so lately ive been notiving some odd noises from my front end. when i'm going very slow and have the music turned down i hear a creaking noise from my front left wheel area. i believe its my shock but they are 3 month old bilstein coil overs . also, when i am navigating through parking lots or where ever, also, moving slowly, and turn the wheel about 180* left then about 360* to the right, passing the center line and further right, i hear a crackling and creaking noise coming from the front right wheel area.

sorry if the descriptions were confusing. ask a question if you need a better explanation.

TIA

 

Sounds like you have a dry ball joint on your lower control arm. you have to replace the entire arm...
(I am local in your area, i can replace that for you if you would like. Ive done lots of those)

 

Control arm which is very common on our cars.

 

X2 on the control arm. My rear upper is shot . Same noise.

 

Well, my Audi has been doing that for years (suspension creaks when turning wheel). Goes away in cold weather and comes back in warm. My local Audi specialist says not to worry and (as it is such a old car) it is not worth fixing it and it is not dangerous at all.

 

Nothing to worry about says your Audi specialist? wow, these cars are notorious for failing suspension ball joints and i've seen one fail and the wheel get shoved right into the fender, its not pretty. Its VERY dangerous, I just dont buy reasoning its an old car and not worth fixing. I wouldnt be worried about the Value/Repair, i would be more focused on the Safety/Fix reasons. thats just my opinion though...

 

yes, nothing to worry about (although you are doing a fine job at it). Perhaps we are taking about different parts of the suspension system. The terminology for the joint escapes me but it creaks in the summer, goes away in the winter, and the Audi dealer (he was the work shop manager) said it was ok and was quite confident in his assessment.

 

The control arms hold the spindle in place, you lose the control arms you lose the spindle which means the wheel ends up in your wheel well.

 

If you stick a cro bar in and dont see any play, just use a grease gun and pump it full of grease every two months if you dont want to get it fixed. Not a big deal unless you hear a clunk when going up driveways.

 

None of these ball joints have a grease fitting. If they make noise, are loose, or torn, than they need replacing. There is no maintenance on them.