Regis Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 Got a question that I could use some help on. How do I know when one of my rear struts is starting to go bad? The ride is fine. I do, however, get a slight shaking in my seat when I'm getting up to highway speeds but goes away after 2-3 minutes of driving. When, in park, I grab the left rear tirewell and lift up there is a rather loud creaking sound and the same sound when i push down on it. Imagine a rather large couple getting familiar on a mattress and boxspring that's on it's last leg. That's the sound. When I'm driving around the neighborhood you hear it on every dip, bump, or anything that isn't flat. Also I hear it pulling away from a dead stop ....actually even if i don't come to a full stop. How about some ideas here. One last thing.... the sound is isolated to the left rear strut and spring area only. Thanks for any input. -kg 207,000 miles "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
careldo Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 sounds like bushings have them checked Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis Posted June 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 sounds like bushings have them checked Yea i was hoping that's all it was so I sprayed silicone on 4 different occasions trying to quiet and pinpoint the origin. I've sprayed everything that is rubber or looks like rubber, should be rubber and went through 2 cans in the process. My mechanic had a go at it with silicone on two different occasions when i was in for some other work. Unfortunately, I think it's something more involved. Thanks for the post though careldo. "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 Did you take off the tire and look at it? The actual strut itself really doesn't make a 'creaking' noise , at least the ones on my 99.. I'm not sure if they are the same on the 94.. The ones on mine are the ...umm.. what do they call it cvrss or something like that, i can never remember the acronyms. Older struts can make a creaking noise...... usually the springs make creaking noises.. it's pretty easy to find out if you jack up the back, and then start kicking things in the area to see what makes noise bad bushings will make squeaking and crackling type noises, struts usually make more 'airy' noises.. can't really describe.. If the strut was bad and you pushed real hard down on the car it would bounce and keep bouncing.. if the strut has anything left in it, it will stop the bounce. Check for leaking around them also.. mine were leaking so there was fluid residue on them (struts/shocks) and around the area. You could always just take it off and examine it.. the rears are pretty easy to do.. Be glad it's one of the rear ones By the way you can't always tell if a bushing is bad by looking at it. Usually if they aren't squishy any more and they are cracked or crumbling, etc it's kinda of obvious.. sometimes they are just worn on the inside and there's no way to tell without taking it apart :/ Do you have a service manual? Hope some of this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
careldo Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 O.K I'l take another wack at it how about the bearing assembly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 the bearings shouldn't make any noise when you aren't moving and you said if you are in park and you just press down on the back of the car it squeaks. Just to do a spot check i'd jack up the back of the car, grab the tire left and right and wiggle it hard and feel/listen for clunks, then grab the top and bottom and do the same. If it's all tight probably have nothing to worry about, then spin the tire as fast as you can both ways and listen for noise too.. it won't spin freely (at least not on mine because of the nature of the brakes) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis Posted June 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 Well I'm glad it doesn't seem like it would be the strut. Here's some more info that may help diagnose the situation. It's definitely not a squeak sound but is a creak sound. I can control the frequency of the creak by how slow or fast I pull up and push down the car in that rear area. It's a distinct sound and you can definitely feel it in the wheel when you touch it. Also you may find this interesting: when I've been driving around and then park the car and open the rear left (same side as the sound) passenger door and then close it, I hear a noticeable "tinggg" sound coming from the rear wheel (rim). Like something shifted or broke free. Happens everytime. I thought it might be a wheel bearing but no humming sound when cruising down the highway. There is a little play when I grab the tire and wiggle it in and out and more then the other side but doesn't feel like it's going to fall off if you know what I mean. Your thoughts on this fellas??? Like i said before I've soaked the area with silicone just to see if I could get it to subside for even a few seconds with no luck. So if it is a bushing perhaps there is one that is hidden? I'm open to anything at this point. "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfoo Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 The internet is great.. but still lacks the ability for someone to cheaply visualize something. If you had a very expensive camera and a fast internet connection you could stream some video while talking on live chat to somenoe and they could probably tell you the problem.. Check the spring. If it's making a loud 'ting' and creaking it could be a loose spring which is fairly easy and inexpensive to replace.. there should be ruber pads on the bottom and top of the spring maybe those got fried.. or the spring rusted out.. if you don't know what you are looking for, there is an easy way to diagnose.. take a look on the right side and then take a look on the left side... see if you can find ANYTHING different about one side vs the other and I mean things like the position of the strut/spring , the bulges in anything rubber, rust, anything. if you find something noticably different from one side to the other like a pises of rubber missing or something aligned or turned differently you have a place to start Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis Posted June 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 The internet is great.. but still lacks the ability for someone to cheaply visualize something. If you had a very expensive camera and a fast internet connection you could stream some video while talking on live chat to somenoe and they could probably tell you the problem.. Check the spring. If it's making a loud 'ting' and creaking it could be a loose spring which is fairly easy and inexpensive to replace.. there should be ruber pads on the bottom and top of the spring maybe those got fried.. or the spring rusted out.. if you don't know what you are looking for, there is an easy way to diagnose.. take a look on the right side and then take a look on the left side... see if you can find ANYTHING different about one side vs the other and I mean things like the position of the strut/spring , the bulges in anything rubber, rust, anything. if you find something noticably different from one side to the other like a pises of rubber missing or something aligned or turned differently you have a place to start You're right about that bigfoo. The internet just wets the appetite for more. I made an appointment next tuesday with Dave the mechanic. I wanted to go in loaded for bear incase he got stuck. He says I make his job easy. Honestly I've crawled under the back of the car so many times (evolution just might grow wheels on my back) without success and now it's time to get serious. I wanted a list of possiblities so i wouldn't leave the shop with a half fixed situation. Thanks for the information and if you come up with anything else feel free to add it. That goes for anyone that has an idea. Thanks! -kg "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis Posted June 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2004 Ok here's the update on the "creaking" that won't go. We determined that it's either the upper control arm bushings (mechs thought) or the knuckle bushings (my thought). We also noticed after close inspection that the stabilizer bar is contacting the lower shock housing at certain times. There is an obvious rub line on both parts but couldn't get it to do it on the lift or when we set it down. Probably happens under certain loads.... perhaps when cornering. The tire wear is surprisingly even. I'm going with replacing the knuckle first. I think the worn knuckle bushings would account for the loud "tinggg" sound I mentioned earlier. Unfortunately the knuckle and its bushings are one unit ($420 dealer and $281 wholesale+20% per side) and isn't a cheap educated guess. Hopefully it isn't both the upper control arm and knuckle..... well at least then we would both be right. Meanwhile I put a small glob of Mobile synthetic grease between the stabilizer bar and shock until the knuckle arrives. I'll update as things happen. -kg "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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