Galaxy 2010 suspension noise

Kencollins

Hi all,

I have a new to me 2010 Galaxy. There was a knocking in the driver side suspension, and I replaced a drop link with a torn boot.

There is a noise now that appears to have gotten worse. It's like a "chuck.....chuck chuck..." noise when the weight is changed left/right on the car, like the camber on some country roads. It's not constant, but happens every few seconds on country roads.

New drop links
No play in the wheel
No noise on full lock left or right
No play in lower ball joint
No play in track rod end, but it can be twisted easily.
No play in control arm bushings.
No visible damage to anti-roll bar bushings.
No damage to the spring
No leak around the shock
Engine mounts haven't collapsed.

Any ideas where to start? I will probably replace both lower ball joints if they have to come out anyway, but I just don't know where to start!

Can anti-roll bar bushings make a deep taping noise, or would it be more of a twang/bang?

Thanks!

Kencollins

Update!

If I punch the top of the wheel hard there is a rattle.

If I hold the shock spring while I do it, no rattle.

So, top mount or spring...or both?!

BlakeS94

Kencollins wrote: »

Update!

If I punch the top of the wheel hard there is a rattle.

If I hold the shock spring while I do it, no rattle.

So, top mount or spring...or both?!

If the spring is worn to the point of needing replacement you will notice that corner of the car sagging i.e less clearance between the top of the tyre and the cars wheel arch compared to the other wheels. Only test this on flat ground as parking on a slope will make the suspension unbalanced and appear to bottom out when that's only normal. You said the shocks seem okay but stand at the wheel in question with your back to it, grab the wheel arch and push up and down then let to, if it bounces excessively like 4 or more times before stopping your shocks are bad. Could very well just be a top mount. But you would hear that the sound is coming from higher up while driving if it were. Also track rod ends are normal to be able to move by hand they should swivel in position. What you shouldn't have is play up and down or in and out

Kencollins

Thanks for the info!

The problem side is about 2mm lower than the other side.

If I stand on the sill of the drivers door and bounce off, it bounces 3 times.

I'll have to pull the shock and have a look, but i'm not doing that (again) unless the motor factors are open!

BlakeS94

Kencollins wrote: »

Thanks for the info!

The problem side is about 2mm lower than the other side.

If I stand on the sill of the drivers door and bounce off, it bounces 3 times.

I'll have to pull the shock and have a look, but i'm not doing that (again) unless the motor factors are open!

2mm wouldn't be a cause for concern I wouldn't think, it would be noticable to the naked eye that the wheel arch is hanging low if the coil was worn or broken even. they wont all be exactly the same. 3 times is fine as long as it doesn't oscillate any further I'd say your shocks are good. You mentioned the anti roll bar bushings are in good shape. An easy way to tell is to have a look where the outside of the bushing meets the clamp. If theres a gap even a slight one it can cause the anti roll bar to move inside the bushing and could potentially cause the knocking sound when turning or going over bumps, don't overlook the simple things

btree

My car had the same issue last year because one bolt of the drop link was not torqued enough causing vibration every a few seconds when the car was on the road. I then re-torqued it up to 74Nm ( as specified for Toyota) and the noise gone.

Kencollins

btree wrote: »

My car had the same issue last year because one bolt of the drop link was not torqued enough causing vibration every a few seconds when the car was on the road. I then re-torqued it up to 74Nm ( as specified for Toyota) and the noise gone.

Unfortunately not the case with the Galaxy. I rechecked the torque and they are over 70nM anyway.

The rattle from the shock spring when I hit the wheel is my main suspicion now, i must drop the strut and see what's going on. Maybe taking the weight off to change the drop links caused a worn spring to become dislodged!