97 Escort clunking over some bumps and turns

[amnslkr]

Hello all,

Got a 97 Sedan with 207k+ on it. Just did all struts (monroe quick-strut), brake pads, shoes, drums, rotors, calipers, rear and front sway bar endlinks, and lower ball joints. All hardware is tight and secured.

I am getting a clunk when I go over some bumps, but not all of them. I also find that it will clunk when I try to accelerate while turning out onto, say, a main road or something where I need to pick up speed. At times it sounds like it's coming from the passenger and others it sound like the middle or driver side. Control arm bushings don't look too bad and would probably cause more noise when accelerating and braking. Both wheels are snug and don't move when tugging on them in the air. There is no play in the steering as well.

Any ideas?

[FordMan59]

Sometimes a worn tie rod or tie rod end will cause a clunking noise especially on bumps. CV joint??

[amnslkr]

I think a CV joint would probably be more of a grinding noise as I made turns, and it's not doing that. I will double check the tie rods again.

[amnslkr]

With one wheel in the air and the steering wheel locked, it does feel like it has some play. It doesn't feel or sound like it is near the wheel, but rather towards the center of the car.

[radrodder04]

If it's in the front end it could possibly be a bad strut or the stabilizer bar could have bad bushings. I have ran into both these problems they are common or Focus's

[amnslkr]

Originally Posted by radrodder04

If it's in the front end it could possibly be a bad strut or the stabilizer bar could have bad bushings. I have ran into both these problems they are common or Focus's

The strut mount would have been my first place to look, but all the struts and mounts are all brand new (monroe quick strutrs) as are the endlinks (and bushings) for both front and rear.

All new struts and ball joints (and others):


Old busings:


New:

[amnslkr]

It will happen when I shift in the middle of turning. Maybe it's a transmission/motor mount.

[ben.na.walker]

Had the same problem with a 05' Grand Caravan. All i have to say is that if a bushing looks okay.. change it anyways. Often times they will look ok but they can be deceiving.

[12Ounce]

You need to replace the tie-rod ends if you feel any looseness as you describe. As a matter of fact, I have just completed doing this on D's '97 Tracer LS. Since most/some of the looseness was in the inner tie-rods ... I just replaced the rack assembly and the outer tie-ends. While the rack was out, I had better access to the anti-sway bar so I could replace the bar-bushings ... not just the end-links.

I also replaced the struts with Monroe struts-plus and the lower control arms. I have not started on the rear ... (yet), ... but it's riding very good now with no looseness or noises. Very tight!

I also checked all the mounts and replaced two that showed some rubber failure.

[hakachukai]

Have you checked the "stupid things" like the muffle pipe that runs down the center of the car?