Creaking At Low Speed

[sv7887]

Hi Everyone,

I'm a long time LS owner having owned two LS400's and another two LS430's. My problem concerns my 1992 LS400. The car was hit by a wayward driver about two years ago. Ever since then, the car makes this creaking/thunking noise when you maneuver around the parking lot around 10-15 MPH. It usually occurs when making a right turn.

The whole Left Front Suspension Assembly was replaced. I think the only thing not done was the shocks. Both lower ball joints were done. The Upper Control Arms were done on the right side last week. The Sway bar bushings were done 18 months ago. The Power Steering Rack was done last week along with the "Rear Carrier Bushings."I've given the dealer 18 months to get to the bottom of this. I was furious after last week, having spent $2100 and still am having the same problem. Each time I take the car in, I get another story..I'm giving them one last chance on Friday to get it right, or they will face litigation.

I was told Strut Rod Bushings may be the culprit, what do you think? I'm tired of the Lexus approach of just replacing parts without regard to the actual problem!!

Many thanks,

Sam

[nc211]

Sam, I had this problem on my right side a few months ago, minus the thumping. Moving slowly, the car slowly pitches in a normal fashion and it would creak, especially over bumps at super slow speed. Mine turned out to be my shock. They replaced the shock and the creaking was gone. But, the strut rods can be the cause too. The thing with suspension replacements is that once you replace one part, the flaws in the other connecting parts begin to appear. It's like replacing an ailing drummer in a band. They all sounded great together, but put in a better drummer, and the weaknesses of the ailing guitar player shows that much more. That is why you'll see below in my signature that I just hit all the parts at once.

[sv7887]

Thanks for your post. My creaking occurs not over bumps but when turning. I told them to replace both the strut rod bushings (which I was told was cracked) and the shocks in tandem...They claimed that this was not the case. I don't see how shocks would not be worn out at 96K miles..

Basically when you manuever at low speeds it will creak from the front, like pulling into a parking spot. Once you apply the brakes to bring the car to a full stop it bounces a little and creaks.

Thanks again for the post,

SV

[the-hedge]

My '98 has just developed a creaking noise at 115k.

I only hear it at slow speeds and only on the right side.

Open the hood, place your hand on the upper support, and gently bounce the car. Do you feel and hear the noise?. I do.

I'm gonna dive into it next week. I'll return with my findings.

B)