Help diagnose suspension noise

[blocke]

Hi all, new to the forums...first post concerning an issue. I've done tons of searching, and checked as recommended..but still in need of help.

Recently (within the last 500 miles or so), I've been getting this rubber squeak noise out of the front left (drivers side) suspension. Only occurs when I go over speed bumps, dips in the road, or pulling into an incline driveway.
My first thought was upper control arms, but those were replaced 10k miles ago by Canyon Racer Motorsports. I tried lubing up all the bushings in an attempt to see if the squeak temporarily went away, but it did not. Also checked to make sure everything was torqued down. Can you all give this vid a listen and try to point me in the right direction?

Things already checked:
Checked for play in the arms/bushings
Checked everything was torqued (arms, tie rods, calipers, subframe, end links, steering rack bolt under battery tray, strut mounts)
Lubed bushings




Thanks in advance!

[Matt C]

Sounds like your bump stop to me. Are you sure it isn't the rear of the car?

[blocke]

Sounds like your bump stop to me. Are you sure it isn't the rear of the car?

Definitely the front left. How would I check/fix bump stop?

[Matt C]

Easier to diagnose with two people. One person shakes, the other person isolates the sound. Are you lowered? I had the same squeak but it was determined to be the rear of the car. I removed the bump stop and cut 1/2 inch off of it on both sides. Also check the mounts to the shock tower that are accessible from the engine bay. There is a large rubber bushing in there that could be the culprit. Hard to diagnose over the net.

[blocke]

Easier to diagnose with two people. One person shakes, the other person isolates the sound. Are you lowered? I had the same squeak but it was determined to be the rear of the car. I removed the bump stop and cut 1/2 inch off of it on both sides. Also check the mounts to the shock tower that are accessible from the engine bay. There is a large rubber bushing in there that could be the culprit. Hard to diagnose over the net.

Yeah for sure. Not lowered, stock suspension setup with 54k miles. I'll do some more checking and see what I can find. Not looking forward to any large jobs...

[Matt C]

Yeah for sure. Not lowered, stock suspension setup with 54k miles. I'll do some more checking and see what I can find. Not looking forward to any large jobs...

Post in the regional forums. There are plenty of DIY'ers in CA that can help you with suspension. Not a difficult job at all - even for a first-timer. There are a lot of how-to's on the net. Maybe this is an excuse to do a suspension overhaul. I did H&R coilovers, and the entire 034 control arm kit this summer. Car rides better than new with 78K on the clock.

[blocke]

So update on this:
Initial examination with the wheel on, the control arm bushings looked OK. So I had narrowed it down to possibly the strut mounts. Well today I pulled out the strut to replace the mounts with some 034 Density line versions, and got a better look at the bushing in the upper arms. Both are torn.
Service records provided by the PO show that these were replaced 14k ago by "Canyon Racer Motorsports". Is it possible that they would fail that soon? Or more likely that they were not tightened down while at ride height, resulting in premature failure?

So next step from here is new upper arms. Is there anyone out there that makes them with a different setup, as opposed to the failure prone rubber bushing? I would like to do coil overs in the future, so an adjustable setup would also be a good investment.

[LJH]

I would guess that they were not torqued at ride height....

Cheers,
Jim

[elwigglero]

I would guess that they were not torqued at ride height....

Cheers,
Jim

Yep, they probably torqued them while the car was on the lift. This causes them to tear when the suspension is loaded after the car is taken off of the lift. Boner maneuver, but it happens.

[blocke]

Yep, they probably torqued them while the car was on the lift. This causes them to tear when the suspension is loaded after the car is taken off of the lift. Boner maneuver, but it happens.

Ya that's what I figured. Bummer. According to Yelp this place has a good rep with the VAG crowd. You'd think they would know how to do this. Guess some 034 arms are in order.

[Kookie]

Ya that's what I figured. Bummer. According to Yelp this place has a good rep with the VAG crowd. You'd think they would know how to do this. Guess some 034 arms are in order.

Just have them throw them back up on the lift and re-tight the appropriate way. You'll need an alignment i believe..

[blocke]

But the bushings are torn.


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[JimmyBones]

But the bushings are torn.


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Yep you need new bushings.

There is a way to tighten the upper control arm bushings with the control arms and shocks/springs outside the car but most aftermarket shops don't read instructions.