George Macdonald <fammacd=!SPAM^nothanks@tellurian.com> wrote in
news:tp2s51ph2hi79h6815ttsjrtvnf9p6k4di@4ax.com:

> On Wed, 13 Apr 2005 08:37:24 -0500, "Sean" <sguncav@hotmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>>I know George MacDonald answered this question a few times already but
>>I am still curious about the creaking sound coming from the rear
>>suspension. He suggested spraying with water and greasing but added
>>that was just a temporary fix. That creaking is driving me nuts, what
>>is the permanent solution? New springs, struts?
>
> A permanent solution would involve Honda redesigning the spring and
> lower perch on the shock with a plastic or rubber seat. Some mfrs,
> like VW e.g., have used a polyethylene sleeve on the last coil of the
> spring... which will eventually wear or break too.



Funny you should mention that...
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/tsb/civic/x01-907e.pdf

This is for the Civic, and for the front suspension, but the idea is the
same.



> The Honda springs
> I've seen have an epoxy coating which wears away to bare metal in ~18
> months, which is when you start to hear the creak. Honda has used
> sleeves as a TSB after-fit on some models but more to cure coil
> banging than the creak.
>
>>I also heard about the balljoints seizing and snapping (saw the
>>pictures on TeGGer(R)'s homepage). How do I check if they are ok or
>>not?
>
> If they're >10years old, depending on your climate, the grease is
> undoubtedly dried out to some extent.


Not dried out grease, but water ingress. Water causes rust. Rust binds the
ball, and then the post snaps, with, ummm, entertaining results.



> The creak I heard from the
> front joints, or maybe upper bushings(?), is more of groan-type creak
> and is most noticable with longer suspension travel over big road
> surface irregularities, than the squeaky creak you get from the
> spring/seat over minor bumps. I now consider greasing the ball-joints
> an easy job - see: 0v1k51d5hlqkkj8i0b9rvalpmqfd0b2tb9@4ax.com


George, what would have been excellent would have been photographs of your
surgery. I could have put that up for everyone's edification.



--
TeGGeR®

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/