Should I be able to wiggle the swaybar endlink?

[newbie212]

I just replaced the front struts on my 97 camry with new struts, springs, strut mounts etc.. The passenger side went flawlessly but the drivers side was a little harder to get out.. I finally got the assembly out and installed the new one.. Now I have a rattle noise that was never there before.. I made sure everything was torqued to specs but noticed that I could manually wiggle the endlink with my hand left to right.. Is this normal? I didnt have time to check the other side and see if I can wiggle the other side. I will check it tomorrow if I dont get any answer back.. Hopefully someone can help.. Thanks guys!

[steve97]

You should not be able to wiggle the endlink. It will cause a rattle over bumps. NAPA has a little better price on these, than the dealer, and looks like the same high quality.

[Mike Gerber]

I just replaced the left front end link on my 98 with the NAPA part. It was $78 plus tax. Only the left front one was bad on my car. Be sure to check both sides. One may be good. No need to change out both if one is still good.

Mike

[rlee777]

The endlinks for the stabilizer bar should have intact rubber bushings that prevent any rattling. They should have a slight amount of play, but again the bushing cushions the endlink from the mount on the strut (and stabilizer bar).

Does the rattle occur during bumps? If so, try this:

1. Retorque the three strut mount bolts on top (not the center bolt). If it still rattles, then:
2. Retorque the center strut retaining nut (I think to 36 ft/lbs). IF it spins instead of torquing correctly, the strut has not seated correctly and is causing the rattling. You will have to remove the whole strut, compress the spring, and reseat the upper strut mount, making sure that the flats on the strut piston bar line up with the strut mount.
3. Check the stabilizer bar bushings...are they deteriorated?

[newbie212]

Originally Posted by rlee777

The endlinks for the stabilizer bar should have intact rubber bushings that prevent any rattling. They should have a slight amount of play, but again the bushing cushions the endlink from the mount on the strut (and stabilizer bar).

Does the rattle occur during bumps? If so, try this:

1. Retorque the three strut mount bolts on top (not the center bolt). If it still rattles, then:
2. Retorque the center strut retaining nut (I think to 36 ft/lbs). IF it spins instead of torquing correctly, the strut has not seated correctly and is causing the rattling. You will have to remove the whole strut, compress the spring, and reseat the upper strut mount, making sure that the flats on the strut piston bar line up with the strut mount.
3. Check the stabilizer bar bushings...are they deteriorated?

I purchased the monroe quick strut.. It came as a sealed unit so I did not have to compress the springs..

So I looked at both sides endlinks... The passenger side front has a grease fitting.. The driver side front does not... I called napa, autozone, advanced, and the dealer and they said that they do not come with grease fittings... Am I getting a line of crap? The previous owner said that he had the front suspension worked on 2 years ago and couldn't remember what was replaced.. Does it come with a grease fitting from the factory? Thanks

[rlee777]

Yes, it does have a grease filled rubber bushing on both ends of the stabilizer bar endlinks. Easy to buy the OEM part from Toyota and replace. Remember that you will need to hold the center part of the bolt with a hex before torquing on the nut.

www.toyotadiscountparts.com has this available for $62.03 before shipping. Wonder why it is missing on that endlink? Did someone cut off the bushing during strut installation?