• Hi Guest!
    You can help ensure that British Car Forum (BCF) continues to provide a great place to engage in the British car hobby! If you find BCF a beneficial community, please consider supporting our efforts with a subscription.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

Squeak Squeak!

Share this page

S

SaxMan

Darth Vader
Country flag
Offline
As I've gotten more experience driving Baby Blue, I've come to learn the myriad of sounds she makes and knowing what is a "good" sound and what is a "not so good" sound. Taking Jessica on a long drive yesterday, the car acquired a squeaking noise coming from the front end. It definitely was not motor related as the squeak was a function of ground speed, not engine speed, and it wasn't consistent.

Inspecting the car this evening, I found one relatively loose lug nut on the left front, and three of the others could use some tightening. So, I went around the car and checked and found a few others that had loosened up. I'm not sure if that was the source of the squeaking. The other thing I found is when I grab the front wheels, there is some lateral play. Not enough to be hugely significant (I think), but enough to be noticeable. Is a little bit of play normal? I'm thinking when I repacked the bearings last winter and put it all back together, I may have not cranked down the retaining bolt far enough before inserting the cotter pin.

I was hoping to make it to December before I reopened the front end to do a repack, but if this play is not normal, I'll have to work on it now.
 
I am inclined to think loose nuts. I did have an annoying squeak that proved to be the front brake dust shield touching the wheel.

OTOH tightening the front wheel nuts should be a ten minute job.
 
I thought about that after I posted -- just pull the cotter pin and crank the nut down. I can always wait until later to repack.
 
After I've driven in the rain I get all sorts of front suspension squeaks that run their course. :wink-new:
 
I popped open the hub on each side, moved the bolt a single flat further in, reset the cotter pins, no more rattling. I'll have to test drive it later to see if that cured the problem.
 
Still had the squeak today, but not quite as prevalent. I'm pretty sure it's a suspension component as it only squeaked over bumps. Maybe hit the grease zerks with a few shots from the grease gun. As we're getting later into the driving season, I'm sure the car is starting to need some routine maintenance again.
 
If it squeaks when you go over bumps, and you have an ARB with poly bushings, it could be the bushings need lubricating. Poly bushings can squeak like the dickens when dry. Well, maybe not that much, but I figured out that was where the squeak was coming from whenever I went slowly over a speed bump. Pulled the bushings off and smeared that super thick poly grease on it and it went away! Its an easy fix if that is what it is.
 
I have poly bushings on the trunnions where they connect to the shock arms -- and the squeaking would be consistent with the location -- that makes sense.
 
Back
Top