[jamiemm18]

Grizzly 550 2012 irs, etc.... With the machine off, sitting still, on a level surface, if you push down on the fenders or racks the machine has a nasty squeak. It?s simple to reproduce. Push down on the racks and it squeaks on the way down, then let up on the racks and it sweaks on the way up. You can keep it squeaking all day and night just by pushing up and down on the quad. The machine has 45 hours and 100 miles. I hit every bushing and moving part I could find with wd40 and then silicone spray today and it did absolutely nothing. It?s the bushings or suspension or sway bar or swing arm, something that gives when you push down on the quad. It?s not brakes, engine, ps, tranny, etc because it does it with the quad stationary and turned off. The machine hasn?t been mudded or anything, it?s a low mileage, low use garage queen. I?m frustrated because it?s so loud and I can?t pin point it or resolve it. Any ideas? Thanks

 

[dezz]

Read my post in your other thread. You need to pull all your suspension bolts and apply grease to them, including the shock mount bolts.
Spraying lubricant on the outside is not going to work.

 

[jamiemm18]

I did read your message and really appreciate it. Here is my apprehension - I have sprayed silicone and wd40 all over them - the sway bar, shock springs and towers to no avail, we've covered that. You mention it would make sense to remove these items and grease the actual bolts and then reinstall. Do you think this will be difficult for someone with "average" mechanical skills and no shop manual? I'm just concerned the bolts that may have been put on by air tools and Id need to use a torch to loosen them - then I might melt the paint... etc.... etc.... The quad is like new so I just don't want to make it worse than just having a squeak. Do you lift the quad up by the rear diff or tow hitch and that will allow the shocks to align back up to their mounts? I can envision a scenario where the spring was compressed in the position I took it off and either cant get it short enough or long enough to get it aligned back with its mounts. I have no idea how to remove a sway bar, would def need a shop manual for that. Thanks for any input.. and I really appreciate you taking your time to keep responding. I know there is no $$ in it for you so you're all just being gracious with your time. Thanks and below is a picture from microfiche. I have highlighted what I think you are telling me to remove. Could you confirm this covers it? I have 8 bolts hightlighted. Is this everything? Or is there something else that needs to be removed and greased? Are all 8 of these necessary or are there some I don't need to do? And should I use white lithium grease, wheel bearing grease? Etc.. Thanks a ton!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dezz]

Removing suspension bolts is easy, including the shock bolts. The shock is a complete unit, it does not spring apart when you remove a bolt. You will not need heat to remove the bolts. They will come off normally. A 14mm and 17mm wrench and socket will remove most, if not all, suspension bolts.


Jack the bike off the ground, then do one bolt at a time. Remove the nut, pull the bolt. Apply grease on it, then reinstall the bolt. Move on to the next one.
When doing this you may have to wiggle some of the components to remove/install the bolts. That's normal. Having an tapered punch on hand can help with that reinstalling bolts.

If all else, download a service manual. They are less than $20 off tradebit.com....a worthwhile investment if your going to work on your machine yourself.

And if your still uncomfortable doing this, ride it like it is.
It's not going to hurt anything....just annoying.


I'll end this by saying I can't say that will 100% cure your problem. You may have a creaky ball joint, creaky sway bat end link, or something else. I day do the bolts because that is the most likely culprit. I have seen this and repaired it many times on many Yamaha and Honda ATV's.

 

[jamiemm18]

Thanks Dezz, I will do so. A couple of quick questions left. Did you see the image I attached and are those the bolts? Do I just need to do 4 bolts total - 2 bolts per shock, top and bottom? Or do I need to do sway bar and other bolts. 2nd question) Wheel bearing grease or lithium soap based? And 3rd) Do you know the torque specs for reinstall of these bolts? Thanks!!!!!

 

[Rollin]

T Do I just need to do 4 bolts total - 2 bolts per shock, top and bottom? Or do I need to do sway bar and other bolts. 2nd question) Wheel bearing grease or lithium soap based? And 3rd) Do you know the torque specs for reinstall of these bolts? Thanks!!!!!

X2 on Dezz advice : get a service manual for your machine if you are to do maintenance yourself, it's a well worth investment.

In addition to the shock bolts I know that the upper and lower a-arms bolts require greasing and there should be a couple zerk fittings at each rear wheel bearing hub. I would not take the sway bar bolts off - no need to grease there.

As you have the bike lifted off the ground and with the shocks removed you can actually move the wheel up and down and see if you can locate the squeaky joint.

 

[jamiemm18]

I just saw from the other thread that you said white lithium grease so that question is answered. Guess I just need to know what bolts aside from the shock towers as well as what the torque specs are. Frustrating though, I figured it would be a war to remove the bolts. I just gave it a shot on the top shock mount bolt. I'm using 4 point 14mm socket and on one side a 1/2" drive, massive torque wrench / breaker bar and on the other side, a 3/8" in ratchet with socket and its just going to round the head of the bolt on the 3/8 side. It wont budge. I'm beginning to hate this quad.

 

[dezz]

I just saw from the other thread that you said white lithium grease so that question is answered. Guess I just need to know what bolts aside from the shock towers as well as what the torque specs are. Frustrating though, I figured it would be a war to remove the bolts. I just gave it a shot on the top shock mount bolt. I'm using 4 point 14mm socket and on one side a 1/2" drive, massive torque wrench / breaker bar and on the other side, a 3/8" in ratchet with socket and its just going to round the head of the bolt on the 3/8 side. It wont budge. I'm beginning to hate this quad.

Are you trying to turn the bolt or trying to turn the nut? You always hold the bolt and turn the nut, if possible. They are not on that tight.
Are you using a 6 point socket? DO NOT use a 12 point.
What size socket are you using on the nut? In most cases, it's a 14mm wrench (use box end) on the bolt head, and 17mm socket on the nut. Your may be a different sizes, but it's still all metric sizes.

You will also need to remove and grease the upper and lower a-arm bolts. You can use whatever grease or lubricant you want. I only said I used white lithium grease because I have it in a spray can. It's just easy to apply. You can coat the whole bolt in anti-seize if you like. I have done this many times as well.

I forgot about greasing the rear knuckle bushings like Rollin stated. Many people do not even know they are there, so they never get greased. It's easiest to just remove the back tires and give them a shot from the grease gun. This is part of preventative maintenance to this bike anyway.

I will also state to download a service manual. All information is in there, including every torque spec required.

 

[jamiemm18]

Sorry for the rant. Ok, just took out the 4 shock bolts, rubbed them down good with lithium grease and put them back in. No change. Does it need to be ridden or any amount of time to "take" or if that was the problem, should it be resolved. What are the other bolts I should try next? Thanks again!

 

[dezz]

Sorry for the rant. Ok, just took out the 4 shock bolts, rubbed them down good with lithium grease and put them back in. No change. Does it need to be ridden or any amount of time to "take" or if that was the problem, should it be resolved. What are the other bolts I should try next? Thanks again!

Read the posts above for the other bolts to pull.

 

[jamiemm18]

Thanks

I hadn't hit refresh on my browser so I didn't the last 3 posts when I looked up the page. I see all of the bolts listed that I need to get after and the areas to hit with a grease gun. I'll let you know if this resolves it and thanks for your patience and guidance.

 

[dezz]

I hadn't hit refresh on my browser so I didn't the last 3 posts when I looked up the page. I see all of the bolts listed that I need to get after and the areas to hit with a grease gun. I'll let you know if this resolves it and thanks for your patience and guidance.

Lol....I do that quite a bit myself.

If the creaks still persist, we can help you with that too. Just do the suspension bolts first as they are the most common culprit.

 

[jamiemm18]

Thanks. Managing three kids off to dance, sports, etc - I can twist a wrench, then gotta run, come back, twist another Anyway. So far I've done the top and bottom shock bolts on both sides and the upper and lower A arm bolts on one side. I should be able to do the other side in the morning and report back here whether or not it worked. So far, she's still creaking like an old house. Thanks.

 

[reogem]

You should have started with the rear knuckle bushings. Jack the rear end up with the suspension hang loose you can get to the 4 zerk fittings. These bushings are not sealed. Pump grease until dirty grease comes out of the bushings.
Also lube the bushings where the stabilizer connect to the frame.

 

[jamiemm18]

RESOLVED. Thank you to everyone - Dezz, Rollin and Reogem. It's interesting, either a massive coincidence or you need to hit every bolt to get the sound to go away. I lubed all the shock spring bolts - still squeaking. I then lubed the a-arm bolts, upper and lower, on right side - still squeaking. Then lubed the a-arm bolts, upper and lower, on left side - AND - noticed the new forum response stating to be sure to grease the sway bar bushing connecting to the frame, greased that ... and still squeaking. I figured it was not going to resolve the problem ... but why leave one bolt un greased out of laziness... so I went back and disconnected the sway bar bushing on the right side. Before I greased and reinstalled it, I pushed down on the quad while it was disconnected and .... silence!!! I greased it up and bolted it back down and ... still silence!! I greased a total of 16 or more bolts. I find it hard to believe that the first 14 didnt work and the last two fixed it. I'm thinking it was probably getting better as I moved along but I could not tell. I'm assuming that all bolts needed it, but it's possible that I could have skipped everything and just hit the right side sway bar bushing and it would have resolved the issue. But, anyway, I'm glad the squeak is gone and thank you and this forum for figuring it out for me. I'm also glad to come back to the forum and report the outcome as many posts (I'm guilty of this too) just end and we never get to know what worked or what just went unresolved. In this case, lubing all the suspension, sway bar and a-arm bolts in the rear end got rid of the squeak. Thanks for the help and I will also update the other post with the power steering question with this result and link. Thanks!!

 

[reogem]

Most of the "bolts/connections" that you were lubricating "do not rotate". Of all of those connections there are only two fitting/connections that actually rotate enough to squeak, the knuckle bushings and the sway bar frame mount bushings.

Glad you finally found a fixed and posted back.