Crunch!
 

I've got a 2002 P5 with 47,000 miles that is making a crunch sound in the front when I go over bumps. Not all the time, but enough of the time. What is that? And how much is it gonna cost to fix? This car just got paid off in November, and since then I've had to replace the brake pads (still need to do the roters), need new tires, and now this! I love the car, but I shouldda sold it as soon as it was paid off.
Thanks!
Clueless in NY

you should have sold it because of standard maintenance on the car? it's the car's fault that the brakes wore out or the tires wore out? ay ya.

as for your crunching sound, it's your struts going south. it's the car's fault that the struts are shot too, you know. maybe you can see if you can get the lemon law to work for you.

have you inspected the suspension at all ??

Yes, I'd much rather have a car that I don't have to do standard maintenance on!

My mechanic gave it a look-see when I got my snow tires put on, right after I started hearing things. He said nothing was loose, but didn't have time for a test drive or more in-depth inspection. If it's the struts, any idea how much that'll cost?

Thanks!
claudia

$320 for some Tokico HP's, OEMS will be the same or more...plus install

Huh? What a doofus. ;) "No scheduled maintenance?" Scheduled maintenance prevents more expensive unscheduled maintenance. Buy a new car before each oil change interval! ;0

No, we can't weld the hood shut. You couldn't afford the car that had NO Maintenance!!

-peace.

i've noticed the same noise recently. same car, about the miles. it only seems to happen went it's cold outside. should i start saving for new struts?

Yea, my wife's P5 is doing this. Maybe I'll give her my 13,000 mile struts and get myself this HPs! ;) :D

Suspension noise
 

Such a noise is often a bad bushing. It may be a sway bar bushing or control arm bushing. Don't jump to conclusions about bad struts already. Does it happen only on one side? Only when it's cold? Only at low speeds? Give it a thorough inspection before getting too worried.

it's not anything going bad, it's just what all proteges seem to do. I've heard so many people say this, and then they go out and buy new struts and bushings...and it'll still make the sound sometimes. Hint:they only go crunch in the early parts of a drive, when it's cool outside, after one or two crunches, they've warmed up, and will no longer crunch. After a while, you don't even notice the sound. If you want to, try replacing the bushings though, as I've heard things both ways as to weather or not that will help. But really, all PR5's, MP3's, MSP's makes this sound, I think it has to do with the stiffer suspension, not really sure, but's it's a common 'issue' all around. SO no worries, and no point actually buying new struts unless you know they are shot

Okay, so I'm not really getting a clear sense here. HOW do I know if the struts are shot? Do they look different? Is there visible wear? Keep in mind I don't know what a brand new strut looks like or even really what it does. And my crnching problem seems to exist without regard to the temperature or how long I've been driving. Is that significant?

See why I need a car without standard maintenance? I don't know anything about any of this stuff!

Thanks all.

quick class...

the struts are the things inside the springs. they are what absorbs the bouncing that springs would create alone. have you ever pushed on the front of a car and it bounces up and down a few times before settling down? this is what happens when the struts are bad.

i'm not too worried about it. it doesn't happen very often and only when it's cold. i'm getting an alignment this week so i'll have them check it out.

when its cold my poly sway bushings creak and crunch...

I have a 2000 es and just had the struts replaced. The car was making that crunch "feel" and i had a mechanic test drive it. He said time for struts, so i had them done by a friend. Same feel, noise of the crunch. So I would say, don't jump to change the struts.