Hi there peeps, this is my first post on here and i was wondering if anyone can help. I have a 03 impreza sti which has done 27000 miles. I have started to have a knocking noise from the rear of the car when i am moving along (even at 5mph) I have checked the exhaust and wheels and they are fine so i was wondering if its the Suspension, can anyone help because its realy annoying now.

 

Can you hear the noise when going along at 30mph or more?

Does it sound like a bang noise when going slowly when turning?

If so this sounds like a problem I had - replaced both top mounts and all is quiet again... about £55 each + vat + fitting...

Andy

 

im not realy sure if it does more than 30 mph because the exhaust note is louder lol
it doesnt make any banging noises when i turn eather, quite lost.....

 

Check there's no leaks from the struts and that the Anti-roll bar drop links are sound.

It's a common problem for the near side rear strut to knock on Impreza's. Usually it's a sign that the strut is failing/failed.

 

get them replaced with AST

 

whats is the cheapest i can get these an i am on a budgit (misses lol)

 

Is it a knocking or a whirring?

I had what sounded like a knocking which turned into a whirring metallic sound - was a wheel bearing that needed replacing...

 

I had one set of rear shocks replaced @ 15k under warranty due to knocking. My 03sti has now done 31k and I can get the odd knock on small drop curbs.
To be honest 'they all do that' and in my case the handling has not been affected at all. It's a very small amount of play in the strut bush and sounds much worse than it is.
Some have changed to coilovers. But be warned, these have been known to wear out in a very similar fashion on the rear suspension. Annoying if you have spent 1k on coilovers.
I remember reading that powerstation had a fix for this by rebuilding the sti std rear shocks and replacing this bush?

dipster

 

The guys in the US dismantle the rear STi shocks and re-grease with a heavy duty 'marine grease' and reckons this cures the knock on the STi's, although the rear right hand tends to go on theirs first....still passenger/gutter side though!

Simon

 

My 05 Maltese import STI (24k miles) has a creaking noise from the O/S/R strut which you only notice at very slow speed. If you press hard on the boot when parked you get a knock before the damper engages. I assume this is the same problem. I'd go for a new adjustable set but don't want the overall ride to be any harder. Any suggestions welcomed!

 

Jacking up the rear seems to re-lube the shocker top bush and keeps it quite for a while.

dipster