Obviously I know suspensions noises are hard to diagnose without looking at the car. I'm looking to see if anyone has had these specific symptoms.

165K on the suspension. Only parts changed are the comp rods up front. I have struts but have been slow to install.

Car rides fine, tracks straight and overall rides OK given the mileage. I can get on the highway and drive 80MPH with no issues.

BUT, if I stop the car, cut the wheel to either side and reverse, I get a pretty loud "clunk-clunk" from the front end and feel it in the car too.

This is an AWD sedan, and I ruled out drivetrain clunk through various methods of loading and unloading the drivetrain. Couldn't reproduce the sound at all no matter how I tried to load up the drivetrain in F and reverse. The sound only appears while backing in reverse with the wheel cut hard.

So, any suspected thoughts? First chance to take a peek under the car will be this weekend. From what I can see now, the comp rod bushings look normal. Will need to pull the wheel to get a better look.

Probably goint to try mounting my GoPro on the suspension and make some vids. It's a pretty loud clunk, so i'd imagine something is moving and I should be able to see it.

I ordered swa bar endlinks...just because they were cheap and why not?

 

Do u have aftermarket sways? What end links did u order if u don't mind me asking? I had a horrible experience with circuit sport end links from concept z performance not too long ago. They looked decent in the pics and were half the price as other known brands like powergrid or whiteline. But the "self locking" nut kept coming loose and it was clunkville down there only after a couple of weeks. I tried re tightening a couple of times but it kept doing the same thing. I then researched them and found lots of people having the same issue with them, so I ditched them for some power grids, which were a little more than twice the price of the circuit sports but well worth the money. Haven't had any issues since. No clunks and quiet as stock. So be careful with cheap end links cuz u do get what u pay for....
As far as the clunking there are several sources that can be causing it, best bet is to get it up on a rack and inspect everything. Good luck

 

It's definitely your end links. Not sure which kind you bought, but the Moog ones are really really nice. Hefty, and have built in zerk fittings.

 

Suspension is completely OEM other than the comp rods which were OEM replacements about 100K miles ago. Up until this clunk, the car has been pretty tight.

No desire to install performance parts. This is my daily commuter that I keep convincing to drive "1 more month" before I trade it in.

I got the Moog endlinks. Did some searching and they looked pretty beefy compared to OEM and did like the grease fittings.

 

I ordered the Moog ones. Agreed with everything you just said.


Was going to replace part #5 as well, but discovered they were dealer only and $50 each. I'll change out the endlinks this weekend and inspect my OEM ones first.

I also ordered part #2 as well. Moog versions are pretty cheap

 

Yeah, yer swaybar bushings could clunk too (#2 part), and they're probably worn too. As long as they're cheap, then why not.

 

Had you tried doing a SEARCH using the words suspension noise you would have discovered there's only one way to find the cause. We can guess and assume all day long but you need to get your G on a rack or have a good independent brake/alignment shop check out what's causing the noise...Gary

 

Mustang is a good regular here and we don't need to remind him to search. He knows the ropes; he just wanted opinions. Besides, we already have a new Gary, traitor. Hahaha

 

I'd remove the entire front sway assembly and see if it still clunks when you reverse/turn

 

I said that in my first sentence and have been searching for a few days.

I am getting the car up on the rack this weekend. All I was looking for was any sort of long-shot that someone had similar symptoms as none of my searching turned up clunking in that particular situation. I know i'll have to take a pry bar to each joint to test it but was hoping to narrow it down fast and get some parts on order.

 

That's a pretty good idea.

 

Replying for results, mine does the same thing. Also on uneven surfaces, like backing/pulling into my driveway. Others have mentioned endlinks as well.

 

End links on my old sedan , so I'm thinking you have the same problem.

110k miles replaced just before it's death.

 

Had 10 mins today, so mounted the go pro under the car and shot a number of videos. I *think* it's on the passenger side, but not sure. Shot about 5-6 videos aimed at different spots. Saw nothing obvious, but definitely captured the clunk on video.

Tomorrow i'll pull the wheels off, replace the endlinks and sway bar bushings and take a prybar to various parts.

I'm replacing the endlinks, but not convinced they are the cause. Had the camers pointed at both endlinks and nothing seemed like it would be the source. I also focuses in on the lower control arm bushings (to subframe) and they are not the source.

Here's a vid I made. At 7 seconds is when you hear the clunk i hear when i'm near full lock only when reversing.

I'm not convinced it's the CV axle yet, but it's possible. The only time I hear this clunk is reverse at full lock.

 

But did you take off the sway bar like we told you...