Rear Suspension Squeak/Noises (1 Viewer)

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Feb 4, 2020
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272
Location
San Marcos, TX
Every time I go over the slightest bump at lower than highway speeds my rear suspension (Haven't narrowed it down) squeaks something awful. It is mainly on the driver side but I can hear it on the passenger side as well. I've replaced shocks and springs and the shrieking persists.

Is this most likely the bushings in the control arms and/or sway bar/links? It has 240K miles and I am pretty sure they are the original control arms, links, sway bar, etc. Is it time for me to just replace them all or does anyone have any idea?

Also, I don't have a mechanic stethoscope but how would I use that when they only make noise while going over bumps at lower than highway speed?
 
Following, I have the same problem. I have OME suspension and super pro busing in the the rear control arms. I suspect mine might be the control arm bushings. I am hoping it is an easy fix.
 
Thanks.

Anyone have any opinions on if I should just replace all the control arms, links, sway bar or just do a refresh of the bushings? If thermos etc. are indeed all original to this rig, will they last longer or is it time to replace?
 
If you have them, air bags can cause horrendous noises when they get dusty. If not, I would suggest spraying some kind of lube on one bushing at a time and driving it a mile or two until you get the noise to stop, or change. Then you will know which ones are the offenders.
 
If you have them, air bags can cause horrendous noises when they get dusty. If not, I would suggest spraying some kind of lube on one bushing at a time and driving it a mile or two until you get the noise to stop, or change. Then you will know which ones are the offenders.
Thanks.

I don't have airbags. I'll do the spray experiment this weekend while the family is out of town.
 
Had this issue with my 2003 when at around 150,000 miles.

What fixed it for me were the rear upper control arms:
48710-60070
48710-60080

The bushings were cracking.

I think I had gotten the idea from another post somewhere on the forum about that issue. Mine would happen when going over speed bumps at <15 mph.
 
Thanks for the part numbers. Our road in to town is so awful that I pretty much drive washboard road to and from work everyday so this is just getting worse it seems.
 
something you can try thats free is to remove the rear sway bar and endlinks. If the noise goes away then i would replace end link bushings as well as the two large bushings that are mounted to the axle. takes a few minutes to remove. and you dont even have to put it up on jack stands.
 
Another idea - it could be frozen bellcrank assembly, which is a common problem. This was driving me nuts for a few years. I finally narrowed down by having someone engage/release the e-brake while I was watching underneath the rig in the back. I noticed my driver's side was operating as expected but passenger side didn't move/was frozen. Cruiser Outfitters was familiar with the issue and got me the parts in 2 days. Just throwing out there to cross of your list of potential suspects. Only thing missing from the list below is a 2nd retaining clip, had to run down to the dealer to get but otherwise this is what you would need.

1611342149527.png


 
Thanks.

Anyone have any opinions on if I should just replace all the control arms, links, sway bar or just do a refresh of the bushings? If thermos etc. are indeed all original to this rig, will they last longer or is it time to replace?
Having removed and pressed in all the bushings in my control arms, I would not advise anyone to do it. Save yourself the time and headache and just buy new control arms. But first verify those bushings are what’s causing the noise.
 
something you can try thats free is to remove the rear sway bar and endlinks. If the noise goes away then i would replace end link bushings as well as the two large bushings that are mounted to the axle. takes a few minutes to remove. and you dont even have to put it up on jack stands.
This was very helpful. I did this today and it took away about 70% of the noise. No sound under 10-15mph. But once I got on our road into town and hit ~35mph the squeaks returned but not near as loud. So I’ll start with the 6(right?) bushings on the sway bar and links and move onto spraying the control arms to see which bushings make the noise.

Thanks all for this suggestion and everything else in this thread!
 
This was very helpful. I did this today and it took away about 70% of the noise. No sound under 10-15mph. But once I got on our road into town and hit ~35mph the squeaks returned but not near as loud. So I’ll start with the 6(right?) bushings on the sway bar and links and move onto spraying the control arms to see which bushings make the noise.

Thanks all for this suggestion and everything else in this thread!
Dod you ever fix this issue? It's driving me insane and I've spent over 15 hours total trying to figure this out. -thanks
 
Dod you ever fix this issue? It's driving me insane and I've spent over 15 hours total trying to figure this out. -thanks
Yes I did. I replaced every suspension part in the rear. Control arms, bushings etc and it didn’t go away.

It was the emergency brake. I had it refreshed and it went away immediately. Hasn’t been back in months no matter the bump I hit.
 
Yes I did. I replaced every suspension part in the rear. Control arms, bushings etc and it didn’t go away.

It was the emergency brake. I had it refreshed and it went away immediately. Hasn’t been back in months no matter the bump I hit.
Thank you so much. Did you replace the pads and hardware all together?
 
Thank you so much. Did you replace the pads and hardware all together?
I took it to a shop as I had them also do the front control arms (they were needed) and asked them to inspect the e brake and fix it. They replaced all of the hardware/pads and re-tensioned the cable. My e brake wouldn’t stop me if I was in gear before and now it does.
 
I took it to a shop as I had them also do the front control arms (they were needed) and asked them to inspect the e brake and fix it. They replaced all of the hardware/pads and re-tensioned the cable. My e brake wouldn’t stop me if I was in gear before and now it does.
Thanks again!
 
Yes I did. I replaced every suspension part in the rear. Control arms, bushings etc and it didn’t go away.

It was the emergency brake. I had it refreshed and it went away immediately. Hasn’t been back in months no matter the bump I hit.
I’m having a terrible squeak coming from my rear passenger side over small bumps at low speeds. My emergency brake is not currently functioning… wonder if this is my squeaking issue.
 
I’m having a terrible squeak coming from my rear passenger side over small bumps at low speeds. My emergency brake is not currently functioning… wonder if this is my squeaking issue.

Check it out for sure. It solved my noise issue and all good still after 6 or more months
 
Something to add because I just fixed this issue on my truck today, driver side for me. For me the issue was the parking brake shoes were squeaking against the backing plate. I pulled the rotor off and was able to grease all the contact points where the shoes touch the backing plate without taking everything apart and now I'm noise free.
 

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