Suspension replacements.

Before you work on other parts of the suspension... Make sure you check the steering rack... There once was a recall my '07 had that added some bolts to tighten up some loosening in the gears and before that work was done I had some inaccurate diagnosis about front suspension problems that went away soon as the recall tightened up the steering column.

 

I have a set of bushing (new) for the stabilizer bar ….usually the lower control arm bushing are sold with the control arm... Am thinking the bushing for control arm has to be machine shop press in and no does that type of business nowdays

 

If only every neighborhood was required by law to have a community machine shop / CNC and 3D printing systems so we can fix what we have inexpensively rather than replace with brand new... There's so many ways to kill retail consumerism for a better world!!!

 

Even the "high end" aftermarket parts like Moog and Timken are now being made overseas.
I worked at Advance Auto Parts for a short time, and the quality between the name brand and "house brand" was often very similar.
I would go with OEM..but the prices Toyota charges for some parts is ludicrous.
My local stealership wants $157 for a front wheel bearing. I can get one new for around $40 shipped on eBay.

 

The reports back here seem to indicate that those buying those cheap bearings are constantly having to change them because they don't last.

Whatever floats your boat.

 

IMO, a part's country of manufacture is less important than the standards under which it's built. I replaced the OE stabilizer links (junk) on my MiL's Honda with Moog links, which came with Zerk fittings and were easily twice as heavy as the factory originals. I cannot believe the trash Honda put on this car.

As for wheel bearings (and if I were rebuilding a front suspension, I'd look closely at the bearings for signs of play), here in the rust belt galvanic corrosion can make replacement such a beotch, I'd farm the job out to my trusted tire/suspension shop. At that point they can use whatever replacement parts they want because they're going to make good on the job if the parts go bad.

 

I did this project last year on my Prius v (wagon)....it was a job to be sure but I'm glad I did it. Some would say the project was overkill ( including me in hindsight ) as I replaced *everything*. However, at the time I thought "why not...since I'm in there I might as well do it".

Here is some info I posted on it :
Suspension component torque specs? | Page 3 | PriusChat

Obviously, this is for a Prius v (wagon)..but maybe it will still be helpful.

Edit : If you are going to replace the control arms, make sure the bolts are removable on the Gen2 without jacking up the engine! On the Gen3 ( and v wagon ), you have to jack the engine up an inch or so on the passenger side to be able to remove one of the bolts! Not fun. More info in the link above.

 

If you can figure out who manufactures a part you can often buy the OEM brand for significantly less. The OEM Denso O2 sensors are far less than the Toyota branded ones.

 

It used be you could judge replacement part quality by brand and country of origin. It doesn't work that way anymore. These days personal experience combined with a detailed visual inspection of the part, as well as the weight of the part and how much the part has had additional finishing work after it's made is key. Also in some cases a super cheap replacement part can even have upgrades to the part design in ways that makes the part better than OEM.

 

Word of advice from someone whose done them. Leave them alone. Do your strut and strut mounts instead.

 

IMHO, i find a lot of these responses just take people more into the weeds and not solving the problem. The 2nd gen prius doesn't have a "control arm", per se. It has inner and outer tie rods, a steering knuckle, struts and strut ends. The noise you are likely hearing are the stabilizer bar ends (about $35 on Amazon). They keep the struts from flailing around when hitting bumps, and when they start to go, you hear clunking noises.

I've replaced all the of the steering components on my '06 (currently 250K miles). I found that I can go cheap on the tie-rod ends, the ball joint and stabilizer bar ends. You need to buy KYB or Monroe or something more expensive for the struts as the alternatives are just garbage. Good luck.

 

Um it most definitely has a lower control arm. I know because I've replaced them. There is no outer tie rod.

 

I have some aftermarket ones that have been on one of our cars for 5 years and they are fine. I think they were Napa branded. We did have a problem with one of them being loose and making noise but that was because they were not properly torqued by the mechanic that installed them. Before I realized the problem I ordered and installed a new Toyota control arm with new bolts and found that it was as loose as the aftermarket one. I put the aftermarket back on and torqued the bushings with the suspension at ride height and the play and noise was gone. We have had no problems since.
Before you go and replace yours I would make sure you actually need to. Ours were replaced at the advice of a dishonest dealership. Our other Prius that has higher mileage still has all of its original bushings, control arms, ball joints, torque rod links, and tie rod end. The front suspension is still quiet and the car handles well. I would not replace any of these unless you can detect play or looseness. The passenger control arm is not fun to replace because the oil pan is in the way, and its really not fun when you realize there was nothing wrong with your original control arms.
The only things we have had to replace are the struts and the wheel bearings. When the struts fail they do make a clunking sound, but not much difference in handling. The only other annoying sound I get is from the brake pad springs that are loose and make a "ticking" sound as they rattle around. They have not annoyed me enough to actually replace them yet.

 

Is it just the brake pad springs that cause that? I

Hear the rattle over small hard bumps. Like to fix that.

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