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the guy that did my alignment ..... (he spoke chinglish: english/chinese) so it was a lil' difficult for me to translate what he was saying... and im chinese!

well.. the guy that did my alignment said that my "front lower control arm(s): bushings were weak or worn down? i couldnt figure out which one he meant... or neither.

now.. is that front lower control arm: bushings.... part of the struts, or something totally different?

and then he went on to say something about my wheels... about how it was too wide or too big for the control arm bushings...... ""something along those lines.

now, i have the circuit 8 16" w/205/50/16 tires. to my knowledge... those are suppose to be fine for my car... but then again, i believe his point was, "my rims/tires are too big/wide for the the lower control arms' bushings because they are weak or worn down.

does anybody konw what he might of meant?
thanks

 
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You compliance bushings or ball joints are worn down, likely due to the fact that honda didn't design them with non-shitty tires in mind. Or something like that

 
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i know that i needed knew ball joints... because they were squeaking during the winter.

now, i guess the "compliance bushings" is the same as ball joints?

my car's been lowered for about two/three years now... so i figured that the ball joints will wear down a lot quicker.

thanks.



now... does anybody konw where to get cheap ball joints? i asked honda a few weeks ago and they claimed that i would need the whole part "lower control arm"? ...... still havent had time to figure out what i really need.
but i guess i should do it soon.

 
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compliance bushings are not ball joints. They are located at the fron of the control arm.

http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/...tcgry5=KNUCKLE

#12 is the compliance bushing, #13 is another bushing, and of course the balljoint which attaches the knuckle to the lower control arm

 
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thanks for that website.. i've been meaning to look for something like that online.


i guess according to that mechanic, and you... from what i've mentioned, is that i should get parts #12 and #13 bushings and change 'em..... i guess $40 isnt too bad.


....during the winter, when it's really cold, there have been squeaking noises coming from that area (ball joint area) whenever i turn the steering wheel slowly.... would you think that the noise is being caused because of the bushings wearing down? or something totally different causing the noises...?

thanks.

 
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Those bushings will need to be pressed in... only a shop will be able to replace them.

 
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Perfect picture man... Thanks dude!

When I swapped to my summer alloys, I noticed my bushings were all worn

Like R1 said... you'll need to press them in... Bushings cheap, labour $$

 
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okay, thanks

 
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know any good quality and cheap shop to install the bushings besides honda?

well, at the least... good quality w/decent pricing

 
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i highly recommend AXXE if he can do it

 
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omg. this thread is right on time.

for some reason, i believe i heard a SLIGHT "crack" noise every time i made a slow turn during parking. Also, i head the same "crack" noise every time i start to take off (5~10mpg)..

is this due to bushing 12, and bushing 13?

I checked out the bushings by turning the steering wheel all the way left and look inside. I believe I can see clearly that bushing 12 is cracked!!

AXXE, can you please describe the connection between the knuckle and the control arm? I hope I can learn all necessary stuffs about these area before surrendering my car to the shop...

BTW, im using stock suspension with 15" falken ziex-512

 
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well, if axxe has a compressor machine that can press them in... i'd be glad to let him do it... and let him charge me, as long as it's hella cheaper than all the shops...


as of now, im just contemplating if i should just get the front control arm bushings or get the whole kit that comes with the rear bushings also and for the sway bars..........

 
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if axxe cant do it i konw someone else just give me a shoute if axxe cant do it

 
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I'd get the whole kit and replace the rears too... you're getting poly urethane replacements right.

 
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okay, i will let you know, thanks.

 
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Yeah, I can do them, after exams of course. I hate finals .

zen_master: The connection between the knuckle and the control arm is a standard issue balljoint, which most of the time is "one piece" with the control arm. I'm going to call my buddy and see if he can get me the ball joints, and if he can't then the entire lower control arm in necessary. I'm also not sure if the control arm comes with #12 and #13 pressed in from the factory, or if they come seperate and need to be pressed in.

 
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ZEN-- I have had the same problem I think you are having. I turned the wheels one way and got a pop/crack noise. Turned the other way and same thing. I would also get it when acceling and de-cceling. I replaced all my struts yesterday and the sound is gone. I firmly believe that its the 2 bolts that hold the strut to the knuckle. Mine were not very tight and I think the sound is from the knuckle slipping inside the strut. I noticed yesterday that my compliance bushings are competely busted but the sound is gone now, so I doubt its your bushings. Check those bolts, they are 19mm.

AXXE-- From the looks of the picture, the lower ball joint is part of the knucke. I've never looked down there so I don't know for sure.

 
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when i turn the wheel all the wa to the right on a dead steer it will pop

is that the same probleM? wat i gotta fix?

 
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utahbmxer: you're right, it appears to be part of the knuckle. That is going to be a PITA to replace.

 
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AXXE: Ya, I hate wheel bearings. About the #12 bushing. My brother has a 1 ton press.. I wonder if I could rig a way to press that bushing out. I noticed yesterday while installing my new struts that my passenger side is completely busted, I didn't check the drivers. How bad is it to drive on that? (who knows how long I have been)

It very well could be. I had the same issue. If I was going over 10-15 MPH I would rarely hear a pop sound. Slower than that (and stopped) I would get a pop sound. One pop turning left, sometimes 2 pops when turning right.

I would check the bolts labeled A below, to see if it fixes your problem:


They should be torqued to 76ft lbs (thats 912in pounds)
Thats quite a bit.

Let me know if it works for you.

 
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That is also exactly what happened to me!
During stopping, the noise appears to come more often....

What is the size of the two bolts here? I think I'll give this a try....

 
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hello, any news about this problem?

should I only tighten bolt A? how about the one below (B)?

 
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If you get a pop while braking, I guarantee this will solve your problem.

A is the Bolt. B is the Nut on the opposite side of the flange. They are both 19mm. You will probably need 2 wrenches to tighten it (one for the bolt, another for the nut side). I'm not sure if you'll need to remove the tire, but you most likely will in order to get enough leverage on the thing.

Just curious, how many miles does your car have on it? I think mine had somewhere around 102,000 when I started to notice it. I now have about 110,000. I hate commuting.

 
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my car........43K......

i think the noise start gettin worse.....however, it always comes out after 1 mile of driving or so....

 
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anybody know why the prothane rear bushing set is twice the price compared to the energy suspension rear bushing set?

according to prothane's catalogue, it comes with upper and lower rear bushing sets... "this according to a shop

as far as i know.. there are three bushings for the rear control arm for 7thgen civics...

 
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everytime i turn my steering wheel to the right, the front passenger side wheel area makes this disturbing clonking sound... and it only occurs when i turn the steering wheel to the right.

has any of had this problem? is this due to the compliance bushings being worn down? or because of the issues mentioned earlier about hte struts (bolts) not being tight enough...?

 
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I don't know what yours is. I had these problems before I replaced my struts, but they disappeared after the new struts. One of the Clunk/pop noises came back about a week ago while turning to the right. I had my friend get it the car and turn the wheel back and forth. I started to pin-point the sound by holding different things to feel what was popping. Turns out I didn't fully tighten the "self-locking" nut (17mm) on the top of the strut, it was about 1/2 turn loose. I tighted this up (while holding the strut in place with a 6mm allen) and the sound is gone. It was shifting as I would turn.

Another noise I eliminated yesterday was a very annoying squeak from my Driver's Side Drum Brake everytime I would let off the Brake (Pedal or E-Brake). I can't stand little noises like that coming from my car. What do they call that- ****?