Front lower arm bushings 04 WRX
Discussion
Hi,
I'm getting a clunk each time I brake slowly going forward and also when I reverse. Seems to be coming from the NSF, but nothing resonating through the steering. I've a feeling it's a ball joint or possibly one of the bushes in the (alloy) lower arms.
It's in for inspection next week, if it turns out to be a knackered bush (and at 112k I imagine it would be) then I'll do the ball joint, rear bush and inner bushing at the same time. Suspension is fine and dandy, no broken springs etc.
Question is, are poly the way forward with these or just stick to standard Subaru / OEM ?. Car is my daily, no track days, 5k PA usually.
Also, anyone know the part number for the ball joint and front inner bushing at all.
TIA and cheers.
I'm getting a clunk each time I brake slowly going forward and also when I reverse. Seems to be coming from the NSF, but nothing resonating through the steering. I've a feeling it's a ball joint or possibly one of the bushes in the (alloy) lower arms.
It's in for inspection next week, if it turns out to be a knackered bush (and at 112k I imagine it would be) then I'll do the ball joint, rear bush and inner bushing at the same time. Suspension is fine and dandy, no broken springs etc.
Question is, are poly the way forward with these or just stick to standard Subaru / OEM ?. Car is my daily, no track days, 5k PA usually.
Also, anyone know the part number for the ball joint and front inner bushing at all.
TIA and cheers.
vxr2010 said:
could be brake pads moving , or arb link , the only other part i ever changed was the bush that joins the lower suspension arm to the bottom of the hub , my money is on the pads or arb links
Ahhh..Ok... I checked the drop links today ,they're fine as they were swapped out when the suspension was done. Brake pads seem ok as well. I've noticed it's "clattering" a bit over a NS bump near the house (sunken drain cover) but not resonating through the steering. I think the next thing is to get it up on a ramp with a shuffle plate and get a pry bar onto it.I've checked prices, bushings from ICP aren't that expensive, I'll do both sides plus ball joints as well if it is that.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Thanks mate, sorry for the late reply but you've saved me a headache.I owe you a beer.
FWIW I went with genuine Subaru from ICP, as the car lives a relatively easy life I didn't see any need in poly's.
It's in for new Ball joints, bushings f & r on the front lower arms and new bushes on the rear trailing arms as they're visibly cracked. My mechanic will clean them up and also do a 4 wheel alignment afterwards, so hopefully should see an improvement. At the same time I'm pulling the U frame off the front and getting it sand blasted, then I'll set about it with various anti rust and other stuff.
Next is to do the lateral links, re bush them all with standard and the rear subframe.
Despite being tempted to the point of almost purchase of an M4C, I know that this would be a regrettable sale if ever, so I've decided to throw some money replacing what needs to be done on a 111k car and keeping hold of it.
They grow on you, don't they
Thanks mate, sorry for the late reply but you've saved me a headache.I owe you a beer.
FWIW I went with genuine Subaru from ICP, as the car lives a relatively easy life I didn't see any need in poly's.
It's in for new Ball joints, bushings f & r on the front lower arms and new bushes on the rear trailing arms as they're visibly cracked. My mechanic will clean them up and also do a 4 wheel alignment afterwards, so hopefully should see an improvement. At the same time I'm pulling the U frame off the front and getting it sand blasted, then I'll set about it with various anti rust and other stuff.
Next is to do the lateral links, re bush them all with standard and the rear subframe.
Despite being tempted to the point of almost purchase of an M4C, I know that this would be a regrettable sale if ever, so I've decided to throw some money replacing what needs to be done on a 111k car and keeping hold of it.
They grow on you, don't they
Right, bushes in, ball joints in and all good...apart from a leaking Rad.
It transpired that the N/ S lower arm rear bush (the big one that the housing bolts to the chassis) was totally shot and wouldn't have passed the MOT, the fronts were also pretty tired, but the ball joints were OK but not great.
In the end I went for Powerflex polys for the front lower arm and genuine Subaru for the ball joints and rear lower arm bushes along with powerflex for the rear trailing arm bushes. I didn't opt for 4wheel alignment as I'm doing the rear lateral links in october, so just got it tracked. The U frame turned out great, plus I dynaxed the chassis when it was off.
I'm really pleased with the results. Along with the suspension refresh it's made the car much tighter and it drives a whole lot better. less body roll and a more comfy ride, plus the "clunk" has gone.
So thanks again to Messrs Teknopug and vxr2010 for your help. That leads me to my next question, the rad needs replacing, do I go OEM or Japspeed / Mishimoto alloy?. I really need ease of fitment and reliability, cost not really too much of an issue as it's a fairly essential item, it'll be fitted along with the cam belt replacement next month.
Cheers in advance gents
It transpired that the N/ S lower arm rear bush (the big one that the housing bolts to the chassis) was totally shot and wouldn't have passed the MOT, the fronts were also pretty tired, but the ball joints were OK but not great.
In the end I went for Powerflex polys for the front lower arm and genuine Subaru for the ball joints and rear lower arm bushes along with powerflex for the rear trailing arm bushes. I didn't opt for 4wheel alignment as I'm doing the rear lateral links in october, so just got it tracked. The U frame turned out great, plus I dynaxed the chassis when it was off.
I'm really pleased with the results. Along with the suspension refresh it's made the car much tighter and it drives a whole lot better. less body roll and a more comfy ride, plus the "clunk" has gone.
So thanks again to Messrs Teknopug and vxr2010 for your help. That leads me to my next question, the rad needs replacing, do I go OEM or Japspeed / Mishimoto alloy?. I really need ease of fitment and reliability, cost not really too much of an issue as it's a fairly essential item, it'll be fitted along with the cam belt replacement next month.
Cheers in advance gents
TEKNOPUG said:
OEM on everything not performance related.
Is it a saloon or wagon? Wagon has a VOSA recall on the front arms = free replacement from Subaru.
Saloon, alloy arms and all done, rebushed, cleaned and sorted now. Is it a saloon or wagon? Wagon has a VOSA recall on the front arms = free replacement from Subaru.
OEM radiator should be fine then?, ICP don't have any in stock online but I'll call them monday . No track days, driven with sympathy and 5k pa, mixture of roads. The state of the original rad is pretty shocking tbh, leaks from the top and the sides. It's not terrible, maybe half a cup of coolant a week at the most but it's making a mess.
I think ICP offer Nissen OEM replacement, Nissen stuff is half decent I think. Otherwise it's a japspeed alloy for a hundred or so quid more.
texaxile said:
Saloon, alloy arms and all done, rebushed, cleaned and sorted now.
OEM radiator should be fine then?, ICP don't have any in stock online but I'll call them monday . No track days, driven with sympathy and 5k pa, mixture of roads. The state of the original rad is pretty shocking tbh, leaks from the top and the sides. It's not terrible, maybe half a cup of coolant a week at the most but it's making a mess.
I think ICP offer Nissen OEM replacement, Nissen stuff is half decent I think. Otherwise it's a japspeed alloy for a hundred or so quid more.
Dealers can be quite reasonable for OEM stuff.OEM radiator should be fine then?, ICP don't have any in stock online but I'll call them monday . No track days, driven with sympathy and 5k pa, mixture of roads. The state of the original rad is pretty shocking tbh, leaks from the top and the sides. It's not terrible, maybe half a cup of coolant a week at the most but it's making a mess.
I think ICP offer Nissen OEM replacement, Nissen stuff is half decent I think. Otherwise it's a japspeed alloy for a hundred or so quid more.
Konan said:
OEM rad is fine till you push 300hp on track on a hot summer day.
Only reason to avoid is longevity of plastic end tanks, but you should still be good for 10 years there!
Sounds good, the current one is original from 04, it's leaking along the top and the bottom near the expansion tank. I'm not going to mess around with radweld or anything, but will very probably go for OEM again, as an alloy might be overkill for a car which will never see a track day.Only reason to avoid is longevity of plastic end tanks, but you should still be good for 10 years there!
I rang ICP yesterday, they're not sure / non committal when the next delivery will be, but nissens are on ebay for £156 or it's £259 for a japspeed alloy. My only concern is if the nissens will fit correctly. As Teknopug suggested, I'll call Hammonds Subaru and see what they can offer.
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