Creaking Noise

[stevew37]

Hi Everyone

I'm in the UK but though I'd post this here as well as I know there are many LS owners in the US.

Hope someone might be able to suggest what could be causing a creaking noise from the front passenger side of the car.

It seems suspension related but what I can't work out is that the car will often drive perfectly for the first 15-20 miles of a journey.

I had both front lower ball joints replaced a while back as the garage I took it to diagnosed those as the culprits.

However there has been very little improvement and along with the creaking noise I sometimes get a real jolt when going over a speed hump or a pothole in the road.

It's almost like I've driven up a kerb!

Could something be broken, spring or shock?

And if so why does it seem ok for the first part of a journey?

Steve

[Kennyr]

Hi Everyone

I'm in the UK but though I'd post this here as well as I know there are many LS owners in the US.

Hope someone might be able to suggest what could be causing a creaking noise from the front passenger side of the car.

It seems suspension related but what I can't work out is that the car will often drive perfectly for the first 15-20 miles of a journey.

I had both front lower ball joints replaced a while back as the garage I took it to diagnosed those as the culprits.

However there has been very little improvement and along with the creaking noise I sometimes get a real jolt when going over a speed hump or a pothole in the road.

It's almost like I've driven up a kerb!

Could something be broken, spring or shock?

And if so why does it seem ok for the first part of a journey?

Steve

←

The creaking noise could be the bushing in the bottom of the struts. Just replace the struts for this. Also remove the sway bar bushings and replace them. Lube up the new ones. Noisy sway bar bushings are common to all cars. When I bought my 91 with 82k those two problems came with the car. If the noise is in your cabin It could be the sunroof bolts. Good luck

[cruznroadking]

My vote is to replace the front sway bar bushings if they've never been done. I replaced mine on my 90 LS when it had 82,000 miles on it. When I inspected the old bushings they were oblong & not round any more. Hope this helps

[nc211]

What year and how many miles on your car?

Strut rods in the front could be the problem. I have same problem on my 95 w/ 98k miles. I replaced sway bar bushings "no luck", then replaced the front strut rods "no luck". Finally, I bit the bullet and bought all new control arms for everything. Uppers, lowers, front and back. Will have them put on next weekend. Are you getting a "clunk" noise when hitting a bump, or a dip in the road making the suspension compress pretty heavily?

[stevew37]

Many thanks for the suggestions guys.

I'll be taking these on board and will start with the sway bar bushings and struts and see how things are after that.

nc211, my car is also a 95 but with more miles (156k) than yours.

And yes I most definately experience a noise such as you describe when hitting a bump in the road.

Seems like I could be in for an expensive time :(

[the-hedge]

My 98 has developed a creaking noise at slow speeds.

Raise the hood, place your hand on top of the support and gently bounce the car.

Do you hear and FEEL the noise? I do. I'll dive into that next week and return with findings.

For quite a while i've noticed the bumping noise that nc211 asked about. Toyo dealer says the bump is strut rod bushings for $550.00. We shall see.

[nc211]

My 98 has developed a creaking noise at slow speeds.

Raise the hood, place your hand on top of the support and gently bounce the car.

Do you hear and FEEL the noise? I do. I'll dive into that next week and return with findings.

For quite a while i've noticed the bumping noise that nc211 asked about. Toyo dealer says the bump is strut rod bushings for $550.00. We shall see.

$550???? HAHAHAHA!!! Looks like someone at the toyota dealership is looking for a good christmas bonus from you!

www.lexuspartsonline.com

Although the picture below for some reason shows the 90-94 strut rod, this is the part they're referring to. Ours are a little bit different on the bushing side "where there's is a threaded screw type". But, about the same price either way. go to that side, drill down to your model year under the "mechanical" catelog...front suspension....suspension compnents....and you'll see it. It's called STRUT ROD. You might have to call them to MAKE SURE you've got the 95-00 part, and not the one they're showing on this chart.

The part is #10 in the picture

Price? $93 bucks each.

Difficulty in installing? Easy.

I'm up one state from you..but I can guess that you hear these creaks and thumps when the temp is 55 degrees or below? That's usually when the rubber bushings begin to harden up from the cold, and the creaks come out to play. Mine does the same thing. Got to relubricate my stabalizer bar bushings soon, as they have never been "properly" greased, just bandaided here and there.

[DanW]

My vote is to replace the front sway bar bushings if they've never been done. I replaced mine on my 90 LS when it had 82,000 miles on it. When I inspected the old bushings they were oblong & not round any more. Hope this helps

I had a similar creaking over speed bumps and dips in the road. Sway bar bushings (replaced with Daizen kit) did the trick and was a nice improvement to the ride.

Why would the creaking be intermittent? Mine would ususally creak really bad when it was cold, then stop after it warmed up. Yours seems to be doing the opposite, but I'd bet its the same issue.