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Just noticed mine as well, Had heard a clunk rattle noise on front end took in for oil change told service I need oil change and tire rotation. Asked can you also look for something lose in front end making the noise thought for sure a big list would come up specially making an UP sale when I Asked. Well got done came back found nothing. Well later that night don't know why but wanted to check to make sure they did not make a mess under car since the 3G TL has that cross member that FULL of oil when doing so. Well there was oil on the drive way and all over bottom of car and suspension component. Pissed off went to them in first place Could of gotten some brake cleaner and wiped off the surfaces at least. But my concern is that during tire rotation and oil change they id not see the right lower compliance bushing was bad. Its like right there next to oil filter and all. Then when I pop hood open there is oil spots all over my engine cover could not wipe this down either darn kids working in the bays.
Well bottom line is I need new bushings I ont want to go all out racing and get the solid spheres I have an I beam older ford which I did some front end work and its what I have on there and its not what I want in a daily driver. Should I go with stock or do some POLY ones. Also should I might as well do all 3 each side. Only 56K TL S.
I'd stick with the stock ones, they are going to be way more comfortable than any other option. The racing ones are great but bumps/impacts will be harsher.
Just noticed mine as well, Had heard a clunk rattle noise on front end took in for oil change told service I need oil change and tire rotation. Asked can you also look for something lose in front end making the noise thought for sure a big list would come up specially making an UP sale when I Asked. Well got done came back found nothing. Well later that night don't know why but wanted to check to make sure they did not make a mess under car since the 3G TL has that cross member that FULL of oil when doing so. Well there was oil on the drive way and all over bottom of car and suspension component. Pissed off went to them in first place Could of gotten some brake cleaner and wiped off the surfaces at least. But my concern is that during tire rotation and oil change they id not see the right lower compliance bushing was bad. Its like right there next to oil filter and all. Then when I pop hood open there is oil spots all over my engine cover could not wipe this down either darn kids working in the bays.
Well bottom line is I need new bushings I ont want to go all out racing and get the solid spheres I have an I beam older ford which I did some front end work and its what I have on there and its not what I want in a daily driver. Should I go with stock or do some POLY ones. Also should I might as well do all 3 each side. Only 56K TL S.
Why don't you start by Fixomg your massive oil leak? Also they aren't getting paid to clean up the oily mess you're clearly not trying to fix. If you have an issue with your oil leak fix it. If you want it cleaned ask them to clean it (should charge you) or clean it yourself.
^Lol, that's not a leak. They splooshed oil all over his engine bay when filling up the motor with fresh oil. Part of the reason I never bother with those places.
No oil leaks, not even my 95 F150 with 230K leaks nothing. They splashed the frame and A arm under oil filter. This is reason I pay for some one to do it. Have no ramps my self or else I would do it. Defeats the whole purpose. Besides 55K better not be leaking anything.
Last edited by Sal's Type S; Jun 29, 2015 at 07:05 PM.
I'd stick with the stock ones, they are going to be way more comfortable than any other option. The racing ones are great but bumps/impacts will be harsher.
CSMEANCE do you know if the TSX are a bit stiffer. Want to tighten up the ride a bit (sportier) but don't want bone jarring. Could of sworn seen somewhere that some models had a bit stiffer bushings.
Last edited by Sal's Type S; Jun 29, 2015 at 07:06 PM.
Why don't you start by Fixomg your massive oil leak? Also they aren't getting paid to clean up the oily mess you're clearly not trying to fix. If you have an issue with your oil leak fix it. If you want it cleaned ask them to clean it (should charge you) or clean it yourself.
THis was also a dealer. Surprised they did not find it. First rule of a dealer is to up sell. Always look for potential sales and repairs.
are you guys replacing the other 2 bushings on the arm or only the compliance bushings? I have 190K on the TL now so I figure it might be worth the extra $65 to do the other bushings. Also I'm thinking of putting in new ball-joints just to be safe, or you guys think it's overkill?
I did bushings and balljoints (and inner/outer tierods) with rental tools from AutoZone and a Dewalt battery impact gun. It makes things a bit easier.
The MOOG balljoints are NOT as good quality as the Honda OEM. I would put in the OEM if I had to do it again. However, I've got about 6K on the new lbjs (did UBJs as well) and they're fine (tight). Can't tell a diff because the original at 160K were still in good shape. Even the boot cover was still holding up.
So far so good. I have moog lower ball joints which are a bitch to put in and they also sit a little taller than the stock one, but they are flush in the hole.
Moog lower control arms. The bushing are nearly solid, there is no gap like the oem one where they have 2 gaps.
I also installed moog outer tie rods with the grease fitting since my old one were destroyed when I was taking stuff out to do the axle.
Sooo about 350 bucks later. The whole front end is pretty tight again.
Moog lower control arms. The bushing are nearly solid, there is no gap like the oem one where they have 2 gaps.
I'm interested in the idea of having solider(?) bushing by just replacing the whole arm and keeping current one as a spare set - and replace bushing with nfn^2's tool when I'm bored. Did you have any more difficulty pressing the LCA down to get the fork bolt back in? I'm already having trouble as is with stock bushing with 140k miles, so something for me to consider before I start jacking up the car.
I'm interested in the idea of having solider(?) bushing by just replacing the whole arm and keeping current one as a spare set - and replace bushing with nfn^2's tool when I'm bored. Did you have any more difficulty pressing the LCA down to get the fork bolt back in? I'm already having trouble as is with stock bushing with 140k miles, so something for me to consider before I start jacking up the car.
To get the fork bolt back in without messing up the thread:
Use a small jack to help you align the hole. Get a flash light or something so you can see if it's align. You'll have to align the front side first, hammer it through and stop when/before it reaches the back side. Use the jack to align that side and then hammer it through. I luckily have a metal punch that fits the hole almost perfectly (or you can use a short 3/8 extension). So I use that to align the backside and just hammer the bolt right through. Just don't keep whacking at it if the backside is not aligned cause you might ruin the thread.
I'm interested in the idea of having solider(?) bushing by just replacing the whole arm and keeping current one as a spare set - and replace bushing with nfn^2's tool when I'm bored. Did you have any more difficulty pressing the LCA down to get the fork bolt back in? I'm already having trouble as is with stock bushing with 140k miles, so something for me to consider before I start jacking up the car.
I used a jack and pushed it back up so that I could insert the fork back it. It helps if the car front end is off the ground because the sway bar puts tension on the wishbone.
I threw my old arm in the trash. It was a 25-30lb paper weight. So yeah screw that.
Well, I notice when replacing the front brakes, the lower control arm's (driver side) bushing is torn. However, the passenger side isn't. Whenever I do a hard right turn it makes a clicking noise, but a hard left does not. I do not see any tear on the inner/outer boot of the drive axle. So do you think the problem is the lower control arm? Any input will be awesome.
Hey! Anyone around here anymore? hahaha i have the EXACT same thing happening to my 07 Type S and was curious if ANYONE knew of a recommended bushing KIT (ALL the bushings) needed for front and rear suspension!? Any input is helpful! Thanks all!!
Hey! Anyone around here anymore? hahaha i have the EXACT same thing happening to my 07 Type S and was curious if ANYONE knew of a recommended bushing KIT (ALL the bushings) needed for front and rear suspension!? Any input is helpful! Thanks all!!
Fastline bushing kit or order all the parts from acuraoemparts.com, use acurazine in the comments for a discount.
hey folks. I'm planning on replacing all LCA bushings this weekend. I've read lots of good info on the compliance bushing, what about the other 2? Any special tools needed to remove them? I saw info on freezing the new bushings to slide them in easier, but what about getting the originals out?
I have a 2005 Acura TL my left lower control arm and all joint broke do I have to use parts from the dealership or can I get aftermarket parts ?
Aftermarket arms haven't had any bad reports. Beware of the MOOG ball joint, apparently they aren't the right size and cause a massive failure damaging the axle and the fender.
The moog lower ball joints don't press in all the way like the OEM one, There is a 7mm gap, but it is also taller than the OEM ball joints and a few mm thicker. I was freaking out after I pressed them in and they didn't sit flush. They are okay now, but I feel really iffy about them still
hey folks. I'm planning on replacing all LCA bushings this weekend. I've read lots of good info on the compliance bushing, what about the other 2? Any special tools needed to remove them? I saw info on freezing the new bushings to slide them in easier, but what about getting the originals out?
Update,
Pulled both LCAs, Pitman puller from Harbor Freight worked well. Used a 6ton press for the compliance and shock mount bushings(these ones were in there real tight). Couldn't figure out how to press out the third bushing, it looked ok so I left it alone.
The LCA sleeves came out with the ball joint. how do I go about getting them back in? They seem to have welded themselves on pretty good over 182k miles. Going to try heating up the LCA and hope I can get it aligned well enough for them to slide back in.
I'm getting ready to replace the compliance bushings and want to verify with certainty that the 2007-08 bushings (51394-SEP-A11) will work on my 2006 TL. Have I read that correctly? Oh, and I assume the car will need to be realigned as well?
I'd like to drop this car a bit and would like to offset the drop and lower profile tires with extra cushion wherever I can. BTW, great thread. What a great resource this forum is.
Just got my suspension inspected at Firestone and they said my bushings on the lower control arms on both sides were bad. They quoted me $912.81 to replace both control arms and ball joints. I'm sure they use aftermarket parts, and I've seen dealer prices lower. I'm pretty mechanically inclined and seen some youtube videos showing how to replace the control arms so I think I'll give it a go soon.
Question is, should I stick to OEM (knowing they have this issue with the bushings), or are there quality aftermarket lower control arms with bushings that are better than OEM?
Today I visited my local Acura dealer for an oil change and normal inspection. Everything came back fine except for them notifying me my compliance bushings are ripped. The dealer quoted me for a cost of $617 to fix which in no way will I decide to go with. I own an '05 TL that has a mileage of 85,799. Definitely wanna research this as a whole and see how low I can pay for the job overall and what it consist of besides the dealer.
I think someone earlier on this thread had found better 3rd party compliance bushings (beefier and nicer) for the TL (I think(. You'll need to search that. I know I reached out to that person many months ago and they said they didn't make it for my RL. But I'm thinking they might have one for your TL.
Otherwise, as another option, I replaced the Lower Control Arm (for compliance bushing) on my 06 RL. I bought the part from Bernardi parts for $376.99 (about 25% off regular Acura) and had my mechanic install it which cost me around 90 bucks.
So $470 vs. 617 is about $150....worth it....unless you like the free coffee, car wash and potential free loaner....which may defer the $150 savings to some...
I think someone earlier on this thread had found better 3rd party compliance bushings (beefier and nicer) for the TL (I think(. You'll need to search that. I know I reached out to that person many months ago and they said they didn't make it for my RL. But I'm thinking they might have one for your TL.
Otherwise, as another option, I replaced the Lower Control Arm (for compliance bushing) on my 06 RL. I bought the part from Bernardi parts for $376.99 (about 25% off regular Acura) and had my mechanic install it which cost me around 90 bucks.
So $470 vs. 617 is about $150....worth it....unless you like the free coffee, car wash and potential free loaner....which may defer the $150 savings to some...
Yeah anything lower than $617 is progress, thanks I'll dig through this thread and pinpoint anything that can help.
I think someone earlier on this thread had found better 3rd party compliance bushings (beefier and nicer) for the TL (I think(. You'll need to search that.....
what is the final solution to this? Can someone tell me if my bushings are torn and if I need new ones? The handling on my car sucks and I've tried so many things to fix it.
I went to get an alignment and the guy said it looked fine, but said there is miinor play in the ball joints. Other than that there was nothing wrong with the suspension which doesn't make sense to me because the handling and bumpiness of my car on crappy roads is unbearable. This probably started after 75k miles. I did have new bushings installed at that time from the dealer because I complained of my cars alignment and how it was veering off to the right even after an alignment and they replaced my bushings. Now I have close to 115k and have had this issue for a long time. Just replaced motor mounts and sway bars too. I have the parts for the bushings but not sure if thats the culprit causing the harshness when driving over crappy roads.
^ IMO, no matter how minor, play in ball joint is a major suspension problem.
Also your bushings look fine to me. Mines' been like that for 60k miles (bought used, currently at 150k on original bushing) and they're still not going while my replacements are collecting dust.
Lastly, you should expect car to ride more uncomfortable on uneven roads if you upgraded sway bars. (I'm guessing you didn't just replace them with OEM ones while you were at it, so apologies if I assumed wrong)
I put in OEM sway bars. I'm not sure why the guy said the minor play isn't a big deal. He quoted me at 500 for both. I just don't know what else could be causing harshness when driving over small bumps. I did go with the alignment tech for a drive and he said the bumps feel normal to him so not sure.
I don't understand why when I'm going over bumps 'straight on' it is completely unbearable. But when my car is switching lanes while going over a bump its smooth as butter.
what is the final solution to this? Can someone tell me if my bushings are torn and if I need new ones? The handling on my car sucks and I've tried so many things to fix it.
I went to get an alignment and the guy said it looked fine, but said there is miinor play in the ball joints. Other than that there was nothing wrong with the suspension which doesn't make sense to me because the handling and bumpiness of my car on crappy roads is unbearable. This probably started after 75k miles. I did have new bushings installed at that time from the dealer because I complained of my cars alignment and how it was veering off to the right even after an alignment and they replaced my bushings. Now I have close to 115k and have had this issue for a long time. Just replaced motor mounts and sway bars too. I have the parts for the bushings but not sure if thats the culprit causing the harshness when driving over crappy roads.
Buy new shocks. your bushings look fine. get an alignment afterwards.
i got new "struts" 15k miles ago. they were replaced by the dealership under warranty.
after they were replaced i complained and said it still doesn't feel right and then they mentioned that it'll take some time for it to feel right. its been 15k miles already. one thing i did notice was that when i punch it over bumps i don't feel it as much, compared to when i just coast over bumps - at which point its unbearable.
i do remember the dealership mentioned i have dual mode dampers for sport and comfort. I asked this forum and learned that there is no such thing for our cars.
i got new "struts" 15k miles ago. they were replaced by the dealership under warranty.
after they were replaced i complained and said it still doesn't feel right and then they mentioned that it'll take some time for it to feel right. its been 15k miles already. one thing i did notice was that when i punch it over bumps i don't feel it as much, compared to when i just coast over bumps - at which point its unbearable.
i do remember the dealership mentioned i have dual mode dampers for sport and comfort. I asked this forum and learned that there is no such thing for our cars.
I went through the replacement in September and wound up only replacing the compliance and shock absorber bushings. I've got a pair of the Lower Arm bushings (51393-SEP-A01) that I have no use for. I opened the bags assuming I was going to replace them, but the originals looked fine. Venmo $20 my way and they're yours. These are OEM parts ordered from AcuraOEMParts.com.
