfax report that has maintenance done it from Day 1 with the first corporation that owned it. but nothing on it lists tie rods being replaced. So i'm confused. One of these days in my "free time" i'll take it in to have everything checked out.

But if that is truly a grease point, do i have to open it a quarter turn like a caliper bleeding valve to get grease into there?

Wipe the fitting clean of grease and dirt. Then snap the end of the grease gun hose over the fitting and pump the gun handle slowly until you see grease oozing out from under the rubber. Stop pumping immediately. Remove the grease gun and wipe up any grease.

I always try to avoid having the excess grease drop to the inner flange of the wheel were it can attract dirt. It's a balance issue for me.

Jim, i must be doing something wrong. I never get any grease into the fitting. I can get it to come out of my gun, just not into the fitting. or it's just really, really dry. :cookoo:

Give it another 10 pump strokes and see what happens.

Give it another 10 pump strokes and see what happens.

I would suggest replacing the zirc fitting. It could be corroded shut.

Make sure you push the gun nozzle hard onto the fitting. It will lock on like a ball and socket so to speak. How does the rubber boot look? Expanded or collapsed? If it is collapsed, then it hasn't been greased in a while and is dry. Like Jim said, keep pumping and you'll see the boot expand.

thanks guys. i'll give it a shot in my next round of free time. I don't think the boot look collapsed, either.