Hey guys,

Since about 2 weeks, I noticed a noise on my front suspension, driver side. I don't notice it when I am driving, but only when I get into the car or I get out of the car. I didn't notice any difference when driving, but it might have been over time and got used to it.

I made a video about it. The sound in the video isn't very loud, but you can hear it when I'm bouncing on the driver side. At first, I believe it sounds like a ball joint but I would like to get your opinion on it. I didn't lift the car yet to look at it and do a visual inspection since when I come home from work during the week, it is dark. My car is now at 230,000 kms and I didn't touch a single thing related to suspension. However, I live in Quebec were roads are pretty difficult on cars.

video

Thanks,

Neo.

 

Sounds like you need to replace the sway bar struts. Don't bother using an allen key to hold the stud while you back off the nut, just get a pair of vise grip and grab it on the other side of the nut by the struts.

 

Thank you. Sorry for asking, but what is a sway bar struts ? Is it what holds the front sway bar ? I learn mechanic on my Fit. It doesn't mean that I'll do it myself if I judge that it is out of my league, but I at least would like to understand what would need to be changed and what will be done at the garage (if done over there)

Thanks !

 

Excuse my previous comment, it should be called a sway bar link. It connects the sway bar to the struts on our Fit. The link has a ball joint at both end and over time the ball joint wears to the point that there is now play in the ball joint. This play is what you hear when the metal ball joint contact the cup that it is riding in.

 

Thank you, I have found the part on RockAuto and a DIY on FitFreak. Doesn't look too hard except all that rust might be an issue. The part is quite cheap so I might do both sides while I'm at it.

Is an alignement required after doing this ? If I wait for a bit before fixing the endlink, can it damage anything else (tires, sway-bar, etc) ?

Is there a visual test or somekind of test that I can do to confirm 100% that the sway bar endlink is the issue ?

Again, thank you

 

Test? Take off the wheel and try to shake it by hand?

If nothing changes, you can wait a little. But wait too long and it can eventually pop off the ball socket. That's what happened to the Nissan Pathfinder I was borrowing before I bought the Fit. The link fell over and rubbed the tire, worse when I turn. I can imagine if it got jammed somewhere being particularly nasty.

Although it was a little bit too late for me, someone else mentioned Moog endlinks. The main thing is that you can use a wrench on the back to hold it down and not a hex tool (or vice grips). That are other, similar products around if you look.

 

You don't need an alignment after replacing a link...

 

remove the oem end links.... and try what you did in that video again .... does the noise persist? if yes, replace end links

Moog K750838/K750837
https://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/moog-k750837
https://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/moog-k750838

 

as Evil said...disconnect the endlinks...i recommend the bottom bolt at the sway bar that way you can leave the top connected and let it hang off the strut. i wouldnt just have at it through the backside with vice grips unless you know for sure its defective...because if it wasnt the problem and you tear up the boot with vice grips, then you will need to replace them now. spray the bolts with wd40 or pb blaster, then hit up the threads with a wire wheel on a drill. theyll come right off. the first side i did on my car, i just had at it and the rust ruined my day. the other side i sprayed and used the wire wheel and it came off fairly easy.

part wise, as others have recommended, Moog is good, but keep in mind it has a grease service port and you will have to add initial grease, and maintain the grease in it. An alternative is (# 101-6929 same number both sides) , which is what I used. similar to the Moog in having a nut on the backside unlike the OE ones, but without a serviceable grease port.

hope you get it fixed ok!

 

Thanks guys, I appreciate your help on this. I know my questions sound quite dumb/newbie and I appreciate your answers.

I will take a look at the sway bar endlinks this week-end and see if I can shake them, if they are damaged. If it moves by hand, I can suspect that they are done. I would be surprised at 230,000 kms.

I was thinking about going with Moog because of that grease port. I thought that would be better if I manage the grease myself ? In Canada, we change tires twice a year for winter/summer, so I could just check the grease during my tires changes. Is it just adding grease or do I need to remove the old grease as well ? I already have a grease gun so this wouldn't be an issue unless it is a pain to maintain.

 

I went with the MOOG link for our daughter Fit. I used a vise grip and my battery inpact driver to remove the nut securing the link to the sway bar and front struts. I tried using an allen key to hold the stud from turning while I had a box wrench on the nut, but I ended stripping the hole for the allen key. Took me only 5 seconds to remove the nut once I used a pair of vise grip and my impact driver.

 

Thanks. I was already planning on shooting some PB Blaster and probably use my Milwaukee impact driver if I can't loose the nut by hands.

I'll keep you guys posted once I do more investigation over the week-end. Thanks again!

 

Alright guys so I did my investigation few minutes ago. First of all, as most of you said, the allen key was useless. I used a vise grip, my Milwaukee impact driver and some Liquid Wrench to get the bottom nut loose and I was successful to remove the lower joint from the sway bar. I took my time to carefully not damage the rubber with the vise-grip as I did not order to replacement link yet. After removing the lower joint from the sway bar, the joint was easy to move. Sometimes it was a bit stiffer, but it was easier to move over time. I also checked the grease and it wasn't the cleanest grease I had seen. This is expected after nearly 9 or 10 years.

When the joint was reinstalled in the sway bar, if I pushed the end link towards inside the car, I could fit the lower joint moving inside. The screw wasn't moving, but the joint was. There was a small play and a little knocking sound. I think that's what it is. It sounded quite similar to what I was hearing before.

I finally reinstalled the joint in the sway bar and took in for a test drive. I heard nothing weird during the test drive. When I parked, I tried jumping on the driver side as I did in the video, and I couldn't hear the knocking sound that I recorded in the first post. Maybe messing around with the joint and reinstalling it fixed it temporarily. Anyway, I'm probably going to order the end links since it's pretty cheap. I'm just wondering if Moog is a good option as it does require some maintenance overtime.

I'll keep you posted. Any comments so far are welcome as well

Thanks !

 

crap! forgot to say disconnect at sway bar link... and then go for test ride around the block to check for noise!

if u disconnecting it and reconnecting it "reset" it and its not making noise ...it probably was the endlinks, and will soon be back. u were most likely able to squish some grease around to quiet it up temporarily.

on another first gen thread a member noted that their endlinks were bad, but they didnt make noise when moved by hand...so just something to keep in mind.

brand wise id say BeckArnley or Moog. i got the BA's, but probably would have got the Moog if i had a grease gun,( and the desire to maintain the grease, but im sure they dont require much maintenance) as Moog is known for typically exceeding OE parts in quality. however, i went with new BAs because of my laziness, BAs quality, and scoring the BAs for about half price through an ebay bid.

 

Thanks. What is the maintenance on these Moog ? I have a grease gun and I can grease every time I change my tires (November - May), but is it only pushing new grease in or I must take out the old grease ?

 

honestly im not sure the service intervals. the moog site or box contents may have more info. im assuming adding a pump or two per port, maybe once a year will suffice...at least for a few years. design wise, if the clip holding the boot is serviceable, it might be a good idea to give the links a cleaning and repack them every few years (2-4?). all of this is dependent on your mileage and climate.

 

Thanks. FYI, after some digging around, I found this document regarding the maintenance of Moog parts with grease ports. Looks like they recommend servicing it each oil change.

 

sweet...thanks for sharing your find!

 

I purchased the moog problem solvers, just because. anyone have a recommend, on what to buy so I can service those grease ports?

 

Kind of wonder what you mean by "service". I'm thinking that if you installed these, you've got a garage and you probably have a grease gun that can pump grease into the Zerk nipples.