My girl borrowed my 4runner, now hella squeaky on driver front

My girl took the 4runner to Mammoth, 1000 miles round trip. Returned with a bad squeak on the driver side front suspension. They didnt do any off roading. All highway. Thoughts?

This thing looks compressed (see attachment). Is this normal?



2016 Trail Edition

 

maybe just time to grease any fittings due to the extended trip?

 

Do you have aftermarket UCAs? If you do, try and grease it. If it’s the KDSS, I really hope you still have warranty because those are expensive to fix…

 

It seems you have aftermarket springs & shocks, so more information needed. Squeaks when? Driving? Turning? In reverse? Over bumps? Etc.

 

Break up with her for being a bad girlfriend. A good girlfriend would have repaired it before giving it back to you.

 

Have a buddy push up/down on the front end while you look under.
Brake pads?

 

They didn't do any offroading? Were they doing something inside the vehicle they weren't supposed to do and you were not part of? That's much bigger of an issue than the squeak noise you got up front. Just saying...

 

There are a lot of things that can start to squeak as suspensions get old. I markedup your photo and labelled a few things to help. As was noted above you appear to have an aftermarket suspension - so if you didn't install that whoever you bought the truck from did (we can tell because you have KDSS which only comes on the TE/OffRoad, but you have Red springs - and only the Pro came with red springs from factory)

The KDSS ram is supposed to be compressed a bit when the truck is parked. It will compress and extend as the truck articulates off road but not likely the source of noise.

There are a number of bushings in the suspension - the roll bar is held by one at each side, the upper and lower arms have 2 where they attach to the frame, etc. Bushings that have dried out can squeak, especially if stiffer aftermarket polyurethane bushings have been used (these are usually some bright color) - stock bushings are all rubber and less likely to squeak but not impossible. Fix is to lube them.

Depending on that aftermarket coilover setup there could be some speaking if the end of the spring is rotating sliding a bit against the upper shock mount. Its been a LOOOONG time - think decades - since Ive had a strut apart but IIRC there is usually some rubber or plastic damper where the spring seats against the top mount to prevent this and that may be worn.

Usually bad bearings or ball joints create clunking sounds that are more than a squeak and aggravated in turns.

Guys who work on suspensions a lot will probably think of other things that I missed...

 

Does that KDSS boot have oil on it? It looks like there is a dark area on it in the pic. If that has oil it will be an expensive fix. Other common point would be UCA/ball joint needs grease.

 

It looks like you have a SPC upper control arm, is you ball joint the grease type or sealed? If its the grease type you just may need to grease the fitting.

 

I will try to find grease fittings this weekend and grease them. Thanks.


The pic was just after I washed all the bugs they murdered during their trip so I dont think its oil on the kdss boot. I will verify this weekend to make sure.

If I find grease fittings, I will grease those but how should I lube polyurethane bushings? Just spray with silicone lube spray?

The squeaks are pretty bad, bad enough for me to post here . Normal driving, flat road, squeaks on just the very minute irregularities on the flats. Squeaks as it compresses when I hit the breaks. Loud enough that it calls attention to the pedestrians. Just the front left thought, the others are quiet as a mouse...


Thanks for all the responses guys! Please keep them coming so I can test out all the theories this weekend.

 

I cringe every time my wife borrows my car, I swear there is a new ding, or a chip, or setting that is changed....

 

What kind of shocks are you running? The conical bearings found in some aftermarket shocks eye mounts eventually wear out and need to be replaced. When those bearings start to go, the squeaking is something awful. Hitting them with Tri Flow can help temporarily, but not always.

 

Uploading some pics to answer some of the questions and also maybe you guys will note something I may have missed. Im not very knowledgable in this but im taking note of all the responses and will be testing them all this weekend.

Thanks again.

 

You have the newer SPC control arm design with swivel joints instead of polyurethane bushings, nothing to grease there. However, make sure the long pivot bolt is tight - it's known to loosen with extended rough road / dirt road driving. You may need to unclip the rubber splash guards to expose the fastener heads.

Only greasing point is the upper ball joint.

Make sure lower shock bolt is tight. Make sure the lower control arm cam bolt nuts are light. Those are known to loosen with driving.

 

With all the problems I’ve heard of people having with the SPC control arms, you should probably view that as your prime suspect.

But it’s not a bad idea to retorque LCA, UCA, lower shock bolts. And the shock tower nuts. Just remember to look up the correct torque specs for each (LCA are well above 100ft lbs), and make sure you tighten them all with full weight on wheels so you don’t damage your control arm and shock bushings.

 

Ok guys. Heres the update.. is this normal?

https://youtu.be/OPvv-fK4wP0?si=WX_8Q-74F6m538kw

 

Uuuuh, no that's not normal, the ball joint is shot!!

I would replace it before even driving it. you're lucky it didn't come apart while your girlfriend was driving it!!

 

So what does the forum recommend to replace my spc ucas? I saw upgraded ball joint kits for the spcs but it would seem the the market has lost faith in the brand.

What is the recommended brand for the 5th gen, trail edition, 2 inch lift?

 

Wow! How long have you had those UCAs? Seriously, way too common. Is SPC making those ball joints out of cheese nowadays?

If your lift is around 2inches, stock Oem control arms are your best bet if you don’t mind being on the low end of the caster range on your alignment. It will feel a little lighter on the steering because of the low angles. Otherwise, just get something with OE style ball joints and bushings so you don’t have to worry about greasing them.

 

You might have something loose. If the upper ball joint is bad then replace that. Since you don't know much about the SPC, it tells me you haven't been greasing the upper ball joint at every oil change, like you are supposed to. So blame SPC all you want, but YOU haven't been keeping up with the required maintenance.

 

To be fair, I’m the one throwing insults at SPC lol. Maybe prematurely, depending on how many miles they have on them.

Regardless, a buddy with a tacoma is pretty picky about maintainance and greasing the ball joints. He’s had two sets of SPC ball joints go out in as many years.

 

What’s hilarious is that this thread isn’t “my right wheel squeaks” this thread is “my girl borrowed my 4Runner and because of that my right wheel squeaks”
- she sees this thread and she’ll break up with you.

 

I would accept blame but I've only had the 4runner for less than 600 miles, no more than 30 days (purchased 3/31/24). She put in more miles than me at this point (1000mi, round trip LA to Mammoth). I learn more and more about what the PO put in the truck and the possible thought processes he went through when choosing the parts he did. I assume the SPCs were chosen so that they clear the 285 tires/wheel combo he also put in. I still have a lot to learn, that's for sure.

She came back very apologetic about the whole thing and I let her know that there's no way that it was her fault. Purchasing used vehicles can save you money but also has it's drawbacks. Luckily, we are both mature enough to find humor in the challenges that come our way. She is reading these messages with me, is part of the decision making process on how we will choose to fix the 4runner (replace UCA/Upgrade/replace ball joint only), took the video I posted, and is part of the wrenching as well. This is a bonding process for us not at all negative .

We are currently looking into the the JBA off-road UCA -cheap, fixed ball joint, and we assume it to be more reliable than the adjustable types. Just have to verify if it has fitment issues with the 285s. Problem is that I don't know the specs of the wheels the PO put in, and trying to avoid messaging him about issues which I feel would be bad form.
Thanks for the advice guys. Looking to purchase a fix by the end of today so input is always appreciated.

 

Agreed. I was honestly just tongue-in-cheek about it.

 

On the other hand, if the PO was reachable, you could ask about the wheels and tires as a matter of informational history, without going into details about the UCA issue.

 

i know. Everyone's been very hospitable and informative. This place is like a support group and the substance of choice are 4runners.

Great idea. I just sent him a message. Hopefully he responds.

Im looking into a stock uca from an trd off road version. If it falls within range of the proper alignment then we are golden; maintains stock reliability too.

 

If you have a lift, I can tell you that going back to stock UCAs will only work if the lift is 2” and under. Any more than that and proper alignment will be a challenge.
Even with a 2” lift and stock UCAs, you’ll get good toe and camber, but caster will be slightly off. An off caster will not impact tire wear or straight line driving, but will maybe affect the general steering feel if you’re well used to stock form.

 

seems like the decision has been made. JBA High caster. I don't know the exact lift that was put in there but the JBA would seem that it would expand my range of error from 1-2" of lift (If I used the stock TRD OR UCA) vs 1-3.5" with the JBA UCAs. I assume that the lift may have been over 2 inches if the PO installed the SPC UCA, I also feel like it is more than 2 inches of lift.

Thanks everyone.

 

Sound like you got a keeper, Better put a ring on her …