Weird fluid on bottem end & broken suspension? Pics!

[Eagle96TalonTSi]

Investigating a weird clicking noise in my right wheel when lightly braking and found the rubber case broken over what I believe is a joint. Could this be my clicking noise? I dont think its suspension because when I brake hard there is no noise, only braking softly when the suspension is under no stress.

The other pics are the bottom end of my motor/transmission. I do have a weak clutch and am replacing it soon, and the fluid appears to have two consistencies. The first is clutch fluid. It is clear and smells like hydrolic fluid. The second is dark brown/black and I couldnt tell what it smells like. Im assuming its oil. These two oils are literally coming from what seems like the same area and I am not sure of the cause. I never have leaks coming from under my car, nor does it leave spots in the driveway or parking spots. What kind of issues am I looking at here?

 

[okm12346]

The boot could be just torn, but this is how you can test the joint:

Johns bad ball joints - YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqFqh8RIsdY

The leak is either axle seal, rear main seal or oil pan leak

 

[Tyeler18]

The upper pics are ball joints and will cause the clicking you hear. I don't think you can get a replacement lower ball joint for the 2g if I remember right, have to buy the whole arm.

The fluid you'll have to trace to where it's coming from.

 

[Eagle96TalonTSi]

I did just replace both boots on my axels due to them being torn and missing. Could this just be leftover grease?

As for the clutch fluid, you think its the main seal?

Is it difficult to drop the oil pan and replace the gasket?

The upper pics are ball joints and will cause the clicking you hear. I don't think you can get a replacement lower ball joint for the 2g if I remember right, have to buy the whole arm.

The fluid you'll have to trace to where it's coming from.

I dont think thats causing the clicking noise, since the clicking noise is present when lightly braking and the suspension is under no stress. Do you really think that could be the issue? Dont you think it would be making more noise when im actually pressing down 30-40% on the brakes rather than 2-5%?

I did knock around on the ball joint while I had the wheel off and there was no give, especially nothing like those videos ^

I did not use any tools but I did use my hand to firmly move it in any direction and there was no budge.

 

[okm12346]

This is fresh oil, you can see the old leaks have lots of dirt stuck to it.

And no its not axle grease - axle grease is very thick and sticky, it would never leak. It usually sits as a blob.

Oil pan doesnt have gasket, although many parts stores will sell you one, it gets only RTV. The oil pan is held by bunch of 10mm bolts.

Best way is to spray some parts cleaner and clean up around there and then see where the leak comes from.

 

[Tyeler18]

I did just replace both boots on my axels due to them being torn and missing. Could this just be leftover grease?

As for the clutch fluid, you think its the main seal?

Is it difficult to drop the oil pan and replace the gasket?



I dont think thats causing the clicking noise, since the clicking noise is present when lightly braking and the suspension is under no stress. Do you really think that could be the issue? Dont you think it would be making more noise when im actually pressing down 30-40% on the brakes rather than 2-5%?

I did knock around on the ball joint while I had the wheel off and there was no give, especially nothing like those videos ^

I did not use any tools but I did use my hand to firmly move it in any direction and there was no budge.

You won't be able to move it by hand enough to see. Ball join play is measure in thousandths of an inch. They will click when they go bad.

 

[Eagle96TalonTSi]

This is fresh oil, you can see the old leaks have lots of dirt stuck to it.

And no its not axle grease - axle grease is very thick and sticky, it would never leak. It usually sits as a blob.

Oil pan doesnt have gasket, although many parts stores will sell you one, it gets only RTV. The oil pan is held by bunch of 10mm bolts.

Best way is to spray some parts cleaner and clean up around there and then see where the leak comes from.

Okay! Ill go pick some up right now and get it cleaned up and watch it for the next few days.

With the oil pan, does all of the oil need to be drained before I take it off and how long should the RTV sit in this area before I drive the car. I know it says on the bottle, but I dont think that is necessarily accurate for every area on a car. When dealing with oil I would think it would need longer to cure before readding oil to the car.

You won't be able to move it by hand enough to see. Ball join play is measure in thousandths of an inch. They will click when they go bad.

Alright well im going to run outside and try prying at it with a screwdriver. Should I take the wheel off again or will it move with the wheel on if its gone bad?

 

[Tyeler18]

I did just replace both boots on my axels due to them being torn and missing. Could this just be leftover grease?

As for the clutch fluid, you think its the main seal?

Is it difficult to drop the oil pan and replace the gasket?



I dont think thats causing the clicking noise, since the clicking noise is present when lightly braking and the suspension is under no stress. Do you really think that could be the issue? Dont you think it would be making more noise when im actually pressing down 30-40% on the brakes rather than 2-5%?

I did knock around on the ball joint while I had the wheel off and there was no give, especially nothing like those videos ^

I did not use any tools but I did use my hand to firmly move it in any direction and there was no budge.

Okay! Ill go pick some up right now and get it cleaned up and watch it for the next few days.

With the oil pan, does all of the oil need to be drained before I take it off and how long should the RTV sit in this area before I drive the car. I know it says on the bottle, but I dont think that is necessarily accurate for every area on a car. When dealing with oil I would think it would need longer to cure before readding oil to the car.



Alright well im going to run outside and try prying at it with a screwdriver. Should I take the wheel off again or will it move with the wheel on if its gone bad?

I usually let the rtv sit for around 6 hours before doing anything with it. Just to insure it's good.

As far as ball joints you're really not going to see much moving it without a dial indicator. You need to set a dial indicator on top of the ball joint, then take a pry bar under the tire (with the tire slightly off the ground) and pry up on the tire while seeing how much play is in the ball joint. Regardless that ball joint is bad and needs replaced though, so no matter how much testing and prying you do, it still needs fixed.

 

[Eagle96TalonTSi]

What is the name or P# for that arm the ball joint is attached to?

And thanks for the info!

Idk WHAT the HELL the previous owner did to this car... the control arms, and axels on both front sides were shot when I got the car

 

[Tyeler18]

RockAuto Parts Catalog

Don't know if that will pull up the part or not, just look under suspension and control arm. It's $30 for a cheap one.

 

[undefined0000]

What is the name or P# for that arm the ball joint is attached to?

And thanks for the info!

Idk WHAT the HELL the previous owner did to this car... the control arms, and axels on both front sides were shot when I got the car

Sounds like someone had fun on a dirt road.

 

[kronus]

What is the name or P# for that arm the ball joint is attached to?

And thanks for the info!

Idk WHAT the HELL the previous owner did to this car... the control arms, and axels on both front sides were shot when I got the car

Read through this thread (well, maybe you only need the first post if you know what you're looking for.) http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/handling-tech/323990-resolved-oem-knuckle-control-arm-question.html

Use the part numbers for the left and right 'kits' through the dealership. These will get you a new knuckle, and the lower control arms for each side of the front suspension. You may only be wanting one of the control arms, and may not even need the knuckle, but if you found one of your ball joints like that, the others are soon to follow. Mind you these are all OEM pieces, so for the price you pay, it's a steal. I got both sides for $165 before taxat the dealership. At the parts store you may be lucky to get one of the control arms for less than $100.

 

[Eagle96TalonTSi]

Okay, thanks for the links.

Unrelated question. I think I smell gas in my oil

 

[undefined0000]

Okay, thanks for the links.

Unrelated question. I think I smell gas in my oil

Mine is like that too. I think we all have it to some degree.

 

[hocka09]

That ball joint is trashed. The boot is clearly torn and it's been like that for any extended period of time then I can almost guarantee it's about ready to pop out. Definitely replace that arm asap.

You could try messing around with boot and ball replacement but I would certainly recommend just replacing the whole arm. They can be had for approx. 30 bucks. I got a good pair off rockauto.com for about that price shipped.

 

[Tyeler18]

Read through this thread (well, maybe you only need the first post if you know what you're looking for.) http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/handling-tech/323990-resolved-oem-knuckle-control-arm-question.html

Use the part numbers for the left and right 'kits' through the dealership. These will get you a new knuckle, and the lower control arms for each side of the front suspension. You may only be wanting one of the control arms, and may not even need the knuckle, but if you found one of your ball joints like that, the others are soon to follow. Mind you these are all OEM pieces, so for the price you pay, it's a steal. I got both sides for $165 before taxat the dealership. At the parts store you may be lucky to get one of the control arms for less than $100.

Just an FYI MOOG does make a replacement upper ball joint. You don't have to buy the entire arm like the dealership wants/lists. The lower arms you obviously need the whole arm, but the MOOG's are like $70. And there's zero need to buy a new knuckle.

 

[kronus]

Just an FYI MOOG does make a replacement upper ball joint. You don't have to buy the entire arm like the dealership wants/lists. The lower arms you obviously need the whole arm, but the MOOG's are like $70. And there's zero need to buy a new knuckle.

I understand that, but he obviously needs at least one new lower ball joint. And from what I found, you'll spend just a bit more getting the full kit from the dealer than what you would just purchasing one lower arm from the parts store. And the parts are OEM. AND you have both control arms. AND a knuckle. If you don't need them, sell them and recoup your cost.

CORRECTION: Since it's the straight arm that will need replacement, it looks like the OP can get that part for as little as $45 or as much as $137 just for that one part. Obviously $45 is cheaper than a kit for that side, but you're not looking at that much more money for more parts. Again, I understand he doesn't need the whole thing, neither did I, but it's just something to keep in mind. Good luck.

 

[Tyeler18]

I understand that, but he obviously needs at least one new lower ball joint. And from what I found, you'll spend just a bit more getting the full kit from the dealer than what you would just purchasing one lower arm from the parts store. And the parts are OEM. AND you have both control arms. AND a knuckle. If you don't need them, sell them and recoup your cost.

CORRECTION: Since it's the straight arm that will need replacement, it looks like the OP can get that part for as little as $45 or as much as $137 just for that one part. Obviously $45 is cheaper than a kit for that side, but you're not looking at that much more money for more parts. Again, I understand he doesn't need the whole thing, neither did I, but it's just something to keep in mind. Good luck.

It's actually $30 on rockauto for the arm, which is still MUCH cheaper than the $165 you listed. I don't care what parts it comes with, I'd have no use for knuckles, so even at 45x2 (90) I still wouldn't spent an extra $75 to get knuckles too.