95 MC rear squeak - ideas?

[RobertISaar]

you guys know how much i don't know about suspension stuff, so engage the rookie translator in replies.

 

 

 

getting a squeak out of the rear end of the MC, not sure where to look. only happens when the rear goes over some type of drop in the road. doesn't tend to happen at all with just 1 or 2 people in the car, but if you load up people in the rear seat or add a bunch of weight to the trunk, the more weight, the more likely it is to happen.

 

rear struts have ~5K miles on them.

sway bar bushings seemed pretty good when the struts were replaced.

for the moment, camber is good, caster seems good, toe is way off on the right side, slightly off on the left side.

driver's side strut tower is starting to rust through in one spot, will be taking care of it soon. doubt it matters, but FYI.

 

 

i've tried a little bit when the car was sitting still, couldn't seem to cause the squeak by basically jumping on the rear bumper? perhaps i wasn't being rough enough with it?

 

should i start looking in a specific spot to look for metal on metal rubbing?

[rich17]

upper strut mounts done as well?

 

lower spring insulators might have moved on you as well after the install.

[RobertISaar]

..... i'm not 100% certain what either of those look like. i can assume the general area of where they're located, but i couldn't name any specific part.

 

perhaps i'll take a look around on rockauto?

[skitchin]

Do you have bumpers around the struts? Might try some grease if so. Just a thought

[RobertISaar]

upper strut mounts done as well?

 

lower spring insulators might have moved on you as well after the install.

 

 

 

Do you have bumpers around the struts? Might try some grease if so. Just a thought

 

 

 

 

am i close?

[rich17]

Yes and Yes. The strut boot isnt really nesesary IMO. But it will help keep shit out of the strut itself

[RobertISaar]

i'll have to remember to look at everything tomorrow.... and knowing me, it would be best for me to grab my camera as well.

[carkhz316]

I see that you're a northerner as well. If you car has any rust, it could be that the towers themselves are starting to rust and the metal is is creaking perhaps? A buddy of mine had a '95 awhile back and the rear towers were clearly rusting and causing a shrieking/ squeek when going across harder bumps.

[skitchin]

 

PS - you could also try to get a brave soul to ride in your trunk while you go over large bumps:roll:

[RobertISaar]

drove a good 50 miles over some rough roads today.... couldn't get it to squeak once?

 

2 people in car, nothing in the trunk/backseat other than basic emergency/replishable stuff.

[rich17]

The easiest way to fix your problem is to turn your radio up...

[RobertISaar]

while it would "fix" it, i can't stand those kinds of fixes. that and i'd like to know if it's indicative of either a current or impending failure.

 

kind of like crimp connectors... whenever i see them, i chop them out and solder wires together.

[skitchin]

^Same here Rob! I didn't put my original aftermarket in myself, so when I saw the harness this last time around, I about flipped shit lmao.

 

I know this was just in my situation, but my rubber jounce bumpers were squeaking intermittently for a while. Could always be a noisy strut I guess, or body creak.

[Schurkey]

kind of like crimp connectors... whenever i see them, i chop them out and solder wires together.

You've been among the best sources of advice around here.

 

 

 

 

 

FIRST: Remove everything from the trunk, including the spare tire. I've seen lots of odd noises that were related to unsecured items rattling/banging/creaking in the trunk. Hit some bumps, see if the noise is still there.

 

Replace the spare tire using the proper procedure for tire and jack storage. Again, hit some bumps and see if the noise is there.

 

Yeah, if you can find someone to ride in the trunk, (or even in the back seat) that may help localize the noise left/right.

[RobertISaar]

the spare tire has been out for a good 6 months or so. the jack and associated stuff are still in the spare tire well though.

 

currently in the trunk are various fluids, a portable compressor, jumper cables and my portable jump starter(i do some pretty redundant things).

 

that is the entire list. i can't imagine any of those things being an issue other than maybe the jack rattling around? the little portion of stamped steel that allows water to drain from the well is essentially half there... the other half is spread around in ohio, indiana and michigan.

[RobertISaar]

threw quite a bit of weight into the trunk the other day, squeak returned. so it's not anything inside the trunk moving around, it's definitely some part of the suspension.

 

there goes the easy fix.

[Schurkey]

Give a neighbor kid five bucks to ride in the back seat and the trunk to listen for noises. Tell him to try to localize it forward/rearward, left/right, etc.

 

Look for cracks in the unibody, witness marks from parts rubbing against each other.

 

If all else fails, load the trunk so the noise is very common and repeatable, and start spraying aerosol lubricant on the various rubber bushings. When the noise stops being repeatable, disassemble and inspect the last bushing you sprayed.

Edited May 11, 2012 by Schurkey

[RobertISaar]

Give a neighbor kid five bucks to ride in the back seat and the trunk to listen for noises. Tell him to try to localize it forward/rearward, left/right, etc.

 

that's what the wife is for! free trunk squeak analysis.

 

also, aerosol lubricant on rubber? won't petroleum based lubricants rot out the rubber? or is the rubber used oil-resistant?

[Schurkey]

that's what the wife is for! free trunk squeak analysis.

As long as she fits, and signs a paper saying she does it willingly, so she can't use it in divorce procedings later.

Yes, your Honor. I rode in the TRUNK. And he drove around for half an hour with me locked in back there. I was so scared...

 

Now that I think about it, you might want a signed statement from the neighbor kid, too.

also, aerosol lubricant on rubber? won't petroleum based lubricants rot out the rubber? or is the rubber used oil-resistant?

Silicone spray lube.

[1979lee]

[h=1]Lateral Link Bushings?[/h]mine are almost shot, and it squeaks going over speed bumps. been doing that for years...it does squeak much louder with a load in the car.

 

 

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/detail/MOO0/K6577/03918.oap?year=1998&make=Chevrolet&model=Lumina&vi=1314043&ck=Search_03918_1314043_-1&pt=03918&ppt=C0106

 

http://www.justanswer.com/uploads/JHoop/2008-02-10_141237_SHOT0472.jpg

[RobertISaar]

i REALLY, REALLY hope not.... the nut/bolt that holds the passenger side(near the center of the car) is completely seized. i stripped the head off of the bolt trying to break the damn thing loose. it's why i have a crap rear alignment (can't adjust toe).

 

not sure about the driver's side, but it's probably in a similar condition, but probably without a stripped head.

[RobertISaar]

finally had some time to play with this... had the wife sit in the back seat on a ride home from town, apparently the weight of 1 person in the back will BARELY get sound, but it did squeak a few times over some rough pavement. said it was coming from the driver's side...

 

got under the car with some Loctite silicone spray, lube'd the shit out of all rear suspension parts(left and right) that in any way move/tweak, dripped silicone next to my eye 2 or 3 times, sprayed some silicone under the strut bumpers, basically jumped on the rear bumper a few times, went back under to see if i missed anything, by chance i smacked something into my muffler and it squeaked.... it's retained very well on the rear(it's a glasspack), but the front of the muffler is more or less slipped over the existing pipe. when i hit it, the front of the muffler slid around on the pipe, making some familiar sounding squeaks.

 

so now i'm fairly certain i found the issue.

 

i'll wait to do anything about it until after the next drive with load in the rear to make sure it wasn't suspension related, then figure out some way of properly securing the muffler to the exhaust piping to test it.

[tornado_735]

LOLOL At least it was something simple brah!!

 

I'm getting a clunk out of the rear of the Euro, and I'm pretty sure it's the muffler knocking into something.

[RobertISaar]

assuming this is the problem, yes simple, and i like simple. i know how a muffler operates and how to fix it into position. i can't say the same thing about most suspension components.