front end clunk

[Ross]

Just finished fitting rear arm bearings, assorted spheres, oil and filters change, rear cylinder, rear pads, good clean and lub of rear suspension etc, and all seemed to be fine for a day out today.

Drove up the road last night - turned hard right at a junction and heard a distinct clunk from what seemed like the front nearside. This hasnt previously happened and which hasn't happened at other times.

Whilst it may be likely this is "settling in" (hopefully) is it likely this is an indication that the drop links are on the way out or is it more likely to be the dreaded problem associated with the top of the struts ( even more money)

Just trying to get some idea of the most likely problem so I can start looking in the right area.

Thanks
'94 VSX 1.9TD - 143000miles

[Mandrake]

For "clunks" I'd be checking all the balljoints for slack on that corner...

Bottom hub balljoint, rollbar droplink and steering rod.

The strut top is unlikely to make a clunking noise unless its just about ready to give way

Having said that it can be notoriously difficult to identify slack in balljoints - I know that the lower hub balljoint on the left side of my car is badly worn and clunks over certain surfaces like potholes, but I only know this because I noticed it was a bit loose when it was uncoupled from the lower arm to fit a new rubber boot - in situ even with the suspension depressurized I can't get it to reveal the play in the joint

On the other hand wear in the lower rollbar droplink joint before I replaced it was quite obvious from grasping the link and rocking it side to side.

Regards,
Simon

[AndersDK]

Droplink - not strut top.

[deian]

i have one too... sounds like cracking when going over potholes around corners right? horrid noise and sounds much worse than a £20 drop link.

[LeeDJC]

i have one too... sounds like cracking when going over potholes around corners right? horrid noise and sounds much worse than a £20 drop link.

You'd be surprised what sort of noises a knackered drop link can make!

Also a new one is no guarantee that it's any good!

[Peter.N.]

When you think about it, the droplinks are the most likely candidate as the joints are not continually under load, so as you drive over bumps they are being alternately pushed and pulled = rattle. The suspension joints are continually under load unless you drive' Dukes of hazard' style, they dont have the weight taken off them short of going over a very large hole or bump at speed, so generally dont rattle. The other joints not continually loaded are the steering ball joints and the anti roll bar bushes. Always check the droplinks first. You very often cant make them rattle by shaking them, you have to disconnect one end, then you will often find the you can then move the ball in and out.

[LeeDJC]

Another way to check suspension and drop links for knock and rattles is to grab the top of the wheel while the car is stationary, and pull on it. If you do it right, you can get the car to rock from side to side. Keep pulling at the right times, and you can usually hear different parts knocking if they're knackered. Particularly drop links.

AndersDK previously described this method, and can probably explain it better! But it has worked for me in the past!

[Mandrake]

When you think about it, the droplinks are the most likely candidate as the joints are not continually under load, so as you drive over bumps they are being alternately pushed and pulled = rattle. The suspension joints are continually under load unless you drive' Dukes of hazard' style, they dont have the weight taken off them short of going over a very large hole or bump at speed, so generally dont rattle.

Well, yes and no, depending on the suspension design...on the load bearing arm this is generally true - for example a top balljoint on a GS/CX with double wishbones. Very seldom does the load come off the joint during driving.

Bottom stabalizer arms are a different story - they're not carrying the weight of the car, just stabalizing the geometry, and taking some load during cornering/braking etc. So as you go from left to right to accelerating to braking the load in this joint is moving from one direction to another.

Also you have to consider the inertia of the arm - a large metal object. Even on a Xantia where there is nothing else attached to the bottom arm, if the wheel is following particularly violent bumps like potholes the movements are so sudden that inertia of the arm causes the play in the joint to be worked from one side to the other.

On a BX a lower hub balljoint would be even more noticable - because the rollbar attaches to the bottom arm any independant wheel movement transmitted via the rollbar is going to be working the slack in the bottom balljoint back and forth all the time.

I've actually just done the lower hub balljoint on my Xantia yesterday, and the difference was large - mainly on broken surfaces, manhole covers and rapid ripples on the road it is a lot quieter and smoother with no obvious clunks now. (No dukes of hazzard driving needed! )

On harsh broken surfaces although it is now much better there is still something a bit loose at the front though, either the same balljoint on the opposite side, or one/both of the droplinks...(my guess is droplinks)

Regards,
Simon

[GB]

Drove up the road last night - turned hard right at a junction and heard a distinct clunk from what seemed like the front nearside. This hasnt previously happened and which hasn't happened at other times.

Thanks
'94 VSX 1.9TD - 143000miles

Unbeliveable - I was just about to post about a similar problem.

Replaced lower arm balljoints, rod ends and bushes about 1000 miles ago. The steering is now spot on and I don't get any noises going over potholes. HOWEVER, there seems to be some distinctive clonking noise coming from the front suspension when turning the steering wheel, accelerating and braking.

To me it sounds as either the strut tops or the sway bar - I can't pinpoint the noise source accurately. The noise now gets louder and louder, especially when pulling out of the driveway while turning. I don't think it's the steering, as it is very smooth all the way. It first started on the N/S (and now the O/S is also getting noisy) when I changed the bushes and ball joints - the car was stationary, I turned the the steering wheel to the right and I could hear it go clonk. Then about 200 miles later, I noticing this clonking noise every time I accellerated from a standstill and then also when applied a brake. It gets much noiser now.

Any ideas what could be causing this? The strut tops appear OK from the outside, but I am very tempted to dismantle them just to have a good look (are there any washers/bearings that need replacing in there, do they require any lubrication?).


Cheers,
GB

[deian]

That definitely sounds like a drop link to me.

[mpr1956]

Hi Ross (and GB?) I have just got my 93 tdsx back after having the nearside (RHD) steering tie rod replaced. I had previously worked my way through replacing all the other obvious components over the last six months or so to eliminate an annoying slight wobble in the steering when changing direction from a right to left hand bend, and every so often when going over a rough surface there was a very unpleasant metallic clank from the nearside. Anyway, I am pleased to report that the new steering tie rod (from the rack to the trackrod end) has cured both nuisances. The tie rod (which screws into the rack) was £21.00 plus vat, with labour and a new boot taking it to £85.00. I don't know if helps you guys, but there was very little wear in the old tie rod balljoint causing my problems!. Best Wishes, Martin