rear upper shock/strut mount maybe?!..

 

How are your swaybar bushings? On our Mazda5, the bushings go bad but a visual inspection doesn't show it. But anyway, when going over uneven surfaces like pavement imperfections, curb cuts and speed humps that are not hit exactly perpendicular, you hear a horrid knocking that sounds like someone with a 3# hammer underneath the frame.

 

i think it might be the sway bar bushings. I have almost 210K miles so it could be anything I guess

 

UPDATE:

I exposed the rear upper shock mount and drove to listen to it. There is definitely a clunk coming from the mount and it also rattles a little bit over smaller bumps. The mount itself doesn't look too bad from the top, so could the shock itself be making the noise and transmitting it through the mount?

Thanks
Seamus

 

How old are your shocks? There is a very small bushing around the eye at the bottom of the shock where the bolt goes through to attach it to the control arm. Maybe that bushing is shot? That's a long shot but that's the only way I can think of the shock making noise. I would assume the upper mount would more likely be the culprit.

 

I may have the same problem. were u able to figure out what the culprit was? ive already replaced the rear shock mount and the rattling is still there.

 

^Have you replaced the endlinks yet?

 

not yet. lol. I still have to order the part. but I was hoping that id get more info on what else could be the problem so I can look at it and maybe order the part all at once.

 

do what he did, just disconnect/remove the links and go for a ride

that will rule it out

i've been pretty happy with MOOG replacements, they are all metal unlike most others (OEM too) which use plastic

cheap too... like 15-20 a side


also make sure the rear stay arm isnt bent, seems to be a common issue on these

 

do what he did, just disconnect/remove the links and go for a ride

that will rule it out

i've been pretty happy with MOOG replacements, they are all metal unlike most others (OEM too) which use plastic

ive thought of that too. but I think want to replace all my end links either way consider my car's mileage. at this point im just looking to see other areas to check and that way I wont be ordering parts separately since shipping to Canada aint cheap.lol

 

^ there's nothing else in the rear that normally causes noises.

 

I replaced my end links and the problem still persists. The noise is related to my shocks/shock mounts so you should definitely check those out with your end links.

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I have already replaced the top shock mount and the noise is still there. ill try to replace all my endlinks since its never been replaced before. if that still doesn't help. then ill look into replacing the shocks.

 

It's most probably your shocks that are causing the noise. The shock shafts can have play in them from worn out bushings that hold them centered. How are the rear springs? Are any of them broken? I've seen that also.

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springs are quite new maybe around 15k kms. on them and they are H&R lowering springs

 

You should be fine after endlinks. Shocks don't typically make noise. Mounts can but you've changed those already. I replaced my OEM rear shocks at 140k miles and they were still quiet. In fact the only thing that has ever made noise in the rear of my S60 was the endlinks.

 

Its just weird that i can only hear the sound inside the car, even when the windows are open, i cant hear anything coming from the outside. But ill go ahead and order endlinks for the front and rear sometime this week.

 

A couple other things to check...

Are you sure you backseat backs are securely locked in place?

Is your spare tire and jack securely fastened in the trunk?

Those are the only common interior noise causes I can think of.

Keep in mind the OEM endlinks only last about 70-80k miles so even if you find out one of the above is the cause, the endlinks are probably due soon anyway.

 

A couple other things to check...

Are you sure you backseat backs are securely locked in place?

Is your spare tire and jack securely fastened in the trunk?

Those are the only common interior noise causes I can think of.

Keep in mind the OEM endlinks only last about 70-80k miles so even if you find out one of the above is the cause, the endlinks are probably due soon anyway.

Yeah the back seats are secured. I actually removed the jack from the trunk so I can eliminate that. And the spare tire is well fastened. Well at the moment that how im looking at things, since im way past 80k, im long overdue for endlinks. If that fixes the problem then great if not, atleast I know links are new. Lol but im hoping for it to be the problem! Haha

 

well, im on the same boat as you are. just replaced my links and the sound is still there. have you fixed yours yet?

 

I had a sway bar bushing cause a lot of hollow knocking over un even bumps, got pretty loud.

 

I checked the sway bar bushings too and everything seemed tight.

 

my shocks were original and leaking and spongy on my S60 but they never made any weird noises before i replaced them.


my calipers were noisy over bumps so I replaced the caliper springs but they still rattled even when I replaced them, design flaw i thought

also it was pretty obvious it was my caliper by the noise it made and it went away when braking.


maybe check the toe stay arm for abrasion/bends, they are known to bump into the sway bar from time to time.

 

Was this ever solved? I've recently replaced both my rear shocks and springs and with four people in the car, the right rear has a pretty alarming clunk. It is still there when it is just me in the car but definitely worse with more people.

When I had the struts out to replace the spring and shock, I reused the strut mount. It seemed fine when I had it out but I don't exactly know what I was looking for to see if the mount is what is causing the clunk. How can you tell if a strut mount is bad?

I will also try disconnecting the right rear end link to see if the clunk goes away but I'm not sure if the clue of " more weight in the car makes the clunk worse" helps narrow it down at all.

 

Clunking that you've 100% ruled out as not caused by end links or swaybar bushings is most likely shock mounts that have gone bad. You can pick some up from FCP Euro for less than $20 each. If you've replaced the shocks and they were the original that came on the car, you're definitely due to replace the shock mounts as well.

 

Is it the support plate that needs to be replaced? I see shock mounts on FCP euro are $200 each but the support plate is much cheaper.

 

My 2.5T model only has the mount that's held on by 3 bolts and the shock piston to bolts to the center. It's not like the front which has the mount and spring seats and other components to it. Yours may be different though, as I know some models have another part that goes on top of the mount. But the actual mount can be had for less than $50 for both corners together depending what brand you get.