Date:         Wed, 15 Aug 2001 01:59:20 -0700
Reply-To:     Bruce Anderson <ringmerlyn@HOME.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bruce Anderson <ringmerlyn@HOME.COM>
Subject:      Front Suspension Blues (Got the Squeeks)
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    Hello All!

         Brand new to the list! I'm driving a blue '87 GL Westy-
nicknamed "Bear" by my almost five-year-old son, due to the way that it
"growls" when we climb a hill..........anyway, I've been having a "bear"
of a time with the front suspension-  after 150K miles, every dip,
pothole, and undulation in the roadway creates squeeks, groans, and
squeals, to the point where I'm just a little fed up. (It's funny, I had
a '72 that made almost the exact same sound!) I've had my head under
there while I had a friend jumping up and down on the bumper (don't try
this at home- it looks plain silly) and as far as I can tell, most of
the racket is coming from the upper control arm bushings. (BTW, I'm
assuming that the bushings are pressed in?) The shocks are also looking
a little ragged, and all of the rubber is still "original", so I'm
looking to replace the rubber on the sway bar and trailing arms as well.
What I wanted to know is........before I pull out the spring compressor
and get to work on those bushings, are there any veterans out there who
have battled the same problem? Any "common" problems with squeaking
Vanagon front suspensions? Pitfalls to avoid? Secrets? Hot tips?
(Already out of WD40)