Jackstand Louie

I too have the dreaded squeak and creak in the front left suspension after warm up. I get a squeak with up and down movement but deafinitely a slow creaking sound when turning the wheel. I warmed it up and put it on jackstands to look at the suspension. See attached photos.

I was able to recreate the sound by placing a small floor jack under the outer edge of the control arm and raising the suspension and a) turning the wheel with the engine off and also, b) slowly working the jack up and down.

On first inspection I had torn boots on the sway bar link (upper and lower), control arm outer connection, and tie-rod end, I see a slight buckle in the inner control arm bushing...nearly a full house. I disconnected the sway bar link (it felt smooth when rotated) but still got the sound. The sound seems omnidirectional and is amplified by (and resonates from) the strut and spring bottom plate. I put grease on all fittings but still get the sound. When I place my hand on the control arm I get the strongest vibration (creak); when I place it on other parts i.e., the control arm link, strut, tie-rod I feel it but no as strong. My suspicion is the control arm inner bushing but it looks like I'll be replacing some parts anyway. A few questions:

Is it better to replace the entire control arm with the bushings and outer joint as a unit ($193 at Pelican) or can the individual bushings and joints be replaced? The control arm link bushing looks okay.

I'll be replacing the sway bar drop link

Does the control arm link need to be replaced at the same time?...the bushings look okay and it doesnt look like a major job to change later although I will be dropping the bracket to change the sway bar bushing.

Does the outter tie-rod end have to be replaced with the ball-joint on it or can the ball-joint be replaced seperately? Also, can I use a standard ball joint tool or do I need a special one for the 996?

Looking at the top of the shock/coil spring is it normal for the boot over the shock shaft to be unattached at the bottom? The upper shock connection and bolt look secure.

Am I right to assume that front-end alignment will be needed if the outter tie-rod end is replaced or can you get it right with accurate measurements before and after.

The front brakes and rotors are fairly new, tires are new, no clunking sounds, no rattles, steering feels tight.

A lot of questions but I would appreciate any comments or advice before diving in. I have a pretty well equiped home shop but no special Porche suspension tools.

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perryinva

Accordian boot is not connected at bottom, normal. Cannot replace ball joints on either control arms or tie rods. Full set of TRW inner & outer tie rods is $200, use of inner tie rod socket kit, and outer tie rod ball joint tool highly recommended. Do not use a pickle fork. Amazon has both sets of tools for under $80, shipped. Need 1 1/4 (32mm) socket for inner tie rod set. Control arms can be bought with replaceable ball joints from Vertex for ~$150 each, or standard ones for about half that. Since you have new tires, and will be replacing all those parts, I'd sure as heck get an alignment.

washington dc porsche

My control arm is on order.

Jackstand Louie

Thanks, great advice! Tools on their way....I had a hard time envisioning myself approaching that car with a pickle fork. The replaceable ball joint control arm looks like the way to go since I plan to be driving it for a while to come. 99/996 w/62,000mi.

I'm curious washington DC, did you change control arm for wear only or were you gettgin mind numbing squeak also?

Jackstand Louie

Tried using Lisle inner tie-rod tool to remove tie rod....won't hold (slips off) with 1-1/4" (32mm), 1-3/16" too small. Anyone else have success with this tool? Its not a perfectly snug fit. Anyone know what the exact size is?

washington dc porsche

Due to the squeaking sound. I haven't changed it yet however I received it on Friday.

perryinva

Supposed to be 32mm, and when I measured the replacement TRWs it was. 1 1/4" is 31.75mm, so it should be tight, not loose. Could it be it wasn't in all the way, and the insert needed to be touched up with a file or dremel?

Jackstand Louie

The TRW that I pulled out was a firm fit with a 32mm socket. The stamped 1-1/4" tool was very slightly loose on the tie rod end to start with. I tried squaring it up and aligning the tool and rotating to different postions. I verniered the lisle tool and it was slighly larger than 1.25". Could just be a bad cut on the tool. It definitely rounded the shoulders on the ball flates. The 1-3/16 measures perfect but doesn fit on the nut. The 1-5/16" is noticably larger so we're only talking maybe 1/32" out.

Getting it out was not a problem.....I extended the rack out on each side and used a pipe wrench on the ball. It was tight but not frozen, probably north of 125 ft-lb. I'll see if I can find a 32mm insert locally or just try a 32mm crows foot. Heads up if that's the tool you have.

Fortunately I have the entire wheel well gutted so there's plenty of room to work.

perryinva

Thanks for the heads up. Like you, I'm not too worried about getting it out, (and I have a low rise lift) but I don't want to mung up the new one installing it. Are you doing the upper & lower control arms, too? I'm going to try to just get by with replacing the I &O TREs to kill the bump noise. I have a hard time believing the control arm ball joints are that sloppy with only 47k miles on the car. None of my ball joint boots are split, either, but we'll see.

Jackstand Louie

Front left and right.....I'm replacing the control arm (wishbone), control arm link, sway bar drop link, inner & outer tie-rods, and sway bar bushings.

Anything with a boot was comprimised but it looks like age/deterioration from south Florida heat. All joints seemed tight but the ITR's almost feel like they are binding slightly. Most bushings were intact just not very pliable, one had peeled out on the control arm link.

I originally went looking for squeek....no clunks.

Good advice on the Vertex control arm with replaceble ball joint. Turns out, Vertex is about a half-hour down the road in Miami so I'll pick everything up without dealing with core charge issue. I found fresh buckling on the outside face of the inner control arm bushing where it contacts the frame and the squeek is fresh. Also, the vertical bolt that attaches the control arm link (996 341 043 06) to the frame was a prime candidate for squeek...dry, mild rust.

Since the struts were detached I disassembled the mounts..no serious wear just accumulated dirt/grime so I'm cleaning and also greasing the bearings just in case.

One wheel bearing had a slight bump when I spun it....the wheel carriers are out and the bearings are exposed so for $34 each....I'm replacing.

Who was it that said...."a million dollars here, a million dollars there, pretty soon you're talking about serious money"?

perryinva

Damn, you're hitting everything. I hsd replaced my struts with PSS9s and all new rubber and upper strut mounts & bearings a few months ago, so no worries there, and that actually did kill all the squeaks and creaks (wooden ship syndrome), but the low speed bump/bind is still there which most have identified as binding ITREs.

Turkertwo

Jackstand,
Here at the Navy Weapons Support (Navy Aviation) office where I work on turbine engine maintenance programs we are always saying your quote about a million here and there... Carrier based aircraft make P cars look very simple and cheap to support.

Jackstand Louie

perryinva: yeah, once in there it makes sense to replace the torn stuff. The control arm link could probably be put off at $90 a pop since you dont have to dismantle the suspension to change it but I have brand new michellin sports and I want to get the alignment with the new pieces in.

Tucker: I was originally gonna do just the right side but, who was it that said "when working with the government, why buy one when you can buy two at twice the price?"?. Its okay though, I'm expecting the suspension upgrades to vastly improve my carrier landings.

tsitz

Hi
2003 996tt with Champion Motorsports 19" wheels and suspension parts, car is lowered 3/4"

At low speeds going straight, front end, especially right side it seems, rattles/sqeeks/creaks. Any thoughts on this? Are 19" wheels just not right for this car? I had this same problem before with 19" wheels on a stock 996, but maybe the non-turbo 996 wells aren't as big?

Also when not going VERY gingerly over speed bumps, car will get that horrible bottoming out, almost violent grating noise.

Finally, and especially when the car has just been started, when pulling out of a parking space and turning the wheel fairly sharply to negotiate the turn, the front wheel give an almost bound-up feeling and "bump" on each revolution. This seems a little better after car is warmed up (its cold here)... not sure if this is cold tires or again, something wrong with the front end suspension.

DK570

Has anyone replaced the ball joint in a Vertex arm? I installed one 2 years & 3 months ago (now 3 months out of warranty) and last week it started to creek. I sent a message to Vertex asking if they could help out since the warranty period just ended. I got no response - pretty disappointing customer service. Almost as disappointing as the fact that their rebuilt joint only lasted about 20,000 mi, while the other 3 corners have 90,000 mi on them. I haven't crawled under yet to confirm 100% it's the ball joint, but standing next to the car it sounds exactly the same as it did when the previous one failed.