Workshop recommendation for suspension work - Sydney area

[ABCD]

Hi
I am the second owner of a 2018 Golf R that has the creaking front suspension issue. I am a previous Golf 7 owner that had the exact same suspension noise so I am all too familiar with the "special lithium grease" fix that VW dealers use to manage the issue until the warranty period has expired. Now that my R is out of warranty I am keen to avoid what I suspect might be nothing more than a bit of the old "special lithium grease" dabbed here and there and take the car to a reputable suspension shop to get it done properly ie suspension control arms etc removed, bearings inspected and lithium greased and single use bolts replaced.
Any recommendations for this work in the Sydney area, preferably East/South East, would be much appreciated.

[amunra]

Hi
I am the second owner of a 2018 Golf R that has the creaking front suspension issue. I am a previous Golf 7 owner that had the exact same suspension noise so I am all too familiar with the "special lithium grease" fix that VW dealers use to manage the issue until the warranty period has expired. Now that my R is out of warranty I am keen to avoid what I suspect might be nothing more than a bit of the old "special lithium grease" dabbed here and there and take the car to a reputable suspension shop to get it done properly ie suspension control arms etc removed, bearings inspected and lithium greased and single use bolts replaced.
Any recommendations for this work in the Sydney area, preferably East/South East, would be much appreciated.

Creaking suspension is the top strut mounts .. need to get heavy duty ones if u wanna fix the problem properly..

[petemac110]

Creaking suspension is the top strut mounts

That's one potential source of noise for sure, but the control arm bushes are a very well known issue - to the extent that VAG have released various TSBs on how to deal with it (i.e. the 'special lithium grease' fix that the OP has described above and is mentioned here:

Circular (nhtsa.gov)

If the lithium grease has previously fixed the issue but the noise has since returned after a period of time (i.e. once the grease wears away from the bushing contact point), I'd suggest we're looking at the culprit right there.

For the MK7 there are various aftermarket alloy and pressed steel control arms from Whiteline and Superpro which replace the rubber bushing with a solid poly bushing, but I have no direct experience with how they perform and/or sound, particularly regarding NVH. I'm still yet to determine whether the control arms from the MK7 and the Passat B8 are interchangeable (I'm a dirty Passat owner), as I have the same MQB lower control arm bush issue which is rectified by routine greasing of the bush. I'm definitely keen to find a more permanent solution.

In the south-east of Sydney, Heasmans has a very good reputation, although they are not VW specialists as such.

Sports Car and 4×4 Suspension | Heasman Steering – Sydney – Offering a wide range of car racing suspension, lift kits, shock absorbers and 4×4 air suspension services in Sydney.

[Lucas_R]

Several workshops in the east, not far how south you mean.

VW Village in Kensington
Central Autohaus in Alexandria
Wolfsburg Motors in St Peters
Techo European Motorsport in Caringbah
Southern Eurotech Automotive in Kirrawee

Start with new strut tops and bearings. Then if the creaking still persists it will be your lower control arm bushings. I replaced the strut tops and bearings in my Mk7 GTI and it fixed 95% of the problem, but I still get creaking when going in and out of driveways - so im changing the lower control arms next and hopefully that will be the end of it.

[minke]

Several workshops in the east, not far how south you mean.

VW Village in Kensington
Central Autohaus in Alexandria
Wolfsburg Motors in St Peters
Techo European Motorsport in Caringbah
Southern Eurotech Automotive in Kirrawee

Start with new strut tops and bearings. Then if the creaking still persists it will be your lower control arm bushings. I replaced the strut tops and bearings in my Mk7 GTI and it fixed 95% of the problem, but I still get creaking when going in and out of driveways - so im changing the lower control arms next and hopefully that will be the end of it.

Did you R&R the strut top/bearings with OEM? or have you gone with something else?

[Lucas_R]

Did you R&R the strut top/bearings with OEM? or have you gone with something else?

I sourced new OEM strut tops and bearings via AutoInstruct and fitted them myself along with 034 Motorsport lowering springs.

SACHS Strut Mount – VW Golf Mk7 Standard/GTI/R & Audi 8V A3/S3 – AutoInstruct

SACHS Strut Bearing – VW Golf Mk7 Standard/GTI/R & Audi 8V A3/S3 – AutoInstruct

[amunra]

lithium grease was a fix that the shop uses for the top strut mounts.

but you know best ofcourse.

the strut mounts are a globally well known issue from the bottom line golfs all the way to the golf rs as they use a cheap plastic strut mounts which degrade quickly and creaks.. probably a cheaper and more effective fix for the creaking that replacing control arms and what not.

[petemac110]

lithium grease was a fix that the shop uses for the top strut mounts.

but you know best ofcourse.

the strut mounts are a globally well known issue from the bottom line golfs all the way to the golf rs as they use a cheap plastic strut mounts which degrade quickly and creaks.. probably a cheaper and more effective fix for the creaking that replacing control arms and what not.

As per the TSB I posted, lithium grease is also use on the lower control arm bushes as a dealer fix for noise. It's nothing to do with 'knowing best' (BTW I'm still not sure about the regular jibes in my direction... if you want to hold my hand, all you have to do is ask )- it's VAG's solution to one source of front suspension noise.

Nowhere did I say that it couldn't be strut mounts.

However... if we re-read the OP's post:

"Now that my R is out of warranty I am keen to avoid what I suspect might be nothing more than a bit of the old "special lithium grease" dabbed here and there and take the car to a reputable suspension shop to get it done properly ie suspension control arms etc removed, bearings inspected and lithium greased and single use bolts replaced."

Based upon this description, do you reckon this is referring to lower control arms that have previously been greased (as per the dealer fix and TSB) and need to be addressed post-warranty, or strut mounts?

[amunra]

the common fix to creaking suspension from VW is lithium grease on the top strut mount.. fixes the problem for a couple of weeks. as they use the same cheap strut mounts thru all the models from base model to golf R.

end of story

-p.s based upon the description... I would go and buy replacement heavy duty strut mounts $100 each x 2. and install them. or buy the same quality oem ones for $50 and prepare to have the same problem in 6 months.,



As for shop recommendations.. I would highly advise to stay away from VW VILLAGE - Kensington , for reasons ive posted clearly before in this forum to the dismay of some retard mods who seem to have a problem with people voicing personal storys of shady business practices of said mechanics on their highly expensive machinery.... because they thought i was talking about their own business...

[petemac110]

the common fix to creaking suspension from VW is lithium grease on the top strut mount.. fixes the problem for a couple of weeks. as they use the same cheap strut mounts thru all the models from base model to golf R.

end of story

-p.s based upon the description... I would go and buy replacement heavy duty strut mounts $100 each x 2. and install them. or buy the same quality oem ones for $50 and prepare to have the same problem in 6 months.,

It's absolutely one fix, but it won't help if the source of the noise is binding lower control arm bushes

Appreciate the recommendation from Lucas and yourself re: the heavy duty strut mounts. I suspect I will replace them in future at the same time as doing my control arm bushes - might as well tackle both.