Possible suspension and transmission problems....need advice! - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Protaeus · 03-30-2006, 11:52 PM

Hey guys,

I am driving a 1992 Toyota camry CSI LTD (gen2) and I have been having some problems with my suspension over the past year or so.

Now I could be wrong as I am by no means particularly experienced, but here me out.

The car makes creaking noises, sometimes fairly loud, especially on corners and bumps. On the occasion I even have lound 'clunk' noises. These noises however come and go. Sometimes they are there, sometimes they arent and I cant for the life of me figure out why. Sometimes the rain makes it go away, but other times its there even during the rain.

Also, cornering in my car seems to have gone downhill a little. The car seems to sway a bit too much and possibly more so than it used to.

I have taken it to two mechanics and both have claimed to have 'fixed' the problem.
....haha yeah right.....
The first one even said that he replaced the front suspension.....
the second one told me different and then claimed to have fixed the problem with lubrication.
....yeah right....again.

So could someone give me a good idea what the problem is and how to get rid of it? Oh, and could someone living in Sydney, Australia recommend a decent mechanic who wont take any opportunity he can to rip me off?

Now for my transmission problem, I appear to have some hesitation sometimes when accelerating. I do drive an auto, but the hesitation has been getting worse. I checked the oil and it looked clean...

Finally, do the K&N air filters give any kind of performance boost over the paper filter?

If you made it down to this line, thanks for bearing with me

tojo mojo · 03-31-2006, 12:33 AM

http://home.usadatanet.net/~jbplock/ISO5011/SPICER.htm

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/airfilter/airtest1.htm

Some info on K&N type filters. There is a direct relationship between airflow and particle removal. Despite claims by manufacturers to the contrary. Conclusion: filter out dirt rather than chase some spurious power improvement. I recommend Toyota genuine filters unless you have spent mega dollars and have your vehicle in competition.

Struts make noise as do other suspension components and also steering racks I believe. Keep throwing money at it and replace items to lose the clunk.I would recommend good quality gas shocks Or forget about it and purchase a newer car.

Your vehicles hesitation may or may not be transmission related. The EFI on these is complex and these vehicles are getting older. If the transmission is suspect it may be worthwhile getting a service with band adjustment. Is the vehicle changing cleanly between changes or is it snatching? I cannot recommend anyone in Sydney perhaps another respondant has had quality work done.

My vehicle makes clunking noises from the suspension. I live with it. Perhaps you could contact a Toyota car club for a reputable repairer or some guys involved in club motorsport over there as the guys they deal with tend to be Toyota experts(freaks)

tracyf · 03-31-2006, 12:55 AM

Bad suspension left too long will allow CV axle damage to occur, and I speak from personal experience. My wife has a 1990 V6 Camry and I just got through doing both her front struts ($52 each for lifetime at AutoZone) and a driver-side CV axle (replaced free, lifetime part from earlier purchase). She also had a broken strut mount (about $50) on the driver-side too. Ignore a problem and it will only get bigger is all I know to tell you.

God bless.

Ferrat · 03-31-2006, 04:38 AM

I would love to know how you got struts for $52 i need new ones to stop the boat motion my cars now doing lol. I'm here in oz

tracyf · 03-31-2006, 07:58 AM

They were $52 (per strut) but that was here in the US at AutoZone and they are the lifetime warranteed ones - Gabriel gas-charged.

chasman · 04-08-2006, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Protaeus

Hey guys,

I am driving a 1992 Toyota camry CSI LTD (gen2) and I have been having some problems with my suspension over the past year or so.

Now I could be wrong as I am by no means particularly experienced, but here me out.

The car makes creaking noises, sometimes fairly loud, especially on corners and bumps. On the occasion I even have lound 'clunk' noises. These noises however come and go. Sometimes they are there, sometimes they arent and I cant for the life of me figure out why. Sometimes the rain makes it go away, but other times its there even during the rain.

Also, cornering in my car seems to have gone downhill a little. The car seems to sway a bit too much and possibly more so than it used to.

I have taken it to two mechanics and both have claimed to have 'fixed' the problem.
....haha yeah right.....
The first one even said that he replaced the front suspension.....
the second one told me different and then claimed to have fixed the problem with lubrication.
....yeah right....again.

So could someone give me a good idea what the problem is and how to get rid of it?

If you made it down to this line, thanks for bearing with me

How many miles?

I would not be surprised given the age of your car:
- If the suspension bushings may need some attention.
- However, from your description ("especially on corners and bumps") it sounds like the strut mounts. One or more of the strut mounts may be worn. If one is worn, it probably will not be too long before the others also need replacement. If this is your situation, you may wish to consider overhauling the suspension - strut mounts, struts, coil springs, & all rubber parts. By taking care of all these items at the same time you will reduce your total labor costs. We just went through all this with our Gen2.

Hope this helps,

Ferrat · 04-09-2006, 02:54 AM

Hey

I was looking at the Gabriel ones. Are they anygood? i can get 4 for $190 here. How are they? Smooth?

Thanks
Matt

tracyf · 04-10-2006, 12:59 AM

The Gabriel ones I put on the front of my wife's 90 Camry feel fine - railroad tracks and speed bumps are so much nicer now that I replaced the front struts and driver side strut mount.

chasman · 04-10-2006, 11:51 AM

http://www.tokicogasshocks.com/index.html
http://www.tokicogasshocks.com/shock_design.html
http://www.tokicogasshocks.com/tokico_company.html
http://www.tokicogasshocks.com/faq.html

http://www.tokicogasshocks.com/car/performance.html
Tokico "Blue" Performance struts for a Gen2 Camry can be found on the web for ~$60-65 each.

http://www.shox.com/ was very helpful.

If you search the TN Camry forum for "Tokico" you'll find 250 threads. They must be doing something right.

The same search for "Gabriel" yielded 25 threads.

Protaeus · 04-11-2006, 01:03 AM

Thanks for the replies guys, the camry is on 170,000KMs and yeah, I'll probably get the suspension redone... hope its not too expenisve

tracyf · 04-11-2006, 04:44 PM

I do not know the cost of the same parts over there, but like I said earlier, I got both front struts for about $106 (lifetime warranty) and putting them on is not hard at all - just have to rent the right tools, be careful, and have an alignment done afterward (paid $52 for all four wheel alignment at local tire store where a fellow fireman works part-time). Let me know if you want to try doing them yourself and I can send you the instructions I emailed someone else on here who asked me about having done mine.

Take care and God bless