Tech Corner: DIY Car Repairs – Suspension & Powertrain Edition

We’ve established that basic vehicle maintenance is a painful, yet necessary evil. Although those little check-ins, updates, and top-offs can occasionally keep you from enjoying your ride, they’re integral to keeping it moving. But today, we’re going to dive a little deeper. It’s time to explore some of the more complex maintenance chores and related DIY car repairs you’ll need to address from time to time. Namely, some very important suspension and chassis issues.

So, we hope you paid attention in Basic Maintenance 101, because this class is going to take a little more elbow grease and mechanical know-how.

Addressing High-Speed Wobble and Low-Speed Rattles

So, you’ve kept up with your car or truck and dutifully avoided every pothole in sight. But on that latest trip down the dirt road, suddenly you hear a distinctive rattle, or maybe it’s a creak when you’re turning. Perhaps even scarier, it’s an aggressive wobble when you get up to speed.

Sit down because it’s time to talk about worn tie rod ends.

A sure sign that your tie rod ends are going is a rattling sound when you drive over bumps—a dead giveaway is when that death wobble starts creeping in. Thankfully, as far as DIY car repairs go, replacing tie rod ends isn’t a very difficult task.

To do so, you’ll need to jack the vehicle up and remove the wheel. Then, once you’re in there, remove the cotter pin that’s securing the castle nut on the tie rod end and press the tie rod end out of the steering knuckle with a dedicated separating fork. (You might just get lucky enough to knock it free with a brass hammer.) Once it’s off the knuckle, you easily remove it from the center link. From there, you simply reverse the process to install the new one.

Remember! Once you replace tie rod ends, you need to schedule an alignment. Even if you trust your own work and are comfortable with DIY car repairs, alignment changes over time, so it’s still a good idea to have a professional take a peek.

Worn ball joints can cause a similar issue when driving.

In addition to the above concerns, ball joints will often signal their wear with a noticeably louder clunking sound and perhaps even squeaking during turns. And if the ball joints are particularly bad, you may even notice the wheel sitting at an odd angle. Luckily, many manufacturers make ball joint replacement simple.

Generally, if the joint is worn, the whole control arm needs to be replaced. In any case, though, you will need to remove the ball joint from the steering knuckle—so, removing the wheel and breaking out the hammer and fork are necessary. However, removing the joint from the knuckle isn’t the issue; it’s removing the ball joint from the control arm that is the problem. Some manufacturers make it easy with the use of fasteners. In most instances, though, you will need to use a press to get the old ball joint out of the control arm and the new one in. On paper, it’s simple. In reality, it’s best to prepare for a bit of a fight.

Another culprit could be that a wheel bearing is shot.

If you hear a whining or grinding sound as you drive, particularly one that changes in proportion to vehicle speed, you likely have a bad wheel bearing. Wheel bearings can contribute to some pretty dangerous issues, including uneven brake and tire wear—which can lead to host of other problems.

With a straight axle or spindle, the whine is usually a dead giveaway. But with a CV axle, diagnosis can be a little trickier. One test that almost never fails is this: Jack up the vehicle, so that the suspected wheel is off the ground. Give it a shake from side to side and up and down. Any amount of play between the wheel and steering knuckle is a clear indication that the wheel bearing is gone.

The removal of wheel bearings varies depending on the vehicle, so you’ll have to do some studying to determine what’s required for your specific make and model. But keep in mind: the process will likely not go as smoothly as the internet would have you believe. If you don’t have experience in this field or any viable skills in DIY car repairs, I strongly suggest calling a professional for help.

On a lighter note, bad shock absorbers aren’t actually so bad.

Replacing shock absorbers is the easiest suspension-related, car repair job on this list. Usually, bad shock absorbers can be identified by loss of ride quality, a sag in the suspension, and even thudding upon hitting bumps.

To replace a shock absorber, you’ll need to get the vehicle up in the air and the wheel off. Although rarely necessary, depending on the model, you may want to remove some additional components to make the mounts easier to access. With the wheel off and weight off the suspension, the process basically involves removing the upper and lower mounts, removing the old shock, and then repeating the process in reverse order to install the new ones. It may require some elbow grease to get the shock in place, but rest assured, it won’t take an enormous amount of effort.

Got a Popping While You’re Rolling?

So, let’s say your wheel noise has a loud pop or clicking sound when turning. This is usually a direct indication that the CV axle is ready to be replaced.

If this is the case—before you even jack up the vehicle—pop off the axle nut cover on the wheel you are dealing with, and get the axle nut off. From there, you can jack up the vehicle and remove the steering knuckle entirely. Take your time while doing so to ensure you don’t damage any parts like the ball joints. The best way to approach this is with a brass tip hammer, tapping the area where the ball joint mounts to the knuckle.

While removing the CV axle from the steering knuckle tends to go over smoothly (aside from having to use a good amount of force to remove the axle nut), getting the axle out of the differential can be a bit tricky. Remember that not all axles remove from the differential the same way. It’s important that you follow the manufacturer’s process to ensure this is done correctly. Once it’s out, though, the fight is over and you’re ready to reassemble.

While we’re on differentials, let’s take a brief moment to cover the U-joints in a driveshaft.

The sounds of a bad U-joint can be terrifying—namely, a loud clunking or banging when you put your vehicle in gear—but the replacement process is quick and easy and definitely within the realm of DIY car repairs you can handle. Admittedly, the worst part is removing the driveshaft, and that’s largely because you’ll need to lie on your back to do so.

There are many ways to skin a cat when it comes to driveshaft removal. One of which involves little more than a bench vise and some spare sockets. The video below does an excellent job at showcasing this method.

Pressing a U-joint in place and remembering the clips aren’t the only steps to keep in mind, though. Be sure to clean the driveshaft and yoke itself with some steel wool or sandpaper to make sure it fits in place easier. When the caps are removed, make sure the needle bearings are properly greased and accounted for. And one last step is to make sure the caps are properly seated once the clips are in place, by giving the ears a quick tap with a hammer.

Don’t Forget Those Tires

Okay, I’d say we covered quite a bit of ground here, but I want to leave you with one last tip that’s easy to forget: rotate your tires.

The curve of the road is going to promote uneven wear on tires, so rotating them is the only way to ensure they have a long healthy life. Rotation is simply swapping the tires in an “X” pattern and won’t take a particularly long time to do. Again, this is an example of when DIY vehicle maintenance can feel like a chore, but can save you a major headache—and some money—in the long run.

Remember, even when everything seems in tip-top shape, it’s good form to take a routine look around at the condition of your car’s working parts. Treat your car right and it’ll return the favor. (Well, usually…)