[STInk]

I found two sources of noise from the front: my Whiteline steering rack bushings, and my Strano swaybar bushings (not the endlinks).

The swaybar bushings weren't making the typical "creak" sound, because they aren't poly. I hate poly. These bushings are molded out of some other type of soft plastic, so that's cool, but the problem was they are way too tight on the bar. Turning the wheel sharp made them pop. I think this is because of really high initial stiction and then the bar would break free and make a horrible pop noise (only on slow tight turns, like up a driveway). I bought a piece of teflon tube off Ebay: the inner diameter was nearly the same as the bar, and it was about 1/2" thick. I cut it into about the right shape, and then just whittled it into the shape of the Strano bushing using a grinding wheel. It was really easy, and it looks as if I CNC'd it! Then I made another and installed them. Noise GONE! I will be making more teflon bushings; they are totally the way to go, and you can do it cheap with Ebay cutoffs.

The second source of creaking came from dry steering rack bushings. That big swaybar puts alot of force on the rack; with every turn it made a loud creak. I hate poly; it is so smooth it forces grease out and then dries up. The biggest creak came from the driver's side, where the poly touches the frame of the car, and the bracket. Poly on the cast rack seemed fine. I ripped the car apart and squeezed grease under/above the rack and problem solved. I wish someone would make these bushings out of the same stuff Strano uses, but I suppose that is way more expensive than using crappy polyeurethane. I am going to look into ways to make them - I think kevlar and soft epoxy might work there. Stay tuned.