Toyota Noob needs help :(

[bajachris88]

Hi guys, my names Chris. After 12 months of drooling over my mates ST184 celica, i have finally decided to buy myself a bit of the action.

Bought a 1990 ST184 celica with the 5sfe engine and liftback and all... etc. etc. Things completely original except for the radio head unit. But... 3 days of owning this beaut little ride with a truck load of potentional, I put too much faith into this car's handling and performance and had lost it in an 80k zone when a corner came around and i wasn't to eager to slow down. The car didn't crash.... but when up a gutter. Right hand side went up a nice angled gutter... left front side hit a nasty 90 degree storm water drain VERY HARD. It popped my tyre, and made terrible noises in taht wheel.

Its now 3 weeks later, and the car is about to take its 4th turn at going to a workshop. At first i took it to pedders, they gave me a huge list of maybe's and ended up being a quote of $2300 for the worst case senario when it came to what they would find after a closer inspection. I had heard bad things about being ripped off by them, so i got a second opinion.

I took it to another place, called All About Steering And Suspension just found a loose ball joint and tightened it up, and gave it a wheel alignment, and replaced the RH wheel bearing :S. Thats all they could find wrong with it.

But...the bad periodic rubbing noise came back over a few days of driving and this time, at another suspension place... they said it was a loose drive shaft. They gave it a good hammering with a rattle gun. But... few days later, its stopped making the rubbing noise, but now its making the most terrible sound ever. My dad could hear it from inside the house while i drove up the driveway coming back form a mates place. Picture a metal can with 10 ball bearings in it being shaken by a manic! Thats the noise i got.

Any idea of what it could be I'm an 18 yr old with a tight wallet and a loan i just started to pay off with this car, and this has been more stress than what i eva forseen (I certainly have learned to take my corners VERY slow now and have learnt my lesson, but i just want that prestine, great feel i got from the cars driving when i drove it out of the last workshop before i got that terrible worse noise a couple days later)...

Please help

[mrshin]

Maybe it's just a stuffed hub running loose in the bearing - this is common on Camry's etc. Pull everything apart and look at it properly - it can't be THAT hard for any place to do it properly!

[merc-blue]

Maybe you should have listened to everyones warnings about driving like a twat,

I would strip the corner check it all out and replace anything that looks sus,
do you notice any shudders through the steering wheel

[bajachris88]

Cheers Mr. Shin .

Was thinking of pulling it apart... i took some bits off before and noticed alot of travel between the wheel and the bearing... and still plenty of wheel travel in the LH side after we tightened the ball joint by muscle force (need to get a rattle gun one day)... I would pull it apart completely and rebuilt the left front myself but i haven't got a good workshop manual yet... only got a Haynes one... and its completely revolting in my opinion. So i'm not 100% sure or 100% confident in what i am doing. I have seen plenty of other workshop manuals of other cars, but this one hasn't even got Wheel Bearing or Bearing in the friggen index in the back . And the wiring diagrams are vague and are titled as being 'typical' of this yr range ...

Hope they don't sue me on this opinionitive slander... lol.
Will suggest what u said to the guys when i take it to the workshop for a 4th time . I thought i would ask here cause you guys are Toyota pros and enthusiasts of course, and might know better then those who work with any bob, dick or harry car. And with your suggestions i would be able to point the guys at the workshop to look for specific clues.

[bajachris88]

Maybe you should have listened to everyones warnings about driving like a twat,

I would strip the corner check it all out and replace anything that looks sus,
do you notice any shudders through the steering wheel

Yea, i should have listened. I'm glad i was lucky to have learnt my lesson without involving any blood shed... cause there was alot of potentional where i lost it for the incident to be worse than what it was.

Might have to get myself a betta workshop manual and fix it myself . My father and i have always noticed if you want a job done right, then sometimes u gotta just do it yourself...

When it comes to the wheel bearings in the front wheel drive celicas, are they pressed in? What tools would i need besides the basics like sockets, spanners, plyers etc etc? Any specialty tools even when ti comes to the strut?

[PitStop]

+rep for taking some blunt, though fair criticism very well, especially considering age

Sorry to hear about the car though mate. I'd take a good look at the driveshafts if I were you though, make sure they aren't bent.

If it makes you feel any better, I learnt a similar lesson some 5 years ago doing something much stupider involving a handbrake, albeit at a lower speed, but with a similar outcome ('ohhhh hello gutter! BAM!'). It's important lesson to learn ya?

Anyways good luck with the repairs, and I expect to see you at the next track day (once my celica's back on the road anyways, GUH!), doing very slow laps hehehehe

[BeRad]

yes wheel bearings are pressed in, take the hubs off the car, get a manual and it will show you how if you dont, buy 2 bearing kits and take it to a mechanic to get the old pressed out and the new pressed in, shouldnt cost you any more than 50 bucks, then you get to put it all back together again good luck

[bajachris88]

cheers mate haha.

Yea, i already got enough flack for it lol. from everyone around me

I think i will take it to the track next time round i haven't gone out for a drive yet or a spin with any other celica owners or clubs besides my mates, so it will be good to give it a go.
lol

Do u guys know if parts between 4th generation and 5th generation celicas are the same and interchangable when it comes to drive axles, hubs etc. etc.?

Cheers guys! appreciate any help... For the whack it got, wouldn't be surprised if the drive axle and every other part around it is now trash...

[BeRad]

No they wont be interchangable....

The hub should be fine, it could just be the bearings, steering components, possiby a cv is worn.

Indeed, a big knock to the front can pull driveshafts from the box, not good at all, your lucky nothing is seriously rooted.

[bajachris88]

Thanx mate... will check it out

Can't wait to get it fixed and check out all ur rides

[BeRad]

a easy way to see if the bearings have had it, is jack the front up and try and pull the wheel off the hub, if it moves side to side etc it is shagged, get it replaced before something goes seriosuly wrong. a loud clicking noise also could mean the cv joint is destroyed, usualy if there destroyed though you can feel it, the car will pull to one side on occasions, almost uncontrollable when there really bad.

it has to be one of the 2, neither is expensive, one of the boys on here will be able to get rid of a driveshaft even a wrecker couldnt want to much for one.

[bajachris88]

Just outta curiousity what damage did urs sustain from the incident? Just the bent drive shafts?

Thanx again.
Chris

+rep for taking some blunt, though fair criticism very well, especially considering age

Sorry to hear about the car though mate. I'd take a good look at the driveshafts if I were you though, make sure they aren't bent.

If it makes you feel any better, I learnt a similar lesson some 5 years ago doing something much stupider involving a handbrake, albeit at a lower speed, but with a similar outcome ('ohhhh hello gutter! BAM!'). It's important lesson to learn ya?

Anyways good luck with the repairs, and I expect to see you at the next track day (once my celica's back on the road anyways, GUH!), doing very slow laps hehehehe

[bajachris88]

Will get stuck right in after work tomorrow, will give it a go.
Thanx buddy. Will have to shout the drinks if you guys eva have a meet up or sumfin... Spose the toyota scene would have a nats or sumfin around aust lol, my shout then haha...

a easy way to see if the bearings have had it, is jack the front up and try and pull the wheel off the hub, if it moves side to side etc it is shagged, get it replaced before something goes seriosuly wrong. a loud clicking noise also could mean the cv joint is destroyed, usualy if there destroyed though you can feel it, the car will pull to one side on occasions, almost uncontrollable when there really bad.

it has to be one of the 2, neither is expensive, one of the boys on here will be able to get rid of a driveshaft even a wrecker couldnt want to much for one.

[BeRad]

Yes, ill have a meet up at the pub and hold u to it

[mrshin]

Sure. You gots to come to my pub though!

The way these front ends go together is fairly generic - if you can steal/borrow a better manual for a Corolla, Camry etc. then you'll get the idea. A press is very useful for doing these, so go and be nice to a local workshop, or even ask at your bearing shop, and they might let you use a press for a few minutes. One thing to be careful of is after you've been driving for a little bit with a shagged bearing/hub/etc. it can cause the driveshaft to go brittle right near the end, and it will snap off right behind where the big nut goes shortly after.