SLC noise

[Kyle]

Ok, anyone with the RCR cars. What have you done to eliminate or reduce the creaking of the suspension. I greased the front suspension partially, haven’t done the back yet. But wow, perfectly flat roads and still it’s like bouncing on and old steel box spring mattress.

has anyone located the particular problem areas?

 

[Mason S]

Hey Kyle, my suspension was squeaking loudly when going over small bumps. I removed the suspension arms and lubed each ball joint with Valvoline Cerulean grease. To lube it I put a small dab on the ball and then spun it around a few times to coat the inside of the joint and then wiped it all off.

Now I have no squeaks or creaks!

 

[Kyle]

Thanks man, I did this on one whole side so far and I think it has worked. I’ve neglected to do the lower front mounts which I think is a majority of the issue. I’m dreading getting down in the footwells to access those bolts.

 

[Dusty]

solid ball joints/suspension joints are going to make a little more noise. clicking and such is normal. dont spend too much time fighting it. make sure nothing is loose and that the joints are healthy and call it a day.

 

[mahlon]

I don't think It takes much, on the race cars I Usually just spray some wd-40 on all the hiem's and it works very well. I dont think it's a long term solution we do it prepping for events and while were competing between races.......m

 

[Rich Kruger]

We used WD40 on the heims when we raced on dirt. That was more for convenience and the fact it limited the dirt that stuck to the heim. WD40 isn’t a high strength lubricant. A light coating with a high shear grease will minimize wear BUT has to be kept relatively clean.

 

[Ian Anderson]

Way back they used to make rod ends that had a grease nipple.
not sure if they are still available but would certainly help to help the squeaks at bay

Ian

 

[Neil]

Spherical rod end bearings were not popular because the hole in the body for the grease fitting created a crack in heavily-loaded dynamic applications. These days, injection molded liners are used as "self-lubricating" rod ends. Nylon, or other polymers (some Teflon filled) surround the ball and those work very well.

 

[Kyle]

Haven’t had much time lately to dig into it and get the front greased, but will update with how the cerulean does.

 

[Neil]

Spherical rod end bearings were not popular because the hole in the body for the grease fitting created a crack in heavily-loaded dynamic applications. These days, injection molded liners are used as "self-lubricating" rod ends. Nylon, or other polymers (some Teflon filled) surround the ball and those work very well.

I should have said "Spherical rod end bearings with grease fittings ..."

 

[Randy V]

If you really want to get rid of all the rattling, you will need to consider options other than typical rod-ends / rose / heim joints...
Take a look at these. Not nearly as sexy looking, but will outlast a heim joint several times over and be nearly silent in the process...

Speedway Forged 4-Bar Rod End, 3/4-16 RH Thread, Zinc Plated

RH Male threads 3/4"-16 thread pitch Polyurethane bushing Steel construction Zinc finish Sold each

www.speedwaymotors.com

 

[Kyle]

Actually interested in those, especially for the front lower joints. They will never be seen. Are those the exact size needed?

 

[Joel K]

That would certainly help with isolation and noise. They may work on the SLC, but given the front end geometry to align the wheels in the body I can see in my setup they wouldn’t work on the front.

In order to align the front wheels in the wheel wells the the front fork heims have more threads showing than the rear forks. Those heims would need to have the same number of threads showing. They may work in the rear if they don’t sit back too far in the bracket, once again uncentering the rear wheels.

Editing the post, speedway has angled ones as well. Interesting…

Speedway Stainless Steel 4-Bar Rod Ends, 5/8-18 RH Thread, Polished

Don't settle for a weak 4-bar end made out of a piece of tubing welded to a bolt. These Speedway rod ends are made from fully polished investment cast stainless steel for superior strength and durability. All rod ends feature a 5/8"-18 RH threaded shank and the polyurethane bushing has a steel...

www.speedwaymotors.com

 

[Rich Kruger]

Rubber bushings…..sacrilege

 

[Neil]

This type of rod end does not require lubrication:

Chromoly Steel Nylafiber Matrix Race Rod Ends - Rod End Supply

XM, XF Call Rod End Supply inside sales personnel at 1-800-284-2902 with your specific application needs. XM BALL RACE BODY 52100 BEARING STEEL INJECTION 4130 STEEL PRECISION GROUND MOLDED HEAT TREATED HEAT TREATED NYLAFIBER CHROME PLATED HARD CHROME PLATED MATRIX XF CAUTIONS DO NOT LUBRICATE...

rodendsupply.com

 

[Randy V]

This type of rod end does not require lubrication:

Chromoly Steel Nylafiber Matrix Race Rod Ends - Rod End Supply

XM, XF Call Rod End Supply inside sales personnel at 1-800-284-2902 with your specific application needs. XM BALL RACE BODY 52100 BEARING STEEL INJECTION 4130 STEEL PRECISION GROUND MOLDED HEAT TREATED HEAT TREATED NYLAFIBER CHROME PLATED HARD CHROME PLATED MATRIX XF CAUTIONS DO NOT LUBRICATE...

rodendsupply.com

Race part... Show me one with 50k road miles on it....
We just need to agree that race parts are not necessarily good road parts.
Race only parts like these will always need frequent inspection, service and replacement.

 

[Neil]

Those types of rod ends are perfectly acceptable for a road car but they are not Moog rod ends- like any high performance stressed part, they should be inspected at regular intervals and replaced when necessary. If a "fit and forget" attitude prevails, buy a Lexus or something similar- not a GT40.

Who drives a GT40 for 50,000 miles without inspecting important parts?

 

[Mesa]

(SLC)
I replaced the front suspension rod ends with custom made urethane "T" rod ends (similar to the ones shown above) some time ago. Had a shop in Texas make them up for me, the hardest part was getting ones with the proper sleeve/insert size for the lower control arm (Its a larger bolt than the upper control arm). You will also need to angle the upper control arm brackets to match the angle of the control arm, otherwise there will be binding as the suspension goes through its stroke.

The shocks cannot blow off oil fast enough (non-adjustable high speed valving) to accommodate sharp edged bumps (think highway expansion joints) that were jarring the crap out of the car (very low profile front tires). I was going to go as far as replacing them with Ohlins or Penskes (more high speed valving options) to solve the problem. Fortunately, these urethane bushed units improved the ride significantly and also greatly reduced the need for lubing.

Did not use this mod to the rear suspension because with much taller sidewall tires, the tire absorbs sharp impacts easily (and the rod ends are much easier to lube on the rear)

 

[Tom]

has anyone tried using a johnny joint or something like these? -

Del-Sphere Pivot Joint | Roto-Joint

Del-Sphere Pivot Joint | Roto-Joint | Del-Sphere Pivot Joint by Spohn Performance

www.spohn.net

The off road guys apparently use them in multilink set-ups in place of rod ends. I'd like to incorporate these into a few of the pivots of my street car as they can move in multiple arcs so suspension won't bind, offer more stiffness than rubber bushes, and can be lubed to prevent squeaks.

 

[Mesa]

The challenge with any option will be getting an end with a small enough overall OD and a large enough bolt hole ID to fit into the lower front rod end pocket.