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2001 Navy Blue Metallic Convertible - 45k miles Driver's side rear has a notable clunk going over bumps. It's most noticeable on light and moderate bumps. Going straight; most speeds 10mph to 50mph. Not very noticeable over heavy bumps. All 3 other wheels are nice and quiet. No clunk.
I can't quite tell if it clunks on suspension compression or unloading of the suspension.
The sound has been there for a year of driving and it wasn't too noticeable. I was able to ignore it. But now it's definitely getting worse. More frequency of the clunk and more loudness.
I was worried that something was going to come loose.
For context I recently swapped my shocks from the stock shocks to the C6, Z06 shocks; which are a direct replacement - and they are firmer and great. Love them. So I thought there was a fair chance I didn't torque some bolt somewhere. I did use blue thread lock on everything. Long story short - I've got the wheel off and I can't find a single bolt loose. I'm pushing and pulling on everything and it all seems nice and sturdy. No additional movement. No clunking when I pull on things.
I read the other threads and I've triple checked the swaybar end links. You'll notice I replaced them with the metal links. They seem solid too.
Please save me from taking this to County Corvette in WestChester PA - I am convinced they do good work. But that bill is always spicy hot. Hard to hold onto! LOL
Let me know if anything looks wrong. Pictures below.
Thanks for your help on this diagnostics. The whole assembly leaf spring leaf spring A arm bolt top of leaf spring suspension sub assembly mounting end link
Last edited by Always_a_rhythm; Jun 19, 2020 at 12:27 PM.
Nothing visually jumping out at me from where I am sitting. Are the eccentric bolts tight for the alignment adjustment? With the car on 4 jack stands try jacking up the corner with the floor jack so it compresses the suspension to something more closely resembling natural ride height and try to find something loose.
The first thing I would check, without hearing the clunk in person, would be sway bar end links given you have already replaced the shocks. Did the clunk start immediately after installing the shocks or come later? Then I would look at tie rods, wheel bearings, and touch everything else to identify a loose caliper, etc.
The two rubber bushings on the sway bar at the cradle mounts can be dry. Take the brackets off. the bushings have a split in them. take them off the sway bar clean the bushing and the rust off the sway bar shaft. I lube mine with silicone grease, but some use regular grease. The sway bar needs to be able to both rotate and slide in those bushings.
Be careful with the upper bolt, it threads dircyly into the cradle which is aluminum. The cradle is easily stripped.
There are a bunch of DIY wrenches on the CF that have the expertise to help you if they could experience the issue what you do. But before you start replacing anything, I recommend taking the car to your go-to-corvette mechanic and have him diagnosis the problem. From experience, I have replaced a lot of stuff on cars not needing it before finding the real problem. JMHO.
Thank you all.
Wheel back on and lug nuts tightned to 100ftlbs.
I've spent enough time under the suspension to feel confident it's on there strong. I feel like it's no longer a suspension thing.
Perhaps it something else. I have aftermarket Borla exhaust so maybe it's that may be bumping something.
Something's making the noise. I intend to find it out. I'll have to get it up on a lift - a friend of a friend has a lift that maybe I can borrow. So the diagnostics continue.
Good luck and be sure to update us when you find it. When you get it up on the lift, don't be afraid to reef on stuff pretty hard. The road is way stronger than you so it can do some serious work to make noises you wouldn't normally be able to elicit by hand!
Thank you all.
Wheel back on and lug nuts tightned to 100ftlbs.
I've spent enough time under the suspension to feel confident it's on there strong. I feel like it's no longer a suspension thing.
Perhaps it something else. I have aftermarket Borla exhaust so maybe it's that may be bumping something.
Something's making the noise. I intend to find it out. I'll have to get it up on a lift - a friend of a friend has a lift that maybe I can borrow. So the diagnostics continue.
Suspension Clunk/Rattle - Help!
