Hey, what's that noise?

I have a persistent squeak coming from my front suspension. It happens most frequently over bumps, especially in cold weather. It has recently spread to the rear wheels. Must be contagious. Anyway, I recorded it tonight so the knowledgeable ears here could have a listen. The recording was made inside the cabin with the radio and vent off, rolling about 10 mph over a speed bump. FYI, it's MUCH louder when outside the vehicle, but I couldn't have recorded it in the 45 mph winds tonight.

The mechanic who looked at it at Fire______ said it's a natural sign of aging in vehicles. Hmmm.

Anyway, here's the recording I made (it's a 1Mb .wav file): https://files.me.com/resipsa/0xkql9.wav

Sounds almost exactly the same as the sound I'm currently having but it does it less once the Jeep is warmed up. I thought I'd read a post indicating it might be the sway bar but another that made mention to aged shocks.

I'll try to find it if I can remember (or someone else with the mechanical brain can enable my laziness and chime in)

EDIT: Here's the thread I was talking about (specifically the post by Marlon) http://www.jeepkj.com/forum/showthread.php?p=523741#post523741

Can someone else confirm if the "squishy" noise and this noise are a result of the same problem?

Clyde Frog said:

Sounds almost exactly the same as the sound I'm currently having but it does it less once the Jeep is warmed up. I thought I'd read a post indicating it might be the sway bar but another that made mention to aged shocks.

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Agreed, it definitely becomes less noticeable once the Jeep is warmed up. Until I pull into a drive-thru lane, that is. Then it seems to be quite loud, announcing, "Hey, everyone, look at the squeaky Jeep over here!"

EDIT: This thread may be more discussion on the same topic: http://jeepkj.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27902

Have you checked the bushings around the sway bar, and or the shocks?.

Oh yeah, definitely sway bar bushings. As I have said several times (lol3.gif), you have two choices:

1. Put up with it (as I have done for several years now)
2. Lube it (every friggin year before it gets cold)

Not at all surprised to hear my KK squishing...already...

I have this SAME noise.. I notice it when I go over speed bumps mainly. I was literally about to post a thread on this. My 03' KJ just had the lower ball joint recall done lol. I have 84K and it made it that long with out both the recalls. They were recalled once a few years ago and then those replacements were recalled in '06. I guess I was lucky The noise has been there before and after though. How do you lube the sway bar bushings? Could someone provide pictures of what they even look like and what kind of grease to use?

sway bar bushings. put some silicon on them and you will be good

I got them changed once under warranty, sometimes the weather messes up them real good for some reason, plus salt in winter, lack of wash, etc.. anyway lubing them should do the trick, if not, it kind of reminds me winter is here.

Disclaimer: I'm not gear-head worthy. So... Anyone got a picture of what and where needs to be oiled?

timmyb457 said:

sway bar bushings. put some silicon on them and you will be good

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Pictures anyone? :shrug:

auburn4193 said:

I have this SAME noise.. I notice it when I go over speed bumps mainly. I was literally about to post a thread on this. My 03' KJ just had the lower ball joint recall done lol. I have 84K and it made it that long with out both the recalls. They were recalled once a few years ago and then those replacements were recalled in '06. I guess I was lucky The noise has been there before and after though. How do you lube the sway bar bushings? Could someone provide pictures of what they even look like and what kind of grease to use?

Click to expand...

Pretty simple to find
lay down in front of your Jeep
on your left side
now you want to be facing the front of it as well
now you will see a round bar that runs from one side to the other
now attached to that bar are two half round metal pieces that hold it to the front frame area
inside of the round metal pieces are bushings
Taking the can of silicone spray in your right hand spray inside of these bushing or like you are trying to spray inside of them
Do this every 2-3000 miles and you will have no noise