3rd & 4th Generation (1992–1996 & 1997–2001)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 1992-1996 & 1997-2001
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I have a 2001 camry and have been trying to solve a rattle/thump for awhile now. I first replaced the rear sway bar bushings but that did nothing. I took it to the shop and they told me that it was the rear strut mounts. I just replaced the rear drivers side strut mount and the sound is still there, although it is extremely hard to tell exactly what side its coming from. I have the passenger side strut mount that I was going to install but with the first one seeming to make no difference i am a little worried that this may not be the issue at all. I have all the rear interior out so maybe its amplifing the sound and making it sound like its still coming from both sides when its not, is this a possibility? Would it be worth it to just go ahead and replace the second one? If that ends up not fixing it does anyone have any other suggestions?
Do yourself a favor and check your trunk first. I knew a guy who was having the same problem and it ended up being his tire iron bouncing around in the right rear trunk storage area where the jack was. I would also check if your spare tire is completely secure,..along with the jack extension rod. If everything seems secure,...check your rear stabilizer links as well. Check your exhaust and make sure it isn't loose & bouncing around. Do this first and check back in for more suggestions
The Following User Says Thank You to garytho For This Useful Post:
I check the trunk and everything seemed secure. The jack was a bit loose so I tightened it down along with the tire but I will have to wait untill after work to see if that has done anything. The exhaust is secure however the heat shield has broken and it is resting on the exhaust pipe. I will fix that and see if it does anything, however I have been under the car a few times since this issue has started and all the other times the shield was secure. The sway bar links were replaced last summer and still look new, but just in case what am I looking for to see if they are bad?
Check the rear sway bar links; they have a ball joint on each end that can get loose. This seems to be very common, judging by how often it pops up here. Here's a link to a DIY thread.
Also could be the rear lateral control arms. This seems to be a less common problem, but it's not rare. Here's a link to a DIY thread to check/replace those.
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1992 Camry LE, V6 (3VZ-FE), ABS brakes, 330k miles, dark emerald pearl, owned since new.
1996 Avalon XLS, ABS brakes, moonroof, white, acquired w/ 139k miles, now at 261k.
2001 Yamaha FZ1, Ivan's jet kit, resprung all around, Ohlins in the rear, Race Tech cartridge emulators in the forks, 45k miles.
The Following User Says Thank You to BMR For This Useful Post:
BMR, thanks for the reply! You nailed it! Rear lateral control arm is loose. I will order them up and replace them. But now for another question. Like I said I have change one of the strut mounts and was planning on doing the other as well but now that I know thats not my issue is there any need for me to replace it? I'd like to return both but seeing as I've already got one on I dont think that will be possible lol. Anyway, what are peoples thoughts on only changing the one?
Well I decided to just pull the new strut mount off and put the old one back on. So i will at least be able to return one of them. Now I just have to wait for the arms to come in.
Cool!... glad to hear you found the problem. I replaced one of mine a while back for the same reason; it was surprising to me how much noise it was making, given how little it seemed to be worn out. There was just a tiny bit of play in the end joint.
If you haven't already done it, I wouldn't bother taking out the new strut mount already installed. Like you said, I doubt they'd be willing to take it back. And in my opinion, it doesn't contribute much to how the ride feels, so having one old one and one new one shouldn't matter.
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1992 Camry LE, V6 (3VZ-FE), ABS brakes, 330k miles, dark emerald pearl, owned since new.
1996 Avalon XLS, ABS brakes, moonroof, white, acquired w/ 139k miles, now at 261k.
2001 Yamaha FZ1, Ivan's jet kit, resprung all around, Ohlins in the rear, Race Tech cartridge emulators in the forks, 45k miles.
I had some time to waste so I decided to take it off. It still looks new so I will just see what they say when I take the other one off, if not I will just have it in case it does wear out. I had also been noticing a bit of a rattle in the front so I decided to take a look at that after all the suggestions. Turns out the front sway bar links are a bit worn and rattling around, add that to the order and the car will hopefully be quite again, it's been noisy for way too long!
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