[RNation0001]

hey guys,

while im driving my 04 cts-v every little bump i hit makes a loud clunking noise, i kind of assume its the struts, how do i check them? i have it jacked upand wheel off of it now dont really see a leak or anything yet tho, i grab the rotor and try to move it around to see if i fell anything loose and didnt however i havent tried it with a prybar yetso idk, any ideas?

 

[mac_henderson2001]

How many miles since they've been last replaced? Struts usually don't clunk, check your sway bar and sway bar drop links. The struts you check by bouncing the car and seeing if it keeps bouncing or stops. Check the upper and lower mounts to make sure the rubber grommets are still in there.

 

[thebigjimsho]

The strut would have to be about dead to clunk badly. And usually, it's not a single clunk. It would sound very sloppy. I agree to look at sway bar end links...

 

[AAIIIC]

Or the sway bar bushings. If the sway bar end links and bushings are still original, and your '04 has "typical" '04 mileage, they're probably shot and the source of your clunking.

 

[RNation0001]

thanks guys yea its when im driving down the road and hit a small bump or small pothole i get a clunk. ive only had the car about 3000 miles so im not sure if they have ever been changed, i pushed down on the car and they didnt seem to bad to me, ill inspect the sway bar and end links tomorrow and get back to you, is that something i can get at autozone or is there someone that has better ones? im soon going to replace the motor mounts and a few other things anyway.

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car has 107000 miles btw

 

[mac_henderson2001]

You can get them at AZ, I prefer MOOG brand or GM factory parts. I just did motor mounts on mine, if you have headers they have to come out to change the mounts.

 

[RNation0001]

which mounts did u go with. i been looking at creative steel and revshift mounts, no headers as of now, gonna save up for the 8.8 swap before i start on performance

 

[mac_henderson2001]

which mounts did u go with. i been looking at creative steel and revshift mounts, no headers as of now, gonna save up for the 8.8 swap before i start on performance

I went with creative steel mounts. My new clutch and 8.8 kit come Thursday so when I get it together this weekend I'll let you know how I like them.

 

[RNation0001]

nice, yea next year i think im gonna try and get the 8.8, til then its baby it here and there lol. yea lemme know what ya think of them, just picked up the sway bar end links (moog) from advanced, they didnt have the sway bar bushings themselves but creative steel sells some i may get if they look poor. Also picked up some ebay hid ballasts that people have been using to replace the rediculously priced caddy ones. had a light go out a while back. hopefully they work pretty well.

 

[WesH8398]

Are you sure it's coming from the front? The rear shocks sound like a bag of marbles when you go over "sharp" bumps if they're blown.

 

[johnnywadd]

Just did this. Definitely your sway bar bushings. I used Creative Steel. Cleared the problem right up.

 

[RNation0001]

yea pretty positive its the front. ive got the end links going to install tomorrow and working on ordering some creative steel bushings may go ahead and get motor and transmission mounts while im at it

 

[mac_henderson2001]

yea pretty positive its the front. ive got the end links going to install tomorrow and working on ordering some creative steel bushings may go ahead and get motor and transmission mounts while im at it

Do it! I've got all the CS mounts, no more clunking or noises on shut down. Car is so much better with them.

 

[ctsv247]

The CS sway bar bushings fixed me right up but 10k miles later one of the links started clunking. May as well replace it all. The moog links are much beefier than stock and you can get them on amazon for less than 30 each and they are greasable.

 

[jaybob]

I just wanted to add that this thread helped me fix my front suspension noise problem as well. I had taken the car to the dealer initially to diagnose. They "fixed" an end link and told me that to get rid of all of the noise, I'd need the shock replaced at ~$300. The shock was shot, but I was pretty sure it wasn't the culprit. I figured I would just replace the shock myself, so I did, and it only helped a little.

Flash forward a couple thousand miles of frustrated noisy driving and I read this thread. The real problem was the sway bar bushings. It had to be. So I replaced them last night. They were worn to the point that the bar was loose inside the bushing. Easy fix that the dealer missed and I ignored for too long. Glad my car is once again riding smooth and quietly. Thanks guys!

 

[WesH8398]

For those of you suggesting end links: just keep in mind that if you're lowered (or planning on lowering), the shorter Z06 end links are in your best interest. You'll eventually (or quickly) snap OEM length links if you lower the suspension.