Lube points under PT

[Cajunsim]

Are there any places under the PT that require lubrication? I hear creeks/groans that sound like low pitch bed springs during low speed driving (or start/stop) and trying to figure out if there are certain points that need periodic lube. Also, any comments on changing shocks such as miles/kind. Thanks.

[CREWZIN]

There are no lube points under the PT that I know of but after saying that, one owner did find lube fitting on the ball joints. There was a lively discussion about it and we think the previous owner had put them in, but from the factory there was none. The front bushings on both A arms have had to be replaced on numerous PT's. Check them out and see if there's any cracks or splits which would mean yours would have to be replaced also. The growning you hear might be the first sign of failure of those bushings.

The shocks are pretty easy to replace on the PT. It's the front struts that require special tools and if you've never done it before it's best left to a shop. The springs around the struts are under a lot of pressure and you can do yourself harm if your not careful.

As far as brands of struts and shocks, there's too many to recommend just one.

[Matt42]

Can the remains of the factory installed and broken off fittings be removed and replaced with zerks?

[mopar_man]

Originally Posted by CREWZIN

As far as brands of struts and shocks, there's too many to recommend just one.

This is coming from my friend who's managed a parts store for several years:

Monroe is a marketing company, not a shock-absorber company. They produce five levels of product: Absolute trash (Monroe-matic), garbage (Gas-matic), brand-new worn-out shocks (Sensa-Trac--if you ever see one of these cut open, you'll cry if you bought 'em), overpriced (Gas Magnum--identical to the Gas-Matic with nothing more than a larger oil reservoir which makes absolutely no difference), and relabeled versions with astounding price tags (Rancho). And I sell Monroe--as well as Gabriel, another brand of which I'm not overly fond but they're better than Monroe.

There are only four shock-absober companies that I recommend: KYB, Koni, Penske (be prepared for serious sticker shock), and Bilstein. Penskes are the only American-made shocks--or at least US-owned--of those four of which I'm aware,

Another friend who has been a master mechanic for even longer agrees. Tokico makes shocks for lowered vehicles and most guys on the Cruiser forums recommend them.

Originally Posted by Matt42

Can the remains of the factory installed and broken off fittings be removed and replaced with zerks?

There shouldn't be any fittings on factory parts. They're all sealed units.

[tandt14]

If you are referring to the bushings on the lower control arms, yes they can be replaced. From the research that I have done, if your Crusier has "low" miles, they should be replaced instead of replacing the whole control arms. My PT is creaking and groaning going over bumps and it needs new bushings for the lower control arms. ptcrew.com has A LOT of info on this topic.

BTW, my car has a little over 49k miles on it.

[mopar_man]

Originally Posted by tandt14

From the research that I have done, if your Crusier has "low" miles, they should be replaced instead of replacing the whole control arms.

Even if it has higher miles, it shouldn't need the control arms replaced unless they're cracked or bent. My car has 120,000 miles on it and I just did the bushings about a month ago.