Annoying URS4 steering noise :(

[simurs4]

I've got this annoying as hell knock from my steering with the car stationary or when im turning at slow speeds, ie parking. once your driving around its fine, nothing can be heard.
ive fitted a refurbished steering rack as my old one was leaking out everywhere.
ive also fitted eibach springs, koni adjustable shocks and 2Bennet adjustable strut top mounts at the front.
Im unsure if it was knocking before i changed the rack but ive rechecked all bolts etc and mountings for the rack which ive heard are prone to cracking, everything seems to be in order. has anyone heard something like this? ive attached a video as its abit hard to describe in words.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpbKZmEVH_o

[hugokx]

Hi,

I know it might be obvious, but are you sure you put the top mount bearing in the good way? There are 3 semi-circle grooves on their top and only one way to make them fit the upper bolts of top plate. I did put them in the wrong way once and the bearings did not work as they were aimed to and I got the same kind of sound . I turned the bearing to fit the groove and no more noise .

Regards.

[simurs4]

im pretty sure i got it right, i followed the instructions to the letter and ive since had the car wheel aligned and had the strut mounts adjusted right for the camber etc.
heres how my mounts look atm.

[blackrat]

s4

Just a thought...Has it got the Procon Ten system fitted?
It may have put some extra strain on the cables by lowering it.
I know my cables creak when it has been laid up for a while and then after a short while they sort themseleves out

[driftin jo]

It's nothing a Molotov cocktail won't fix.

[mcandmar]

That noise sounds like springs binding up to me. I have never seen those top mounts in real life but they look like they are installed the wrong way around. I would expect them to be turned 90 degrees anti-clockwise as the four small bolts and slider are for adjusting the camber. As with all S4/S6 it is impossible to set the camber correctly when lowered, hence 2bennet made those adjustable top mounts.

[UrS4boy]

C4 Front Strut Part Numbers

Hi, I know it might be obvious, but are you sure you put the top mount bearing in the good way? There are 3 semi-circle grooves on their top and only one way to make them fit the upper bolts of top plate. I did put them in the wrong way once and the bearings did not work as they were aimed to and I got the same kind of sound. I turned the bearing to fit the groove and no more noise.

Not sure but I think you are talking about this white plastic ball bearing mount (aka Front Strut Ball Bearing PN 4A0412249) . Mine had been installed incorrectly (not set into the three grooves properly) when I had my Eibachs installed years ago. This resulted in the weight of the car crushing the bearing, preventing smooth movement, causing a nasty grinching noise during low speed turns, e.g. parking. (As you can see, it ended up with 6 grooves, 3 cast in the plastic from the factory and 3 from the crushing due to incorrect installation). Cure was new bearings, seated properly (used a little silicon sealant to keep them in place during installation).



Item 32 here:



Here is the C4 UrS front strut "blown" a part (Note: Wheel bearing housing PN is for the USA/Canada models that got the Girling G60 brakes, not the Euro housings for the HP2 brakes):

[UrS4boy]

The way those 2Bennett mounts are oriented, they are more caster mounts than camber mounts.

Here is another orientation that provides a combination of caster and camber adjustments:


Photo courtesy of EdiGreg on the quattroworld UrS forum.

[mcandmar]

That looks correct to me, camber adjusted with sliders, castor corrected by rotating the assembly.

[simurs4]

ive reorientated my strut top mounts to mimic the ones on the s4 above, pulled it all apart and everything seems to be ok, doesn't seem like its coming through the shocks. checked the drivers side and pass side mounts where the rack bolts too for cracks/splits and they are perfect, no cracks or aything. not too sure what else it could be :S. need to drive it up onto some ramps n see if i can find it. it definately sounds like its coming from the passenger side (the side with the steering damper) as you can clearly hear it cracking and carrying on around that area but ******ed if i can find what it is.

[popdemonic]

I have same lightly noise on the clip.you may try to disassemble the strut and put everything in again.something is improperred sitting in its place on your struts.

[UrS4boy]

.... it definately sounds like its coming from the passenger side (the side with the steering damper) as you can clearly hear it cracking and carrying on around that area but ******ed if i can find what it is.

I would put a 5er on it being the ball bearing mount that I referenced in Post 7 above. I had a nasty noise on my passenger side for a long time. Turned out the ball bearing mount had not been properly installed when I had my Eibachs installed (before I had a garage and the time to do it myself).