LOWER CONTROL ARM GUYS!!! (COMPRESSION ROD) and the ball joint was loose causing most of the clunking, got one for 45$ plus shipping from rock auto, gave my mechanic 70$ for install, he told me it was a PIA due to rust and old crappy bushings.

here's the part: https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...=1431956&jsn=1

i am 95% happy because it doesnt clunk going over bumps but it has another clunking sound when stopping or accelerating.

its not very loud but it is noticeable to me so i guess search continues, hope this helps someone

 

That was actually the first part I changed about a year ago it fixed it for a few months and then started clunking again. I missed mentioning that in my previous post. Watch out if you have the AWD model because the compression rods are steel and not aluminium. They look same but I think the aluminium ones must have a bigger ball on the end. I had a hard time tracking down an aftermarket supplier but found that Mevotech makes them. It was also a pain to replace them because the front axles were real tight and I had to disconnect the upper ball joint to tip the steering knuckle to get them in place.

I priced out the new struts $136CDN/side. Hopefully, that fixes it and I can rest easy knowing I have basically a new front end.

 

Changed out the damper on the strut on the passenger side last night. The old damper sprung back much faster than the new one. It seems like all the noise is gone from the passenger side now. Going to do the other side later today. I am starting to think that this was my problem all along and replacing the other components only masked the issues temporarily. Good luck to anyone else trying to sort out a similar issue.

 

Well the front end clunks are still there. I went through and double checked the torque on the new bolts. Everything is confirmed to spec. The new strut dampers seemed to help for a day or two but I drove down a gravel road yesterday and it was unbearable to listen to. I guess I will bring it in for an alignment and maybe they will catch something I missed.

Hopefully everyone else sorted your issues.

 

Did you ever figure out what the rattle was?

 

Fellas, the problem maybe your BRAKE PADS. I had the same exact problem described here...all my suspension components were tight. Took it to several shops, no one had a clue. Finally took it to the Nissan experts at Corner3 garage in Orange County and they were able to guess it quickly. I had crappy after market pads that didn't fit correctly and they were clanking around.

Do this simple test. Go over a road that causes the noise. Now go back and go over it again, this time pressing the brake slightly to hold the pads in contact with the rotors. If the noise disappears, then it's your brake pads. Put in OEM pads with new brake hardware and that should solve it.

 

thanks for the advice, def will keep that in mind next time im doing brakes

 

Have you checked your upper control arm mounting bolts? Mine started backing out awhile back and took me forever to figure it out cuz I was looking at all the lower suspension stuff.

 

I am positive its the compression rods, the lower control arms here's why. It was also very difficult to diagnose, took me almost a month of back and forth with my mechanic (good thing he doesn't charge me for inspection), first he thought it was the strut mount, then the shock itself, then bushings and it was none of those. Problem is that the compression rod is in there tight and even with the car in the air you wont experience any play, only when its driving and it moves in a certain way where it starts clunking. swap the compression rods WITH BALL JOINTS out, they are $45 each. Either way its a problem area in these cars and at least you'll have new rod, bushings and ball joints. hope this helps!

 

I tried this. I think you are right in my particular case. I held the brake and went over a bumpy road and the noise was no longer there.

The thing is, I had OEM pad replacements and still hear the noise. But I know its coming from the brakes. Do I just buy a new pair anyways? Could the hardware have been put in wrong? Could it actually be the caliper mounting bolt or something else?

I'll have to look at it again this week, I'm pretty sure its with the brake pads, thanks for the unique answer.

 

Change the hardware. Also, apply a thick layer of brake caliper grease or even silicon paste(the 3M brand is good but expensive) since its consistency is even thicker on both sides of the brake hardware, where the pads sit and also where it sits on the bracket. Also lube all points of contact between the pads and caliper. If you have OEM pads and if this is indeed the issue, they are loose for some reason. Hardware is the first thing to look into and also over greasing it to see if it makes a difference.

Eric O. on youtube is awesome. You should subscribe to his channel if you like to tinker with your cars. Here is a video of him doing brakes like no other. A good watch on how to do brakes.

Also, I was reading through an auto tech book on brakes and lo and behold mentions this symptom(figure 102-25).

 

Well I finally think I have it licked. I brought it into a garage to get it up on a lift because I was only working of ramps and I couldn't get the leverage on all the components. The first mechanic said my calipers were to sloppy. I took it home and changed the caliper pins. The old ones didn't have the rubber on them anymore. The calipers were much tighter and didn't rattle after that. The clunk was still there. So back to the garage. Next mechanic really started pulling on everything. He was convinced it was the compression rod ball joints. I had already changed the whole compression rods and they have a life time warranty so I talked to the part store and they said if they are bad to send them back and they would reimburse me the cost of the new ones. So I ordered them. I am a pro at taking the front end apart now so I have the new ones in on both sides in under 2 hours. Well that was the issue or at least the main one. It's easily been a month so far and I haven't had a clunk.

Moral of the story I guess is don't rule out a part just because it's newish.

 

Thanks Big6 this was the problem exactly. I had changed them but I guess the aftermarket ones were faulty. They refunded me the cost of some new ones and they have a lifetime warranty so I will just keep replacing them if they fail. Haha

 

That's one benefit of buying new OEM parts, the chances of manufacturer defects are slim to nonexistant. Just out of curiousity what brand did you use that was faulty and where did you buy it from?

 

I used mevotech parts I bought then from thewrenchmonkey.ca. I think rockauto sells them though. With the awd models the compression rods are steel rather than aluminum because of the front axle. Mevotech was the only company I could find that sold aftermarket rods for the awd models.