[DeanH]

Originally Posted by vtwinpilot

Have you looked at the control arms? At 175k miles, my car's front has been clunking for a while.

I thought it was the struts, so I replaced those, but that wasn't it. It's the control arms. They're so knackered, that with the front end jacked up and tire off, bc the control arm goes down to its lowermost position, I can see bare metal at the one bushing. I took it to a shop to have them verify it was the control arms, and they indeed confirmed it. I'll do the work myself, just wanted their point of view.

When I did the struts, I also replaced the sway bar links since they're so cheap and easy to do.

How many miles/kms on your clock?

As an aside, only a handful of states here in the U.S. (15 of 50, to be exact) require a mandatory safety inspection. In Georgia where I live there's no requirement, and I routinely see rolling jalopies, cars one step away from the junkyard, that have no business being on the road. But beyond those extreme examples, certainly there are plenty of owners who are derelict about important things like suspension and brakes. I wish all states required inspections. You know Americans: we love our freedom so much, we want to be free to kill ourselves from our own stupidity.

<hopping down from soapbox>

200k miles on mine. Cycling home from work now to have a last look at it and see what I can do. Yes the control arm bushes look to be in poor condition and in reality the whole front end needs an overhaul. Just need it to pass it's test for the time being though!