squeaking in A-arm

ludovicbreger · 03-01-2003, 12:54 PM

There is a nasty squeaking in the right front end
of my 1988 911 that I can't get rid of and that is
driving me absolutely insane. It seems to be coming
from the A-arm/Torsion bar. I tried spraying large
amount of lubricant on about everything in the area
without much success. My best guess based on what I've read
so far is that the squeaking is due to the torsion bar brushing on
the inside of the A-arm, and that the torsion bar will
have to be taken out and silliconed.

I much trouble is it to take the torsion bar out and put it back in?
Does the front alignment need to be redone afterwards?

Thanks in advance!

Ludovic

Jack Olsen · 03-01-2003, 01:17 PM

One solution:

Pelican sells them, I'm pretty sure.

911nut · 911nut's Garage

The squeaking that you hear is the torsion bar rubbing on the inside of the control arm because the rubber bushing has flowed out.
Plan on replacing all of your front bushings. You should check the rears while your at it.

ChrisBennet · ChrisBennet's Garage

When mine squeaked I changed the rubber bushings. They still squeaked. Then I built up the end cap with some weld where it had worn into the cross member. That fixed it. I had larger torsion bars so there was less clearance.
-Chris

89911 · 03-01-2003, 03:05 PM

Your torsion bar may be the problem as others noted. The bar could be sagging and hitting the steering rack. It is not too hard to index one of the adjustment screws, remove the cap and inspect the bar for damage. If none is found, the rubber bushings may have deteriorated if they haven't been upgraded to polyurenthane. You can check by getting under and probing the material where visible to see if it is hard.

Early_S_Man · 03-01-2003, 06:32 PM

Another solution ...

Help my 87 911 squeaks like an old Ford

Squeeky front torsion bar

ChrisBennet · ChrisBennet's Garage

I described the cause and the fix in this thread
Greg Brown of Precision Motor Werks/BRD told me about this fix back in 1996.
-Chris

ludovicbreger · 03-01-2003, 07:32 PM

Thanks a lot everyone.
Please tell me I won't need to realign the front axle, which I had done 200 miles ago!

nigel911 · nigel911's Garage

I had a terrible squeak from the same area and tried the same temporary solution as you, silicon spray. Turns out it was one of the ball joints, its rubber grommet/cover had developed small split which I hadn't noticed - it had dried out the joint. Good excuse for a turbo tie upgrade whilst fitting new ball joints!

BlueSkyJaunte · 03-03-2003, 02:57 PM

Mine only squeaks when it's humid/rainy. Too bad it's been like that for the past month!

Alex001 · 03-03-2003, 04:23 PM

Have exactly the same problem - oddly enough, it started only after I replaced the ball joints and installed turbo tie rods (and, or course, had the car aligned...). My shop told me that after replacing the bushings they'd have to align it again. I decided to live with the squeak for the time being.

ludovicbreger · 03-06-2003, 01:22 PM

I followed Chris's directions to the letter, and sure enough, it's gone!
And I used this opportunity to check the left side as well and pack both A-arms
with thick grease.
Make sure you count the torsion bar adjusting screw threads so you can put the adjusting cap back exactly as it was and don't need to go back to the alignment shop!
What a relief! I can drive the car again without turning the stereo all the way up to cover the squeak!
Thanks Chris.