Control Arm Question

I can hear squeaking coming from the upper control arm conection points when I have my wife drive and stop as the truck rocks forward the squeaking is coming from this area. Any ideas?

Also the boot on the opposite end is split,,,is that normal?

 

The boot should not be split. The UCA is likely no longer lubricated properly because of the split boot, and that is causing the squeaking.

 

any pics op?

when ball joint boots burst, dirt eventually gets inside

ball joints dont like dirt

 

Sorry it took so long,,,been busy fixing other stuff and working. Here's the pic of the split boot, it's split all the way around, driver and passenger side. But the rubber is very firm and closes up pretty tight. Still can't be good though. There's plenty of grease in there, but like you said, there is most likely dirt in there as well.

BTW, the squeak is coming from the Driver Side LCA bushings.

 

If there is no play in the ball-joint, then don't worry about it too much. As far as the control arm bushings. Factory style bushings should not be making any squeeking sounds. You can try and soak down the various moving parts with some HD Silicone Spray to see if you can get the squeek to quiet down. I could also be the shock making the noise.

 

Thanks for the advice on the HD Silicone Spray. I'll try that out. I suspected the shock also, but I replaced them brand new with 4600 Bilsteins. The strut was in good shape. I actually slid all the way undre the truck and pushed the frame rocked the frame and found that the squeak was precisely at the LCU joints where the bushings are. I'm not so worried about it now since the new shocks help keep everything rebound better and doesn't seem as bad unless I let the front end drop off a speed bump.

With the old suspension, just turning a corner would make that LCU squeak from the poor dampening. I'm impressed that the new shocks would make such a significant difference,,,ride feels brand new for an old truck.