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Camber bolts shifting after alignment and popping noise


ejgild
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Hi,

 

I purchased my 1997 pathfinder in last may. It now has 69,000 km on it and I have a popping noise in the front driver side suspension area.

 

Background:

November 2016: Installed fluerys 2in lift spacers and 2 camber bolts per side. Vehicle aligned fine at mechanic. Slight popping noise that got progressively worse when going over bumps fast (train tracks, pot holes)

 

March 2017: Hit/slid into snow bank on highway during ice storm and took vehicle out of alignment. Tires wore very bad in 200 km drive home. At alignment told struts were shot and needed replacing. I replaced struts with KYB and strut mounts/bearings with moog. During replacement I noticed the drivers strut mount was badly worn (photo). I think this was because I did not tighten the top strut nut enough during lift kit install or the strut had no oil left in it:

 

19249999_1087929298005786_235121578_o.jp

 

I then took for a new alignment. The vehicle drove fine and abnormal tire wear stopped but there was a new popping noise when I turned the wheel tight to one direction. The wheels have alot of angle when turned at full lock (I think this means high caster angle?) Mechanic said it was because I had such a high lift kit on the vehicle.

 

Current:

June 2017: Popping progressively worse, noticeable going over bad bumps. I recently got undercoating done and i noticed the camber bolts shifting (on the driver side) and scraping the undercoating off (photo). I have also noticed recently the vehicle pulls slightly and other times there is no pull at all.

 

19489998_1086684184796964_1360667678_o.j

 

I am going to try and tighten the bolts and see if that stops them moving. What else should I be checking that could be causing this problem? Is there any way to check if the strut mount is wearing like it had before without taking the strut completely out? I have all the alignment print outs if those are helpful in resolving this problem.

 

Thanks!

Edited by ejgild
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You should be able to take the strut shaft nut off to see if it is wearing like before, the weight of the vehicle won't let the strut go anywhere. Although if the nut is tight that should be enough confirmation because it can't move around and oval out the hole otherwise. Loose cam bolts will definitely cause popping and any alignment it had is out the window now. The same thing happened to me when I installed my AC lift springs, I installed it with new KYB struts and two cam bolts per side, I did not torque the cam bolts figuring the shop would have to loosen them to align it anyway. After a while, clunking noise appeared. After I torqued them to spec I got another alignment and they have not moved since.

 

Not to knock your shop, but it sounds like you should try a different shop. blaming the angle of the wheel at full lock on the lift sounds fishy to me. If it can be brought into alignment with the wheels strait, everything else should be right too.

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Or perhaps I am misunderstanding what you mean by "The wheels have alot of angle when turned at full lock (I think this means high caster angle?) Mechanic said it was because I had such a high lift kit on the vehicle." It could just appear strange because of the lift. but not actually out of spec?

 

Did you do the lift and the strut replacement yourself?

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Just to update tightening the camber bolts removed all the knocking noise. The bolts on the driver side were <70 ft-lbs and was way too loose. The passenger side bolts were around 90 ft-lbs and I tightened them as well. I guess i need another alignment as the drivers side has positive camber of approx 1.9 deg now. I'll take it to a different shop this time.

 

Yes I had done the lift and strut replacement my self but thought the same as you that the shop would check the torque at the end.

 

Basically my wheels look like this http://content.worldcarfans.co/2009/2/medium/mercedes-glk-with-led-lights-spy-photo.jpg when turning really tight ( /-/ or \-\) rather than (|-|).

 

Thanks clkindred for your help.

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The same exact thing happened to me when I installed my new struts and springs. It seems shops are completely clueless when it comes to camber bolts. When I noticed mine were changing the first time, I took it back to get it redone (because it was free), and the same thing happened. The manager literally had to have me tell his mechanic how to do it correctly and then offered me a job lol. Moral of the story, if you want it done right you have to do it yourself.

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Just a note to folks: When a shop aligns a vehicle they only touch the bolts that need adjusting. After they compensate the heads whatever specs are out are the ones that get adjusted and torqued. If you installed new essentrics (camber bolts) and only one is out of spec, the tech will only adjust and tighten the ones they adjust. It's not common practice to get under a car and start torquing bolts you didn't loosen unless there is a concern stated. They will not check all the hardware unless you specifically state you just installed camber bolts and left them loose for the alignment.

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Just a note to folks: When a shop aligns a vehicle they only touch the bolts that need adjusting. After they compensate the heads whatever specs are out are the ones that get adjusted and torqued. If you installed new essentrics (camber bolts) and only one is out of spec, the tech will only adjust and tighten the ones they adjust. It's not common practice to get under a car and start torquing bolts you didn't loosen unless there is a concern stated. They will not check all the hardware unless you specifically state you just installed camber bolts and left them loose for the alignment.

 

Where this may be true in most cases, it was not with mine. I specifically told them I had camber bolts that would need adjustment, and they simply neglected both to adjust and tighten them properly. They got it within camber spec, but it started changing and shifting as soon as I drove out of the lot the first time. This is not the first place that hasn't known a thing about Pathfinders or camber bolts. In my experience, it's best to do things yourself if you want to be 100% sure it's done correctly.

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Im also dealing with my camber bolts coming loose recently. On the last wheeling trip the forest road in was so rough and wash boarded that by the end I had developed the same popping condition on my deiver side strut. Hoping to have an alignment done before the 4th of July weekend and throw some loctite on them to help prevent this.

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