Suspension noise/freshen up

[Spooky211]

Hey guys, I have 57' plate Mk5 GTI with 120000 miles on the clock. As expected with a car of this age the suspension is starting to feel a little baggy. I've got a knocking on the nearside front, have changed the droplink which hasn't made a difference, top bearing next? I'm also getting a creaking noise when pulling away which disappears after the car has warmed up - any ideas what this could be? ARB? I'm thinking the whole front end could do with a refresh but not sure the best way to go about it, can do quite a lot myself but pushing bushings etc sounds like a right PITA!
I've changed the 2 engine mounts and installed the dogbone insert to help tighten things up a bit but tbh I didn't notice much difference.
Any help would be much appreciated! 

[pudding]

The front end is very basic in terms of bushings.  In most cases, a persistent knock can be attributed to a knackered steering rack.   Before spending any money, you can check the rack by jacking the car up, put the steering on full lock, grab the extended tie rod and give it a hard bear shake.....do both sides.   If you can see or feel any play in the tie rod at the rack end, it's worn out.

The rear end is where the bush party begins.   If it were me doing the job on axle stands, I would just buy all the control arms etc with bushes prefitted.  Saves a lot of faff!

[Spooky211]

Cheers Pudding! I was hoping you weren't going to mention the steering rack! Are there any other symptoms that can be noticed through general use? I don't get any noise whatsoever on full lock (I've read you can sometimes get a metallic grinding noise with a knackered rack)...the noise only happens over a constantly rough surface, I don't get any knocks going over speed bumps or hitting potholes etc. Assuming it is the rack, do most people buy a reconditioned one or a new one? Surprised it's not viewed as a warranty issue, never heard of racks going before on other cars!

Aye I was thinking of just purchasing the control arms with bushes already installed. I do have access to a proper car lift which makes things a lot easier!

[pudding]

I think the powertrain/mechanical warranty was only 3 years on UK sold MK5s, so zero recourse on racks now!  It’s not just Golfs, I’ve had BMWs and Audis chew through racks as well. Germans and their big wheel obsession!

Another sign of rack wear is vagueness & wandering in a straight line that gets worse the faster you go. 100+ speeds feel a bit sketchy instead of rock solid stable like they were when new.  If everything else is solid, you can put money on it being a worn rack!

The only positive thing from this situation is MK6 racks fit, which are supposed to be better. A wiring loom modification is needed, as well as dealer coding to upload the steering profile.