I've just returned from a trip to Austria where I tackled the Grossglockner Pass. http://www.grossglockner.at/en/hocha...-fahrspass.htm

Unfortunately, part way up, I started getting a clonk from the front offside wheel when I entered a left hand hairpin as if the force was moving the bottom of the wheel inwards. I removed the wheel and couldn’t find anything obvious or loose.

After a while, I started feeling the clonk as well as hearing it albeit not very often as not too many hairpins on the Autobahns but culminated, on returning home, I was reversing into my drive on full right lock (ie completely opposite to the problem and there was an almighty clonk again from the F/O/S.

Just before I left I had the car fully serviced (30k service) and full tracking done and I’m thinking maybe something wasn’t tightened up enough on the tracking.

I’ve previously had a rattle on that corner but that has been fixed and the sound/feeling is completely different. https://www.scoobynet.com/suspension...ng-rattle.html

Could someone please point me to some potential locations where I can check for something loose.

Thanks

 

Most likely culprit is the anti-roll bar drop link.

 

I don't think so, it's much too deep a sound. Sounds/Feels more like the wishbone moving although everything I can get to seems tight.

 

I see on your other post that you have AST coil overs... might be that these need an overhaul.

However, worth checking the ball joints before you go down that route though - if it feels like there's play in the suspension, they're a pretty cheap part to replace.

 

BCs now, just over a year old and that particular corner has had the top mount recently replaced whilst under guarantee.

I couldn't detect any play in the ball joint but, I admit, it is a possibility.

 

Well, you'd hope it's not the shocks. Ball joints are pretty cheap and I'd still be suspicious of drop links and possibly even ARB bushes... the latter could give you the sensation that something was moving if they stuck and then released sending a little jolt through the suspension / steering.

 

My understanding is that there was nothing wrong with the frotn top mount other than the nut being loose. This is your video isnt it? I thought the nut was just tightened, there was nothing faulty on the front strut to replace?


Have you checked to see if the nut has come loose again?

 

Hi Bren

Is this query a result of the email I sent you?

Anyway, yes it is my video, I was told by David that the top mount was replaced owing to another issue but that's not really relevant as my current problem is completely different.

The original issue was a rattle, my current issue (same corner of the car) is a single clonk apparently as the result of something moving under load on full left hand lock going forwards or full right hand lock going backwards. It doesn't always happen but it is exacerbated by a vertical loading (normally a bump in the road) at the time.

 

Not sure if it is relevant but I believe my bushes are all polyurethane ones installed when I had the AST Stage 3 kit installed 5 years/90k miles ago.

 

Could be one of the front lower bushes, drop link, caliper loose on hub, pads moving within caliper, lower ball joint, damper body loose in bottom mount, steering rack mounting bush.

It could be one of a number of things Im afraid.

 

Thanks Bren

I'm getting it checked out later in the week as I couldn't find anything untoward with my limited facilities.

 

I seem to have the same clonk, usually happens on the 1st time of turning right off the drive first thing every day, then at random times whilst driving, usually when osf wheel is in a dip / rise on the road. 99% sure its coming from drivers side. Had wheel off a few weeks ago but nothing visibly loose :-( Very interested to see what you are told. Cheers

Andy

 

Yours sounds very much like anti roll bar drop links or bushes. Drop links are easy to change and pretty cheap. Bushes are pretty easy to but you need to take the front subframe off to get at them.

 

Fingers crossed, on the basis that the problem was intermittent, but it seems my problem(s) are solved.

Despite having the front checked over by a company, relatively local to me, who carried out my recent 30k service and who could find nothing wrong "with the only thing left being the strut", I visited the very helpful guys at Richard Henry Autos in Bradford this morning and it turns out that despite the offside wishbone appearing to be tight the front bolt was able to be tightened a little so maybe that was the noise on lefthand hairpins as the wishbone moved slightly.

The big clonk whilst on full right lock in reverse was almost certainly the result of 1 loose engine mount nut and one missing engine mount nut

Massive respect to Bren @ Apex who I contacted to ask about the possibility of it being the strut as above and, despite my BCs being over a year old, he booked me into Richard Henry Autos and provided a full set of new coilovers to them for them to investigate and replace whatever was needed at Bren's cost. As it turns out it wasn't necessary but fantastic service from a company bearing in mind I didn't even buy my BCs from them directly but through a supplier. If only everyone had that sort of attitude - the world would be a far better place.

 

Good to hear that its (hopefully) resolved