Hi all.

I've noticed a skittering/popping sound coming from my drivers side front area. After pulling the drivers side wheel I operated the steering wheel back and forth and the sound seems to be coming from the strut, predominantly from the area where the spring sits in the strut itself. I notice this sound mainly when I go to take off from a full stop at a traffic light. The popping sound is occuring as if there is some kind of load being released on the front coil spring and/or strut iself. Is there some kind of lubrication, nylon bushing, or some other friction reduction mechanism that may be worn due to age that I might need to lubricate or replace?

 

What condition is the upper strut mount in?

 

I'm not certain to be honest. I'm not sure I would know what to look for to determine if they are worn. I'm operating under the assumption it's lubrication related because I pressure washed the wheel wells using a couple of cans of engine cleaner/degreaser to cut the years of road grime buildup under there. But if you suggest I have the upper mount checked, I'll do that first thing monday morning.

 

Struts can only knock in three places. The top mount as mentioned above, the lower balljoint and the strut shaft itself can have flogged out bushings.
To test top mounthave someone jack up car to unload top mount while you look from inside teh engine bay at it. If you see LOTS of movement when the strut mount is loaded and unloaded, replace it.
To test balljoint, jack up car so wheel is off the ground. Have someone push and pull on the road wheel while you look at the balljoint. Any movement is a fail.
To test strut shaft and bushes, first visually inspect the strut shaft for any severe wear like flaking chrome, gouging, shiny spots etc. Then have someone grab the road wheel and shake it in and out. Again, any significant movement is a fail.
All three failures are cheap, easy fixes.

Regards, Andrew.

 

Well, after some checking it appears that the upper mounts are indeed the culprit. The vehicle has almost 200k miles on it, so it's time I just go ahead and change out the cartridges and the upper mounts on both sides.

Will I need a special spring compressor to do this, or will a standard external clamp-on style work?

 

standard external is what i use.

 

Try to avoid upper strut mounts made by URO or ScanTech...they're very inexpensive but many others have discovered that they don't last very long. In the long run, its better to spend $50-$60ea for a higher quality mount.

 

The easy way to use spring compressors is to jack up car, remove wheel, compress spring with jack under control arm, THEN apply and tighten spring compessor. Often, just letting the jack go after the compressors are on will result in enough spring compression to remove teh strut tops and cartridges.
Think of the compressors as clamps in this instance, and ALWAYS lubricate teh threads of spring compressors every use!

Regards, Andrew.