Jump to content

Test For Bushings In Lower Control Arms


eemueller

Recommended Posts

I can hear quite a rattle in the front end of my '97 SC400 (113K miles) and based on what I've read here on the forums, it sounds like it may be the lower control arm bushings. Is there a way to confirm this with the wheels off the ground? I've searched and couldn't find anything. I know to look for lateral play in the wheels when checking ball joints, but I'm not sure how to check these bushings.

Also, is there a way to test the steering arm bushings? I've read a few posts regarding these and I figure if I'm checking front end things, I might as well check them all.

Thanks

Eric

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for links, I really appreciate it.

Regarding tramling, I'm not sure what that is. What I hear is a loud rattling/banging from the front suspension (can't really tell which side) when I go over any sizable bumps. Unfortunately, our lousy roads in Michigan have plenty of bumps.

Eric

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here is a wiki link for tamlining

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tramlining

Basically, if a car tramlines, it will follow any ruts in the road even pull if there is a noticable crown in the road. I bring it up only because I have had a problem with it and because in general, if a SC300 SC400 has bad LCA bushings it will tramlin; the amount increasing as the bushing wear out. Mine turned out to be the tires instead of the LCA's. I rotated the tires and it was like night and day. At highway speeds it would sometimes require two hands and your full attention to keep the car under control. If you have no tramlining, I would bet that you just have something loose in the front suspension that makes a noise when you go over bumps. I read a thread somewhere a few weeks back talking about that problem. I think the person had the LCA's replaced and had a bump/thumb in the front end. Ended up something wasn't torqued enough.

Good Luck!

Michael

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



×
×
  • Create New...

Forums


News


Membership