Strut Problem ~I Think~

[ikemen1]

Hi! I'm a newbe to this Forum and to Nissan, even new to owning a 4 cyl's..
I bought a 1993 Nissan Sentra 1.6, 5 speed 2dr no rust issue.. That is pretty good for living in upsate New York.. It has 120,000 miles....

I had it for about 30 days now and put on 600 miles,runs real good mid 30,s for highway miles (why a bought it) Problem is, When it get real warm out say 75 or hotter, it sound like the rear strut start making noise like a clunking (bumping) sound when go over bumps... if I push the rear bumper up and down it make the same noise..Only when it's hot out.. 65 degree's or colder no noise what so ever... (Strange)

The shock part of the strut seem to work fine.. I bounce the back of the car and it stop bouncing like it should... Any idea's? or steer me in the right direction..

could it have anything to do with sway bar,or sway bar links..?

Thank's ikemen
http://s50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...urrent=011.jpg

[JudoJohn]

if it's the original strut, then it is definitely time to replace it. Just go to Advance Auto parts and get new rear struts. they are not hard to replace. might as well do the fronts while you are at it.

you wil have to inspect the sway bar links to determine if it has anything to do wiht them. but, since a strut is a damper filled with viscous fluid (oil), it would make sense that they are bad if you notice it getting worse with increasing ambient temps. the oil reacts differently to temperature flucuations.

[ikemen1]

Thank's JudoJohn for your reply...... Yes I thought I would need to change the Strut out... I guess I just needed to hear someone else tell me..

...............ike

[slideways...]

if the struts are acting like they should, the noise is not from them. inspect the rear suspension bushings, and the sway bar links. most likely its the bushing that connects the axle to the lateral link thingy in the middle. also could be bad damper bushings. those are basically bushings the same as any other but they are on top of the dampers. when they harden they will get smaller and there will be a gap between the damper mount and the tower.