Should I replace kingpins in addition to bearings? A few other questions too.

Hi all. It's time for me to become a true Jimny owner and DIY refresh my swivel hubs (saw some lovely poo gathered there recently and had my minor wobble get worse). I've been poking around the different parts and kits available online and have some questions.

1. Is it worth replacing the kingpins as well as the bearings? On Jimnybits the kingpins are like £100 for a pair of OEM ones or £40 for aftermarket, which I'm happy to pay for but if there's no point and I can just clean up my existing ones then why bother? For reference it's my 2007, 75k miles.
2. Should I pre-emptively shim my kingpins or just install them "naked" and see if I get any wobble first? Should shimming be seen as a default thing to do?
3. Has anyone used the X8R kit? For example, they've got this one for £154.99 that seems to have everything you'd need. I think it would work out cheaper to just buy the parts piecemeal though. : x8r.co.uk/suzuki-jimny-full-kingpin-rebuild-kit.html
4. Is there any advice for getting the ABS bolt out without shearing it? Seems like it's practically guaranteed on an older vehicle like mine so just assuming it will break. Breaking this or getting stuck on corroded bolts is the part that most worries me!
5. Do I need to drain my front diff before starting?

Thanks everyone

The only time you ever need to replace the kingpins is if they are damaged. They are not a wearing part and do not need to be replaced at the same time as the bearings. 

A set of shims is a sensible investment but there is a process for determining if they are required. Don't put any in unless you've measured the preload and deemed it necessary.

The basic parts needed are not expensive. 2 bearings and the driveshaft seal should come to about £30 a side. That's all you need to stop the typical symptoms of a steering wobble and an oil leak. There seems to be a trend of people selling kits with more and more parts, most of which are unnecessary, and it makes the job much more expensive than it needs to be.
Also be aware the XR8 instructional video tells you to pack the swivel with grease and this is incorrect. You may need to put a small amount in the CV joint, and it's sensible to smear some waterproof grease over the lower bearing, but that's all your should do. Any excess grease will eventually leak out past the dust seal, making it look like you have another kingpin issue.

You don't need to drain the diff oil. Jacking up the side you're working on is enough to drain the oil away from that end of the axle.

Thanks Busta! Especially on the heads-up around the X8R video. I've watched 5 different videos of people doing it now (lol) and some people seem to pack it out with loads of grease and others less so.

So you just want to grease up the CV joint, kingpin bearings, the end of the kingpins and a little bit around the swivel dust seal? And not go crazy packing out the inside of the hub?

I re-watched Martin's video () and actually found him say this in the comments about shims: "I always pop a single medium shim on the top to start with and then, if necessary, add shims alternating bottom and top."

I guess it's unnecessary if you don't get wobble but saves you going back and redoing it later. I imagine excessive preload on the bearings just leads to earlier failure?

The correct way to set the preload is to apply around 35 Newton to the knuckle via the hole for the drag link. This should be applied with a spring balance and observed through the entire arc of movement. It will register a little more to get the knuckle moving but should then be stable. I do this without the seal clamped on so that when fully assembled there is a little extra drag but it's still within the tolerance.

Thanks Lambert. For the few quid it'll cost I might as well get a spring balance and check it properly.

Good video on the process here, always jealous of how clean the fixings are on these Australian Jimnys:

Did the job at the weekend! I ended up taking so long that I didn't really have to to do the driver side so that'll have to wait until my next free weekend. It actually went relatively smoothly though. Here are some thoughts:

• The biggest problem I encountered - to drive the old races out with a socket it needs to be 25mm / 1 inch exactly. 24mm will not do! It's too small, it just falls through, the margins are very slim. I had to go buy one specifically for this and it's a weird size for most shops to stock (buy online in advance)
• ABS bolt broke like everyone said it would, I drilled through it and found a skinny enough bolt / nyloc nut to do the job but I only had one so will need to find another for the driver side
• Getting the hub back on once you've fitted the new bearings is not fun. Whilst solo I dropped the bottom bearing and then had to clean / regrease it because it got dirty. Ended up needing a second pair of hands to hold it in place but finally got it.
• I really struggled to get my track rod splitter in position , dunno if user error or if it was the wrong size (too small) but I split them at a slightly awkward angle using the old nut at the top to anchor the splitter's bolt - worked but I really didn't like it. Could not split using a hammer at all.
• General point but the job is tough on your knees, have some cushioning / floor mats - also a huge amount of paper towel
• I didn't buy new caliper holder bolts but probably should have done (2x #09117-12012 for one side) as they were very corroded. The air locking hub bolts were a bit gnarly and didn't inspire much confidence (socket didn't sit nicely on one of them due to corrosion) so I'm getting some replacements (6x #43811-81A00 for one side). They get tightened up to a pretty high torque too so you want the heads to be nice.

But overall went well! Wobble and leaking now gone, looks b-e-a-utiful with all the fresh bolts and tidied up ball. It's a very nice feeling to sit in the wobble zone of 40mph - 50mph and get nothing. As a total novice this is easily the biggest DIY job I've done so very happy with the outcome.