Suspension noise (possibly lower control arm)

[Jimmy Brooks]

Hello all!

My LR4 has developed a suspension noise from the front right wheel that has gotten progressively worse over the past 5 months. The noise happens over rough surfaces. As of now I don’t have the abilities to lift the car above ground but I am working on getting them to investigate it. I would much rather wait till the summer when I am home to replace whatever it is but I can improvise if I have to act now. But I wanted to share this video and see if anyone has heard a suspension noise like this so I can start estimating my costs to replace it.

For context my truck has 158,300 miles and the whole front suspension has been replaced. Here is a list of everything and the mileage.

Front struts: 100k
LCA: 100k
UCA: 135k
Wheel bearing: 146k
Sway bar links: 146k
Sway bar bushings: 156k

The only thing that hasn’t been done is the tie rods. The wheel does not shake while driving. The ride is not impaired, the shock absorbers are not leaking and the air springs are not either.

Here is a video of the noise.

I suspect lower control arms but let me know what you guys think.

 

[Rubber Cow]

Lift it and start wiggling things....IMHO, youre due for LCA bushings at least.

 

[BBLR3]

Sounds like it a CA to me.

 

[Jimmy Brooks]

whats the best ball joint popper to use for the lower control arms? i see things like this on ebay which seem very similar to the Land Rover "special tool" listed in the work shot manual but I just want to make sure it'll do the job. does anyone have experience with this tool?

Pardon Our Interruption...

Any other recommendations for ball joint poppers for this job?

 

[Ryan00TJ]

Small sledge hammer. You don't need a puller for LR4 LCA ball joint. A few hard hits and the joint pops right out.

 

[ftillier]

I tried a 4lb sledge and the only thing I managed to do was dent the knuckle. The ball joint would not release. I tried a pickle fork I had, and all it did was tear the boot and bend (yay harbor freight). Ended up with this kit and it worked great: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09CT1XTK9

 

[gsxr]

whats the best ball joint popper to use for the lower control arms? i see things like this on ebay which seem very similar to the Land Rover "special tool" listed in the work shot manual but I just want to make sure it'll do the job. does anyone have experience with this tool?

Not sure about the tools, but be careful with the brand of LCA if you replace them again. As of a few years ago, Lemforder was selling OEM LCA's with the Land Rover logo removed. All other LCA's are cheap offshore copies at half the price. I wouldn't gamble on the cheap stuff.

 

[ftillier]

The ones I removed were the original that had poly bushings installed, replacements were lemforder.

 

[Jimmy Brooks]

Not sure about the tools, but be careful with the brand of LCA if you replace them again. As of a few years ago, Lemforder was selling OEM LCA's with the Land Rover logo removed. All other LCA's are cheap offshore copies at half the price. I wouldn't gamble on the cheap stuff.

I always use OE brands. Did the rear upper control arms this summer and used Lemforder. They’ve been great

 

[powershift]

I'm curious about your swaybar maintenance. I think I hear a slight squeak noise in the front right when off-roading but its so faint its hard to tell where its coming from. Were there any noises or symptoms that the swaybar end-links or bushings were going out?