TheSamba.com :: View topic

Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:20 pm

hello, i tried searching for this, but came up with nothing. Two days ago, my front passenger side suspension started creaking pretty loudly. any time the van moves pretty much. Getting in and out makes it creak. driving, stopping... etc. I dont know the first thing about vanagon suspension systems, but other than the noise it seems to be fine. Nothing is pulling and i drove it on the highway at 75 for close to two hours yesterday. Nothing seems to be wrong other than the obnoxious creaking. sounds like rubber on something... but thats just an example... i have no idea what it is.

to possibly answer my own question, it has suddenly become very warm here in connecticut. Last week there were flurries and lots of flooding rain and then the last two days broke 80. a sudden temperature change for sure.

any ideas? I dont even have time to breathe right now, nevermind try to locate the origin of this noise, so and suggestions are welcomed.

thanks,
ken

Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:25 pm

ken mitchell wrote:

to possibly answer my own question, it has suddenly become very warm here in connecticut. Last week there were flurries and lots of flooding rain and then the last two days broke 80. a sudden temperature change for sure.

did ypu blow a seal in your shock. I blew a seal on a shock in a 70 bus once- sounded like hell. Rapid temp changes may accentuate this.

Sun Apr 22, 2007 5:13 pm

My van creaks like a 100 year old man getting up out of a chair, of course my shocks are stock and 20 years old and probably don't do a thing - their getting replaced soon along with adding 15" tires and wheels, for my annual summer trip to British Columbia, I can't wait!

Sun Apr 22, 2007 5:54 pm

My 85 Westie squeaks pretty loud on a chilly morning. The shocks will be replaced soon, but I thinkg the culprits are really all the old bushings.

Sun Apr 22, 2007 7:24 pm

The upper control arm bushings are famed for their high-pitched performances, and not all of them are old. The cure is new ones, it seems. I've had temporary relief by spraying silicone onto the inner nose of each bushing. It looks like the rubber peels back a little from the center sleeve, and there is some friction with the twisting there. The sleeves all have a shiny band just under the edge of the rubber.

Sun Apr 22, 2007 8:54 pm

Its the upper control arm bushings. My current Vanagon creaks on the front passenger side, usually when it warms up. My last Vanagon did this also on the same side, I don't really notice it anymore.

Sun Apr 22, 2007 9:50 pm

well so long as it isnt anything damaging i could really care less. I just wanted mo make sure it wasnt my van falling apart. i will try some of the silicone spray if i come across some.

thanks everybody! :D

Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:35 am

Just take a look at the bushings, and confirm that the control arm axle shaft is centered relative to the bushing shells. If that's OK, and it probably is, the squeaking is just a minor annoyance that you can't do much about unless you rebuild them.

I even tried loosening the axle shaft, and retightening with the wheels loaded, which has been suggested as a way to prevent the problem when installing new bushings, rather than tightening with the wheels hanging down. Doing that may help prevent the problem with new ones, but it had no effect on my old ones. The spraying with some lube seems to offer some temporary relief. If you take a close look with a flashlight, you can see the shiny ring caused by the rubbing.

Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:53 am

ken mitchell wrote: well so long as it isnt anything damaging i could really care less. I just wanted mo make sure it wasnt my van falling apart.

Just a quick note, if your upper control arm bushings are too badly worn (or are allowed to get that way), your front end alignment will be way off which will increase your tire wear considerably in addition to contributing to poor handling characteristics. And like tencent said, always tighten suspension bushings while fully loaded (ie at ride height) instead of at full droop. Tightening at full droop will preload the bushings which can cause squeaks and premature failure and can also increase the ride stiffness slightly.

Wed May 14, 2014 10:08 pm

Question about tightening the upper control arm bushings: can the bolt be tightened with the wheel off and loading the suspension with a jack under the lower control arm? Access to the bolt would be much easier. Also, is the tack weld absolutely necessary? Thanks!

Wed May 14, 2014 10:55 pm

PDXWesty wrote: Question about tightening the upper control arm bushings: can the bolt be tightened with the wheel off and loading the suspension with a jack under the lower control arm? Access to the bolt would be much easier. Also, is the tack weld absolutely necessary? Thanks!

Yes and it depends on who you ask. There are people here that are running uca bushings that are not tacked without issue.

Neil2

Thu May 15, 2014 8:56 am

Anyone else have an opinion on the tack welds?

Thu May 15, 2014 8:59 am

Replaced my squeekers about 4 years ago. Marked their orientation with paint. Did NOT tack weld. Just saw them the other day when was crawling around under it. They have not rotated one bit.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:36 am

I just completed putting in upper and lower bushings (urethane) and ball joints as well as put in later 86 spindles along with the big brake kit. Huge difference in handling and stopping but I am still getting a noise.

The noise comes when going over modest bumps in the road. No noise at any other time. Should the springs have rubber dampeners on them. Do I need to replace the rest of the bushings?

The van has only 70k miles on it. What else in the front could be making this noise. I am thinking it is the springs creaking.

By the way, I have two sets of hubs and calipers (84 & 86) and 84 spindles that someone can have if they need them. Pick up only...sorry.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 3:24 pm

I had the same issue last year. Passenger side was creaking/squeaking every time the wife jumped in or we went through a dip or over a bump.

Really annoying. Rather than tell the wife to go on a diet and get in some real trouble :shock: I sprayed pure silicon spray on all the bushings. It was the control arm bushings that were making the noise. After a few miles it disappeared and has never returned. I give them a shot of silicone every once in a while. BANDAID :roll:

I first tried using WD40. It didn't help at all.

Silicone is the trick until I get the bushings replaced.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 7:30 pm

Syncro Jael wrote: I had the same issue last year. Passenger side was creaking/squeaking every time the wife jumped in or we went through a dip or over a bump.

Really annoying. Rather than tell the wife to go on a diet and get in some real trouble :shock: I sprayed pure silicon spray on all the bushings. It was the control arm bushings that were making the noise. After a few miles it disappeared and has never returned. I give them a shot of silicone every once in a while. BANDAID :roll:

I first tried using WD40. It didn't help at all.

Silicone is the trick until I get the bushings replaced.

Fluid Film is even better, if you need it in a spray bomb - ATF in a garden sprayer is best.

Tue Jun 03, 2014 12:19 pm

I guess I'll replace the sway bar and radius arm bushings since that's all that is left. Then everything under there is new.

Any chance it is the spring making the noise? Moving about a bit?

I need to find someone to jump up and down on the car while I investigate.

I coated all the urethane bushings with silicone grease before installing them and the noise is not a squeak, more of a light clunk. ??? Feeling kind of stupid just keeping replacing parts.

Tue Jun 03, 2014 1:11 pm

Make sure everything is tight. I replaced all my bushings and ball joints and was sure I torqued everything to spec. I had a clunk in the front end I couldn't identify when momentum shifted. After I brought it in for allignment the mechanic said the drivers upper control arm was loose. I would go through all the nuts and bolts again and re-torque them after driving a bit.

Thu Jun 05, 2014 5:18 am

I've been dosing the rubber on NavDog for 23+ years with a pump oiler full of ATF. It preserves/rejuvenates the rubber and silences squeaks. While I have a complete set of replacement rubber on hand, I haven't really seen the need to do the job - I just keep applying tranny juice. I recommend you give that a try.

Thu Jun 05, 2014 6:03 am

Silicon worked for me, havnt heard any sounds for awhile.