Clunk sound when changing direction

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

When driving at slow speeds (5-30km) and changing directions I hear a few clunking sounds from the front passenger side.

It only happens after changing direction, ie,
left/right - if make hard turns or drive in circles in one direction, it'll clunk a few times then go quiet. No matter how many times I continue circling, it won't occur again in the direction. It's only when I make a hard turn in the opposite direction that the sound will return for a few more clunks.
drive/stop - it'll intermittently clunk a couple times when stopping the vehicle at an intersection, as well as when taking off
forward/reverse - same as above
kerbs - it'll occasionally clunk when mounting a kerb.

It seems to be intermittent, but making hard left or right hand turns almost guarantees a result.
It's occasionally felt through the steering wheel as a light vibration.
It doesn't occur at high speeds.
It will occur regardless of whether the brake is applied or not.
It sounds external, ie, like a bushing, creaking, or metal on metal rubbing. It doesn't sound clangy like diff or transmission internals breaking apart.

I've had the following components replaced in the past 6 months:
- front upper arm bushings (Light Racing)
- front lower arm bushins (OEM)
- front bearings (Koyo)
- steering rack (rebuilt) & bushings (poly)
- sway bar bushings (rubber)
- driver side CV shaft (Repco)
- brake pads (Bendix 4WD)
- brake caliper rebuilds (Repco)

I've made the following in attempts to locate the issue:
- removed bash plate
- removed front sway bar
- removed front prop shaft
- loosened and lubricated the lower arm joints
- loosened and lubricated the upper arm joints
- loosened and lubricated the steering rack mounts
- with the car lifted, moving the tyre up/down does not indicate ball joint failures.
- with the car lifted, moving the tyre left/right does show movement in the steering system (it always has had movement).
- tyre rotation

I had a similar noise in the rear, but solved that easily by tightening up the rear upper shock nuts.

The sound has not gone away or even changed... it's driving me craaaazy! HELP!

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

Loose body lift block?

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Rubber on top of struts chopped out ?? So spring hitting or moving slightly.... Cheers Steve

[UncySpam Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close UncySpam]

I used to get this in my Navara, and it was the suspension bushing in the Left control arm telling me I was turning.

It may be that its not an issue, that its just the way your car works...

[fridayman Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close fridayman]

I had something very similar on mine which (eventually...) turned out to be the left lower control arm bush. It took quite a lot of poking and pulling with a breaker bar to figure it out. I was chatting to a fellow yesterday who does a lot of rock crawling and he reckoned he knackered his urethane bushes quite often and was thinking of going back to rubber.

[Rainman Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Rainman]

I see you've had your rack rebuilt so it unlikely to be the same problem I've just discovered yesterday, but it may be worth a look. During two weeks touring the Pilbara I'd occasionally hear a slight knocking sound when on corrugations but found the plastic guard over the auxiliary tank had cracked so put it down to that.

However, once I got home I started noticing a knocking sound when ever I turned the wheel, it seemed to be coming from the passenger side and was more noticeable when turning left. I got under the vehicle and found that the bracket holding the steering rack onto the chassis cross member on the passenger side had cracks on both sides running along the existing welds.

It also looks like there are a number of hair line fractures in the bracket as well, so each time the steering wheel is turned, the whole left side of the steering rack moves vertically up and down and the knock is the loose bracket hitting the cross member. Attached are a couple of photos.

Now to get it fixed

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

Loose body lift block?

Excellent suggestion! I've checked the sides but the front pair require removal of the bullbar, argh, TBA...

Rubber on top of struts chopped out ?? So spring hitting or moving slightly.... Cheers Steve

Another excellent suggestion, I have yet to tweak with the suspension. Perhaps I could switch the coilovers around temporarily to see if the noise moves.

I had something very similar on mine which (eventually...) turned out to be the left lower control arm bush. It took quite a lot of poking and pulling with a breaker bar to figure it out. I was chatting to a fellow yesterday who does a lot of rock crawling and he reckoned he knackered his urethane bushes quite often and was thinking of going back to rubber.

Thanks mate, the breaker bar is a great idea because I've been unable to recreate the issue by hand or shaking the vehicle. I do need greater forces.

I see you've had your rack rebuilt so it unlikely to be the same problem I've just discovered yesterday, but it may be worth a look. During two weeks touring the Pilbara I'd occasionally hear a slight knocking sound when on corrugations but found the plastic guard over the auxiliary tank had cracked so put it down to that.

However, once I got home I started noticing a knocking sound when ever I turned the wheel, it seemed to be coming from the passenger side and was more noticeable when turning left. I got under the vehicle and found that the bracket holding the steering rack onto the chassis cross member on the passenger side had cracks on both sides running along the existing welds.

It also looks like there are a number of hair line fractures in the bracket as well, so each time the steering wheel is turned, the whole left side of the steering rack moves vertically up and down and the knock is the loose bracket hitting the cross member. Attached are a couple of photos.

Now to get it fixed

Ahhh what a pain to have that kind of failure. I sure hope mine isn't cracked anywhere :-/

I'll find this noise eventually... and advise...

[peter_mcc Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close peter_mcc]

On our Subaru we had a wheel bearing that was slightly loose in the housing. If you jacked the car up & pulled really hard on the wheel it would clunk/move.

We took it to the mechanic (a Sydney one who specialised in rallying/performance cars) to get fixed. After 2 days they said they couldn't find it. I drove it around the corner, jacked up the car and it was still there - so went back and explained in more detail. They said they'd never seen one fail like that before... and kept the car for a few more days to get the parts in and fix it.

So... have you tried more force on things? The car has hundreds of kgs on each wheel so it might need more force to show itself.

Peter

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

I've tried using a 1.5m long bar on the lower arms but no budging noticed..

I've since replaced the drivers side CV axle (since the boot was busted), and the noise has either disappeared or reduced.. still monitoring..

[juc33_prado Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close juc33_prado]

I've tried using a 1.5m long bar on the lower arms but no budging noticed..

I've since replaced the drivers side CV axle (since the boot was busted), and the noise has either disappeared or reduced.. still monitoring..

Hey Glen,

As you are the resident 90 expert;

I heard a similar creak noise a few times now as i take off, i notice my drivers side, top cv boot is busted, obviously need to replace this, but does that creaking point to the CV replacement needed?

SAM

[glen_ep Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close glen_ep]

I wouldn't expect creaking from CV's. My problem turned out to be a single bushing - passenger side lower control arm. When these are replaced there's a risk of arm damage resulting in the bushing being too loose, and slowly working it's way even looser. It was always my suspicion but it wasn't detectable back then with the arm on the vehicle. 6-12 months down the track the movement finally became enough that I could detect it during vehicle inspection. I removed the arm and found I could easily slide the bushing in and out by hand (it's meant to be pressed in).

[juc33_prado Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close juc33_prado]

thanks glen after doing a bit of reading, will look at lower control arms and steering rack ends for now.

Thanks

SAMUEL