[GRime86]

I'm occasionally hearing a grinding sound coming from the front end when turning left or right. I took the car to the dealership hoping they could spot something but they recommended an alignment first because the tech heard it once but couldn't replicate the sound again. The alignment is below and they said I should replace everything listed:
Strut Complete F Left-hand SU003-09577
Suspension Strut (Left, Right, Rear) SU00309578
Rear Suspension Arm Assembly, No.1 Left SU003-00360
Suspension Control Arm (Left, Right, Rear) SU00308417
Upper Control Arm - Toyota (SU003-07493)

Afterwards I noticed it says "Toyota: 86 / GR 86 2017-20" at the top of the alignment sheet so the baseline it was being measured against might be off. The tech couldn't show me anything that would justify replacement but he based everything off the alignment alone.

When I brought the car in for oil change at 3,500 in October, the tech said he had to enter my car as 2007 350z due to the rim change (oem suspension, stock tires on 18x8 +35 rims) because ExpressAlign wasn't set up for GR86 yet and aftermarket rim size threw everything off. Of course I remember this after I already left as I was shocked at the $2,900 bill they tried to stick me with.

Aside from that grinding sound, the steering wheel doesn't pull any direction and I don't track the car or abuse it. If this sounds like a familiar issue or if there is a reputable shop anyone can recommend, I would greatly appreciate the help.

Thank You

 

[Paschal]

Some of these cars come pretty misaligned from the factory. If you wanted to adjust it you need camber bolts for the front and adjustable control arms for the rear. Replacing the stock parts would only work if they were bent.
Since the alignment is barely out of the specified range I doubt that´s the reason for the grinding. Seems bs to replace all these parts just based on the alignment.
I´d try a different shop as you said.

 

[Xperivent]

“Hey i dont know whats wrong with your car, lets just replace everything with your money, for fun!”

Pull a front tire and inspect your fender well for rubbing, or the inner tire for markings.

 

[SkyDog]

The grinding sound is hard to diagnose because (1) it’s intermittent, and (2) it could be so many things.

Grinding sounds that happen while turning would lead me to look at wheel bearings as a possibility (after ruling out something rubbing). Sometimes a bad bearing will be quiet while driving straight but noisy when handling a lateral load during a turn. Sometimes with a bearing problem you’ll hear grinding when only turning one direction. In this case, the outside wheel is the usual culprit.

Aside from that grinding sound, the steering wheel doesn't pull any direction…

That actually seems to be pretty normal for these cars; we’ve discussed it here in a few threads. The car just doesn’t have a strong self-centering tendency. It has a pretty typical amount of caster, which strongly influences that self-centering tendency, so I’m not sure what the root cause is. Something about the power steering setup, maybe?

 

[DmOcRsI]

When I brought the car in for oil change at 3,500 in October, the tech said he had to enter my car as 2007 350z due to the rim change (oem suspension, stock tires on 18x8 +35 rims) because ExpressAlign wasn't set up for GR86 yet and aftermarket rim size threw everything off.

That's a goddamned lie... offset has no effect on suspension geometry and alignment. You're gettin played.

 

[TRU-BOOST]

That's a goddamned lie... offset has no effect on suspension geometry and alignment. You're gettin played.

Exactly. Your wheels have nothing to do with alignment. That is some dumb tech..!! My 1st question is, did you use hub centric rings with your new wheels? If not (and possibly even if so) its possible the wheels are not torqued correctly. I would start there.

 

[GRime86]

I haven't been able to repeat the sound since Saturday. When I heard it Friday, it was like a grinding brake pad sound, horrifying. I have a floor jack and stands being delivered tomorrow so I can take a look myself since the dealership was no help. Maybe there was something stuck in the fender liner and the dealership tech pulled it out and wanted to make some money?

Discount Tire removed from the stock OEM tires and mounted them on the new rims in October. I'm not sure if they used hub centric rings or not but I'll check when I pull the rims off this weekend.

Thanks for all your help!

 

[SkyDog]

I haven't been able to repeat the sound since Saturday. When I heard it Friday, it was like a grinding brake pad sound, horrifying.

Have you looked at the rotors for any sign of scoring? I've had crumbling pads or foreign objects like small pebbles trapped between pad & rotor cause scraping/grinding sounds.

 

[GRime86]

Have you looked at the rotors for any sign of scoring? I've had crumbling pads or foreign objects like small pebbles trapped between pad & rotor cause scraping/grinding sounds.

Rotors look good but we did have some crazy rain (for San Diego) the other week so I'm starting to think something was jammed in there and the tech pulled it out. Only cost me $129.95 for the alignment 🤦‍♂️