[Will98D]

I bought two lower ball joints from PP for a 1974 914. The original joints and one of the replacement parts I got had a V-notch cut in the stem that goes up into the strut housing. The V-notch one went in no problem. The second replacement part had a semi-circle cut into it for the pin, not a V. I have tried probably 10 times to line it up and get the pin to tap in place but cannot. It goes in part way and then hangs up with about 8mm of the pin sticking out. I’ve tapped it with a wood dowel, and if I try to drive it any harder it starts to leave indentations in the pin. If the thread were longer I could probably tighten the nut up and have it work fine but it's not.

The guy at the PP parts line said that both of them work the same, but I cannot get this half-circle one to work. Is there some special trick to making the round one work? Does the pin not go in as far with the round one? (they end up almost flush with the V-notch part).

I appreciate if someone can get back to me with a quick response… my car is plugging up the garage. I'm thinking I may need to get PP to find one on the shelf with a V.