Tsb # And Other Part For Front End

[04Amanti]

Hmm, when I did the bushings and sleeves myself it seemed to sharpen the steering alittle and lessen the noise. Could just be placebo effect though lol.

I wonder if the Hyundai XG350 has this noise problem? The Amanti is essentially identical mechanically to the XG

I'm willing to bet that this noise is all linked to the sway/stabilizer bar clearance. Perhaps Kia uses a larger front sway bar than the XG...

[RDNK4RE]

I'm sure the front bar is larger as the kia is considerably heavier then the hyundai. I did look at the sway bar for that reason thinking it could be a mount and not an end but the way its routed through the engine compartment looks like a real pain.

On a side note I was reading an older industry mag (early 05) and it listed the oil for the XG350's 3.5L as 10w40 vice the 5w30 or 10w30 normally used. As an interesting point when I took my car in for the piston slap it had in Nov 04 I was specificly told it had to have 5w30 per the service manager.

[empirezclub]

I thought I would give a quick update on the repair. Everything is perfect and noise free. After they installed the sway bar spacer the suspension and steering is a little more responsive. I have a little more road feel and it is a little firmer riding. I am in love with this car all over again.
I thought I would add as a side note that Desert Kia had my car from 9am and it was almost 6pm before they called me to pick it up. The rep from KMA had the guy working on my car at 9am and we chatted while I was waiting for the ride from the rental car agency. When I got there to pick up my car they didn't even have time to wash it. They gave me a raincheck on the wash. It is my understanding that it took all day to install the spacers for the sway bar. Good luck to anyone who is dealing with the noise still.
One more thing the sway bar spacer eliminates the noise completely and the bushings and collar just reduce the noise for a couple of days. In fact it seems that everytime they changed a part on my car the noise would go away for a couple of days, but it would return just as loud as it was before.

[RDNK4RE]

I checked with the dealer when I was picking up the van and they told me no changes from what had already been done.

I may pull the front apart though and see if they installed everything correctly. I did look at the sway bar way back when I 1st had problems. If it wasn't mounted is such a way I would have fiddle with it already.

[empirezclub]

The dealer doesn't know anything. You have to call the 800 number to Kia and get a factory rep to look at the car. Kia can fix it, they just haven't put out a bulletin yet. I think they should have a bulletin as soon as they find a fix for a problem. I had to threaten Kia with pursuing lemon law if they didn't fix it. Good luck, and the noise can be fixed

[RDNK4RE]

I know the 1st thing they will say is take it to the dealership which I really don't have time for. I am going to start trailering the car to the dealer and just leaving the car and trailer, its just to far to be running back and forth.

[empirezclub]

This is a great post that has the part numbers for the sway bar spacers. I copied and pasted it so any one needing this info will have it.

had my Amanti in for the clunking noise in the front end. It is fixed and quieter than ever. Here are the part numbers off my bill.

54642-3F050 Bushing Upper
55337-3F800 Collar
62544-3F000 Pad-Rubber

Dealer states: Found space between Sway Bar Bushings and Strut Mount Bushings worn out. Installed Rubber Spacer in between Sway Bar Bushings and replaced upper Strut Mount Bushings and Collars.

The Dealer knew all about this. The Dealer was:
Suntrup KIA
St. Louis, Mo. 63125
314-894-2311

I hope this helps.

[04Amanti]

Great post empirezclub!


If anyone want to attempt this themselves, you'll need TWO of each from the part numbers above.

I'm now going to order the sway bar spacers.

[empirezclub]

Thanks for the compliment, but the credit for the part number for the sway bar spacers should go to PaulBenson. His dealer put all the part numbers on his service ticket. I am so glad that as a community we all have been able to find all the part numbers and procedures for fixing this noisy front end. I really hope Kia puts all this info into one TSB so any owner of an Amanti can get there car fixed with only one trip to the dealer instead of multiple trips like others and I had to go thru.

[04Amanti]

No more front end noise for me too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Part number: 62544-3F000 as listed above, The Rubber Swaybar Bushing Spacers!

The dealer sold em to me for something like $2. They are roughly 1" x 1.5" x 1/4" rubber rectangles. One for each sway bar mount. Probably cost Kia less than a dollar.

Had my local mechanic install them for $29 labor. Took about 1/2 hour. ----Really wish I brought my digicam to take before/after shots....

Before, the rubber bushings did not appear to fit snugly around the swaybar, with the spacer installed, the space is gone, and the bushing is tight around the bar.

ZERO NOISE and tighter steering!

This IS, without a doubt, the solution to the front end noise. I don't think the upper mount bushings/sleeves were even needed to be changed. (IMO that was Kia's first trouble shooting attempt to fix the noise)

For all you '04 and early '05 owners having this problem, THIS is the solution.

Many thanks to PaulBenson and empirezclub for doing the footwork on this.

Mods: This thread should be pinned! Thanks