SupraLEDrears Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Hi guys. This has been going on for months now. There's a very loud knocking noise from the rear left wheel when i go over bumps or a rough patch of road. It almost sounds like it's inside the car. I have adjustable struts and all the bushes have been checked by my mechanic and seems fine. As a last resort I've just checked the top of the rear strut cause I'm thinking that it might be loose at the top, thus making the knocking noise. The lower rear suspension arm got replaced and is fine but it feels like the rear left back wheel is moving left and right when i go over these bumps. So I've attached an image of the top of the rear strut and it's not looking good to me. Any suggestions? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swampy442 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 What shocks are they? Look like Teins to me with old pillowball top mounts. Teins are well known for be cheap, nasty and they can knock so that may be the cause, if theyre not Teins the top mount is still suspect. If you've changed the lower arm and ball joint that only leaves the top arm and a 300+quid bill for parts alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Wilson Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Expect to be buying decent suspension soon, and be SURE to use stock top mounts or to expect to have to replace the el cheapo top mount spherical bearings 99% of coil over kits come with. If the dampers are some junk like Tein, HKS or worse, I would just bite the bullet and replace the lot. If you put a finger on the top mount between the stem nut of the damper, and the body of the mount, whilst someone hefty jerks the rear of the car up and down, or someone does the same sitting in the back whilst the car is driven, you will feel if the top spherical joints are worn. They look like found on Time Watch material to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abz Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 I know this may sound silly but have you checked all the wheels are done up properly on that wheel?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purity14 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Also if it makes a banging noise over speedbumps, go over the speedbump with the brakes applied - see what happens then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SupraLEDrears Posted October 16, 2013 Author Share Posted October 16, 2013 I know this may sound silly but have you checked all the wheels are done up properly on that wheel?! Wheel nuts are spot on yes. I'll try the brake think. I've heard something about a pin making a noise. This correct? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SupraLEDrears Posted October 16, 2013 Author Share Posted October 16, 2013 Expect to be buying decent suspension soon, and be SURE to use stock top mounts or to expect to have to replace the el cheapo top mount spherical bearings 99% of coil over kits come with. If the dampers are some junk like Tein, HKS or worse, I would just bite the bullet and replace the lot. If you put a finger on the top mount between the stem nut of the damper, and the body of the mount, whilst someone hefty jerks the rear of the car up and down, or someone does the same sitting in the back whilst the car is driven, you will feel if the top spherical joints are worn. They look like found on Time Watch material to me Thanks i'll have a look on friday when it's on the ramp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBDevelopments Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 the HSD, BC and Meister R now come with a rubber bush topmount chris, As i really don't like pillowball tops either. Plus is a car with suspension that has no top camber adjustment i find pillowball tops more useless than normal. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Wilson Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 the HSD, BC and Meister R now come with a rubber bush topmount chris, As i really don't like pillowball tops either. Plus is a car with suspension that has no top camber adjustment i find pillowball tops more useless than normal. Tim A lot of people think a JZA80 can have the camber adjusted by means of spherical bearing top mounts as they do not understand the difference between double wishbone suspension and McPherson strut types. As you so rightly say, a spherical bearing mount is only as good as the spherical bearing itself. And most are total junk that get supplied with these sort of kits. I would guesstimate a decent NMB or similar spherical bearing in the sort of size most top mounts use would be well over £50 per bearing. Any that aren't aerospace quality are not going to last long at all in this sort of application. If I remember right a new set of sphericals and rod ends for my Lola came to about £2800, plus VAT, trade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBDevelopments Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 yeah i agree on the quality of the bearings supplied, this is why on my other cars where they were road going applications and didn't want the top bearing issue and the added road noise and vibration that comes with them i swapped back to OEM topmounts with the uprated coilover setup. But like we both agree on spherical topmount bearings are just a waste of time on the supra as there is no benefits or adjustment that comes from them that makes any difference, just adds an unreliable factor into the suspension setup and added roadnoise and vibration. But with a few companies i've been speaking to, mainly the ones i've mentioned above these now come with rubber topmounts as standard with Pillowball as optional Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.