Tag Archives: suspension parts

A clunk from the front over bumps can come from half a dozen parts, and the sway bar bushings are one of the easiest to check. With the car on a lift, a pry bar and a flashlight, you can confirm whether the bushings are the source of the noise in five minutes. The test saves a trip to the shop and avoids replacing parts that are not the problem.

A new wheel bearing that fails within months was often installed with the wrong torque. The axle nut sets the bearing preload, which is the amount of pressure on the bearing rollers. Too much preload crushes the bearing, and too little lets it wobble. Getting the torque right is the difference between a hub that lasts 150,000 miles and one that fails within a year.

Replacing struts at the shop costs four hundred to eight hundred dollars a corner, and the bill is enough to make any home mechanic wonder whether the job is doable in the driveway. The answer depends on whether you choose a complete strut assembly or a cartridge, and on whether you are comfortable using a spring compressor. With the right tools and a complete assembly, the job takes a couple of hours and saves half the bill.

Trucks and SUVs wear struts and shocks faster than passenger cars, because they carry heavier loads, see rougher roads and often tow trailers. The factory strut on a Ford F-150 or Chevrolet Silverado is tuned for an empty truck, which means it is under-damped the moment you load the bed with tools or hook up a trailer. Replacing them with the same OEM spec brings back the empty-ride feel but does nothing for the loaded duty cycle. A heavy-duty upgrade is often the better choice.

A clunk or click that appears only when turning the steering wheel at low speed is one of the most common front-end complaints, and the cause is almost never the power steering pump or the rack. The noise comes from the top strut mount bearing, which allows the strut to turn with the steering wheel. When that bearing wears out, every steering input produces a click or clunk that the driver hears in the cabin. The fix is usually inexpensive, but it is often misdiagnosed.

The strut mount is the small rubber and bearing assembly that sits between the strut and the body. It is the least expensive part in the front suspension, but when it wears, it produces a surprising number of symptoms that get blamed on everything from the power steering pump to the ball joints. Learning the six key signs helps pinpoint the problem quickly and avoids replacing parts that are not the cause.

You do not need a lift or a fancy scanner to tell whether the strut mount is the source of the clunk in your front end. A few simple tests in the driveway narrow the problem to the top mount in minutes, and they save a trip to the shop and a guess at the repair. The tests below work on any front-strut vehicle, from a Toyota Camry to a Ford F-150.

When the shop quotes a strut replacement, it usually asks whether you want the mounts replaced at the same time. The mounts are a small part of the total bill, but skipping them means the strut has to come out again in a year or two when the mount wears. The labor overlap makes it the cheapest time to replace the mounts, and most experts recommend doing them every time the struts are off.

A clunk over rough pavement that seems to come from the top of the front strut is usually blamed on the shocks, but the noise is actually coming from the strut mount. The mount sits between the strut and the body, and when the rubber hardens or the bearing wears, every bump sends a clunk through the tower. The fix is straightforward, but the noise is easy to confuse with sway bar links and control arm bushings.