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Yes, a day or 2 before my initial post. I’ve been doing some more research and am thinking the shifter cables possibly?
Regarding those 2 lower bolts, considering how far you’re reaching down into the engine bay in addition to not being able to see them, would it not be easier to access those 2 bolts from below? I’ve never worked on a Honda Element so I would imagine there must be some sort of obstacle that prevented you from doing so. If not, what did you get that lift for?!
college man: I can feel it there but not all that strong.
I found that at some point she lost most of her lower spring insulator, for what it’s worth. I took apart the strut mount again and the strut mount bearing sounds gritty when I turn it. I don’t know if that equates to the creaking when there is load on it though. Regardless I sprayed the hell out of it with silicone spray, put it all back together, but it continues to creak. This time I was able to produce the creak by pushing down on the strut tower though too. https://youtu.be/TI2bq0ZjNoI Would that still be the bearing when it happens with no turn of the wheel? Then I went and got a stethoscope to listen in as she turned the wheel. The sound was practically everywhere, I guess resonating. It was pretty loud on upper ball joint and overpowering on the spring.
Thanks for the input guys.
I fixed the video link, should work now.
college man: That TSB seems to describe exactly what is happening. I disassembled everything to find that the mount bearing and surfaces it contacts had some rust and a lot of dirt. I cleaned it out thoroughly and greased the hell out of it (and everything else) with brake caliper grease and dielectric grease as the TSB instructs. I did the same thing on the other side as well figuring I might as well. Once the day got hot and the car was driven a while, the creaking came back. I was thinking of trying to replace the bearings. The bearing mechanism itself is so tight, I could not physically get grease inside of it. Maybe I can try spraying some silicone on them to leak down into the bearing more, I don’t know. Unfortunately I cannot find the bearings to buy alone, I have to buy new strut mounts. Not that they’re all that expensive but I suppose before I spend any more money, I want to be fairly certain it will resolve the issue. What do you guys think?