Worn Suspension Bushings

[993turbo]

I think my suspension bushings are getting a bit worn.

As far as the fron goes I think I will simply buy the 4 arms new, as this save me some hazzle. I will buy arm (6) and (10) in the front suspension illustration below...

This should solve the issue in the front, I think?

[993turbo]

As far as the rear suspension goes I have a few questions:

I take it that the bushing (2) on the illustration below needs to be changed.

But, how about the 2 inner bushings on the wishbone (marked with circle). Are these changeable?

What about the Arms (6) and (11) do these wear out easily?

[Weasel]

For the front, yeah that should fix all slack issues. The only other things that wear up there are the swaybar end links and eventually the struts/mounts.

For the rear suspension, #2 is a ball joint, not bushing. If it has slack or the boots are split then you should change it, otherwise you don't really have to. As for the lower control arm bushings, they are a pretty solid design that doesn't often ever wear. It is the ball socket in part# 11 that usually shows wear/slack first.

[993turbo]

Thanks for the info Weasel...

The swaybar links are new, both front and rear. So no worries here.

For the rear we have problems setting the Camber angles and they said its worn bushes.

So perhaps I should change the arm (11) as well.

So (2) is a ball joint rather than a bushing per definition. It does not look like a Ball joint?

[993turbo]

Also (4) in the rear suspension illustration, is this something that wears out? or.............? What purpose does it serve?

[Weasel]

#4 is solid aluminum and completes the pivot arm end that works with #2.

#2 is actually a ball socket that pressed into the bottom of the spindle. The outer socket is the aluminum part with the boots on it and the pivoting ball part of it goes through the middle that the bolt goes through. If you are having camber issues this is likely worn too. The special tool that presses that in/out is a bolt and cup setup that is shaved down on one side for clearance.

[993turbo]

Thanks Weasel for very informative posts, once again. Looks like I will have to fork out and buy some suspension components..........

[swissfrank]

993 Turbo, I'm curious as to your mileage.

[993turbo]

130000Km...............

[whfh99]

I have a 2001 X5 3.0i with about 70,000 miles. I have a very prominent squeak coming from the left rear suspension. You can hear the noise just getting in to the vehicle. We think it is in the area of #22 to #15. Along that bolt that goes through the ball joint. My question is how to isolate this noise? I don't want to replace parts that are not faulty by 'guessing'. Thanks in advance for any help. - Link