Is this a sign of my control arms biding farewell?

[Gundem]

when i brake i hear a *cling* under my footrest. when i press gas and let go i hear that *cling* again. it only comes from the front left side...

[deux321]

not sure if thats the control arms!might be wrong!

the way i heard is to turn your wheel all the way to one side and accel slowly, if you here some clicking then then it would be the arms. same the other way.

[AudiRacerS4]

not sure if thats the control arms!might be wrong!

the way i heard is to turn your wheel all the way to one side and accel slowly, if you here some clicking then then it would be the arms. same the other way.

if you hear clicking that's axels...control arms and TRE's clunk over bumps when they go bad

[Gundem]

^^ oh nos. how expensive would that be?

[bass_lover1]

650ish for all 8 control arms 2 TREs and sway bar links, plus associated hardware. You can do it your self and save $$$ on labor.

Axles I believe are 130 a side, give or take a few bucks.

[legionvr6]

lift one corner and check for a torn boot. if its torn then change the axle.

if it all looks good grab your tire at 12 and 6 and wigle if its got play then you got bad bushings and need new control arms.

please corect me if im wrong about the control arm test. that is how i was told s a good way to check

[A4Shizzle]

Don't mean to jack the thread but if there is a creaking/groaning sound when I first turn the wheels in the morning, is that a sign of bad CAs? I changed both tierod ends and the steering fluid is full. I didn't notice any wiggle or play when I tried to shake the wheel, but its gotten worse since then. Now it sort of clunks on bumps.

[AudiRacerS4]

Don't mean to jack the thread but if there is a creaking/groaning sound when I first turn the wheels in the morning, is that a sign of bad CAs? I changed both tierod ends and the steering fluid is full. I didn't notice any wiggle or play when I tried to shake the wheel, but its gotten worse since then. Now it sort of clunks on bumps.

could be either control arms or the power steering rack

[Gundem]

Don't mean to jack the thread but if there is a creaking/groaning sound when I first turn the wheels in the morning, is that a sign of bad CAs? I changed both tierod ends and the steering fluid is full. I didn't notice any wiggle or play when I tried to shake the wheel, but its gotten worse since then. Now it sort of clunks on bumps.

check your power steering thread thief...

[Gundem]

650ish for all 8 control arms 2 TREs and sway bar links, plus associated hardware. You can do it your self and save $$$ on labor.

Axles I believe are 130 a side, give or take a few bucks.

oh? so i should be happy if it's axel?

[bass_lover1]

Yea, I suppose. But if the axle is shot, and you have a higher mileage B5, I would recommend doing the control arms at the same time as the axle. Because, either way you need to remove the steering knuckle, might as well kill both at the same time.

[onemoremile]

No need to remove the knuckle to change the axle. Turn the wheel all the way, pop an arm connection or two off and it slides right in. I don't think I even needed to pop a joint.

[Kronic Budz]

im starting to get clunks in the front driver side only when im turning the wheel at slow speeds, it makes a big clunk noise sometimes. And im also getting a loose little clunk noise over some bumps in the road just like i did when my control arms starting going. The anoying thing is, i replaced all my CA's TRE's and links and so now i need to get it up on a lift and check the play in the wheels again.


uhhhhggggg.

[Rico750]

im starting to get clunks in the front driver side only when im turning the wheel at slow speeds, it makes a big clunk noise sometimes. And im also getting a loose little clunk noise over some bumps in the road just like i did when my control arms starting going. The anoying thing is, i replaced all my CA's TRE's and links and so now i need to get it up on a lift and check the play in the wheels again.


uhhhhggggg.

seems that i have the same prob.. sounds from underneath.. must be a famous b5 thing..

[bass_lover1]

No need to remove the knuckle to change the axle. Turn the wheel all the way, pop an arm connection or two off and it slides right in. I don't think I even needed to pop a joint.

Using this image and writeup, the knuckle was removed from the upper control arms. Maybe you don't need to do this step, but if you do, you're already half way to removing the upper control arms, might as well do them at the same time.