Front lower control arm bushes worn? Video

[roverman]

I doubt this would be the case, but just wondering if I can test mine before they get that bad? If you lift a tire off the ground, if you grabbed the tire and tried to manually turn it would there be any play? I don't want to get into a case like jimbirams where the control arms aren't covered...because there is definitely rust on em.
On a side note, looked at the control arms for the first time today...sure are some crappy welds on em.

 

[Houm_WA]

I'm probably over-thinking this whole thing. I'm trying to balance my desire to not F with things unless really necessary with my desire to change the bushings when they're worn. I too want to keep from hosing up my control arms, but I don't want tech-monkeys taking my $hit apart and putting it back together and introducing looser tolerances, especially in the steering linkages/suspension.

So, my plan is to have the bushings inspected every 7500 miles and when they're showing signs of wear (besides just the audible knock, which they do now) then have the dealer replace them. I'm still under extended warranty so this ought to be a good approach for at least another year.

I'll have it in next month....at 67,500. I had it looked at in March and they said the bushings were cool....???

 

[thorgal]

If you are able to lift the car up enough to walk under her try to grab lower control arm and move back and forth you can easily tell if there is play or not.If it's worn ,wheel moves and knocks as well and if the wheel does not move ,well ,it is still good.For two months I was under the impression that i have to change inner tie rods because there was a play in front wheel ,these news was given to me by Goodyear shop while upgrading tires to G silent armors and dealer while installing a EPB shoes.All diagnostics were corrected by indy shop when changing rotors.I actually ask if he can check tie rods for any" play" to get third opinion and he called me , let me walk under the track and ask me who told me about loose tie rods, because, its the lower control arms that are have significant movement when grabbed and moved and not tie rods and he show me how they moved.thats how I know anyway.

 

[jjvd21]

Just spoke to the service advisor, he watched the you tube clips and stated that the "bushings looked shot". He asked me to set up an appointment to have the bushings replaced. Prior to going back in I'm going to video the other bushes (front and rear) to ensure that I'm not missing anything. When I picked up my D3 after the uprated ball joint replacement I inquired if all the bushes were tight, I was told that they were. I will post videos of the rear suspension and other pivot points that I can capture in this thread (probably 2 weeks). As stated, I have an '05 and I think this model year is prone to early bush wear and other suspension issues that have been fixed. Later model years may not suffer from this type of premature bush wear. I am going to ask that they replace the entire control arms.

 

[Houm_WA]

It could be that later model years just don't have the mileage (in general) that the '05s have. My service advisor basically said that they will look for play in the suspension and then determine if the bushings need replaced. He said so far he's only seen this on about 4 LR3s. I asked him if the bushings wearing out would likely cause damage (like to the control arms) or if it's more of an annoyance thing and he said it was the latter.

Anyhow, I'm going to have them inspected next month at the 67,500 appt.

 

[Trynian]

Had my front done the other day at 40,000 miles. They were knocking pretty good. The rear bushings on the front control arms were the worst, the rubber was cracked up pretty good allowing the same movement as in the video of the OP.

It drives much tighter now and no knocking.

My rear control arms seem to be fine so far.

 

[jjvd21]

Trynian, did your dealer do this under warranty or did you tell them to do it? Also, did they change out all the bushes or just the rear bushings on the front lower control arms? Thanks,

 

[Trynian]

Trynian, did your dealer do this under warranty or did you tell them to do it? Also, did they change out all the bushes or just the rear bushings on the front lower control arms? Thanks,

I brought it in and drove with a tech to show him the knock. I also pointed it out to them that the rear bushing on each front arm was the main culprit.

They agreed and replaced both of the bushings on each front control arm under warranty and also a 4 wheel alignment.

I drive an 06 and I think the tech said there was a TSB for it. I didn't get the number.

 

[jjvd21]

As promised, I have some additional videos of the rear suspension in action. I'd like to point out that in most of these videos you will hear a chatter from the right wheel area, it has been driving me nuts for almost a year and the dealer cannot locate it. If anyone has any ideas as to what is causing this noise I'm all ears! I am scheduled to have my front control arms replaced this weekend as a result of the videos.

Another interesting note is that the rear bushes move quite a bit under acceleration and heavy braking. I do not know if the movement in mine is normal or the rears are shot as well. Any comments appreciated it!

Notice the opposing forces under braking and acceleration at the end of this video:
YouTube - Right Rear top and bottom control arm bushes

Right Rear control arm upper bush:
YouTube - Right Rear top control arm bush

Right Rear control arm lower bush:
YouTube - Right Rear Lower Control arm bush

Right Rear wheel rear control arm lower bush
YouTube - Right Rear lower control arm rear bush

 

[jjvd21]

Right Rear Suspension:
YouTube - Right Rear suspension

Right Rear Suspension:
YouTube - Right Rear suspension

Front Upper Control arm bush (should it move this much?):
YouTube - Right Front upper control arm bush