SQUEAKING Front suspension...97 Camry LE - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Agrippa · 08-03-2008, 07:23 PM

Well I bought a 97 Camry le with 85k miles on it. It needed some stuff done to it to getting in top running condition. I flushed the tranny fluid, flushed the radiator, changed the spark plugs and wires, and had an alignment done. I also cleaned out the throttle body. This has improved the drive of the car a lot.

However, i have noticed that there is a squeak in the front passenger side of the car. I am fairly certain this is coming from the front spring. I only hear it when I go over bumps or or quickly over dips. My friend has a newer camry (98) with about 129k miles on it that had its shocks/struts replaced and I can definitely tell that it ride better and that there isnt as much travel in the suspension as mine has. I bought this car as my daily driver and I've already gone over my budget in what I wanted to spend in buying and tuning up this car. I really don't want to replace the front suspension and am willing to put up with it if nothing catastrophic will happen. I'm a poor student and really can't afford throwing more money at the camry. Thoughts? Recommendations? Thanks all.

Kep · 08-04-2008, 01:43 PM

You can probably safely use it with the squeak. However, worn suspension parts allow something to wiggle. And whatever wiggles may in turn wear out another suspension part so you end up having to replace parts that otherwise would have lasted longer. Also, the steering control becomes loose and that can be dangerous if allowed to progress too far.

Sometimes you can isolate a squeeking part by spraying each one in turn with water (from a hose). When the offending part gets wet it usually stops squeaking.

Kep

Agrippa · 08-04-2008, 10:01 PM

Yea i don't drive it hard, do ridiculously high speed/high G turns, or try to get it up on three wheels. She drives like a boat and that is fine with me! I'm a poor college student just hoping she'll get me through at least 5 years of good use and hopefully more. Ive already spent about $500 bucks more than I can really afford to spend on things like an alignment, tires, spark plugs, etc. I hope this was a good investment.