Hi NAM,

My new to me 06 MCS with 56k miles is still making a front end clunk on speed bumps. I've replaced FCAB with offset poly, inner (PF camber) and outer ball joints, PF sway bar bushings, Bilstein B6 struts and Swift springs, IE fixed camber top mounts, both engine mounts with inserts and tranny PF insert. I've torqued and retorqued and revisited all bolts maybe 4 times now. The two things i haven't replaced are inner outer tie rods and swaybar end links. I've tested the car with the links removed and clunk remained. pushing the wheels at 9 and 3 do not show signs of tie rod wear. Before I order tie rods and end links, do you guys have any other ideas? I know end links can cause clunk. can worn tie rods clunk? can a car with 56k miles have worn tie rods? sucks to need to re align.

 

Have you torqued the strut top mount bolt. The main one. Also check you bearing hubs.

 

Hi, yes. I’ve retorqued the main strut nut as well as the three mount nuts. I feel the clunk coming from somewhere lower in the vehicle. Would worn hub bearings cause a single clunk on speed bumps? I don’t get any of the other symptoms such as growling in low speeds/turns.

 

Bump with additional info. I'm really hoping somebody can help.

Clunk is coming from the passenger side and feels/sounds like from the area around the bottom of the spring. Also, it does it occasionally as if it has something to do with the spring rotating or position. Any ideas? Thanks in advance. I'll redo the strut/spring to make sure, any tips and thing to look out for? i read someone say but can't find it, that springs can bind and may need lubricating?

 

Likely endlinks, since you said you hadn't replaced them yet.

Disconnect the endlinks, secure them, and go over the same bump to test.

 

I just redid lowering the subframe and retorqued everything once again including bumper bolts etc. I’ve done the test with passenger end link removed and it still clunked I’m gonna order new end links and then cross fingers. Thanks for the advise. Will update.

 

Was it the endlinks? Encountering a similar issue on my r56.

 

Check your bumpstops.

 

I'm having very simliar issues. I don't want to just throw parts at old car. 05MCS manual. Did passenger strut bearing and upper engine mount while was in there working on belt. The clunk remains. Steering is tight. Drives great. Really strange. End links were tight there on the passenger side. Could be control arm bushings or ball joint I suppose. What do they mean by wheel hub bearing? Those usually drone or whine?

 

Inner ball joints or tie rod ends are usually the issues. Their is a split year on some of these so just select your year.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ll-joints.html

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...n-refresh.html

 

For me, it was a defective brand new engine mount. Replaced and all was good after.

 

Firestone guy checked the car out and he said it's likely just the strut itself. I don't see many examples of that on these forums or anywhere else. But it just wobbles or knock sound on smaller bumps, Not when turning stopping etc. Why I thought it was strut bearing. I may just replace them to rule out but not sure it's worth it, car drives pretty good just noisy at lower speeds and smaller bumps

 

Wow that seems pretty unlikely, brand new and defective? I've heard these stories but it has to be very rare

 

Could be inner ball joint, but he didn't identify that as loose or likely to cause the strange sound. Of course we are all just best guessing. Can't be tie rods it steers perfectly and they are tight I think.

 

Ball joints will clunk at first and then they get a bunch of play and you can feel it in the steering. Take a pickle fork and test those inner and out ball joints for play.

 

I'm pretty sure the firestone guy checked that also. It's hard to describe the noise to me it's more of a wobble not a clunk. So it's smaller on smaller bumps and louder with large abrupt ones. It sounds just like the top bearing would be loose like a rod slapping around inside a hole. But it isn't the bearing. I haven't checked the rear though I suppose that's always possible. He described he has seen inside the strut itself it can begin to fail and make those similar sounds. It's what they wrote up as a quote to replace along with end links (which were tight seemingly).