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Noise from rear Suspension?

14K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  jko 
#1 ·
Hey guys, i have a noise problem that sounds like its coming from the rear suspensions, like a mixture of a squeeky and a rough grunt, basically when the weight shifts to the rear. For example, i can hear the sound any time the 2 rear wheels have gone over a speed hump, or when i'm about to enter my carport which is higher than the road by half a metre. I can also hear it very rarely sometimes when i steer, but im still guessing that it only happens when the weight is shifted to the rear becoz when i shake and put my weight on the rear, like pushing down on the rear and making it bounce i can't hear a single noise.

Sooo any theories on what kind of problem it is?
The shocks? Suspension? Sway bar? Anything???

Btw the car is on 160k's
Thanx.
 
#2 ·
Btw i know alot about my car and all its parts, however i have very little knowledge about the suspension area of the car, so plz be very specific :)
 
#3 ·
I've also inspected the rear bottom of the car, there are no leaks or loose bolts under the rear of the car, nothing makes a noise no matter what i do, unless i drive it over something that is :p also the car is very stable to drive when going over stuff, so i doubt that its the shocks that would make the noise.
 
#4 ·
I used to have a lot of noise going over speed bumps, or basically anything that would put the two rear wheels on uneven ground. It sounded like a low pitched squeaking/clunking, like something was rubbing. It turned out to be the sway bar bushings that attach the rear sway bar to the sub-frame. All it needed was a re-grease, but I decided to do what some people do and just use teflon tape on the sway bar instead (apparently it lasts longer than re-greasing the bar).
 
#6 ·
yeah i just watched a video on a mazda 3 rear sway bar replacement and now its just a matter of finding some spare time and checking the bushings on the sway bar...
if its not that, i guess the only thing left may be the shocks.
 
#7 ·
i put some teflon tape on mine, i dont think i put enough, the sound is less, but still there. the clunking sound when going slowly over bumpy uneven road.

did the sound completely go away for u? i think i might put more on to make it real tight when i put the bushings around it.

does anyone know if this seemingly common rsb problem significantly effects performance? if the bushing is not quite stiff enough and gives a little play thus the clunking sound from the rsb, will it change the handling of the car? or is it just a difference in sound?
 
#8 ·
Yep the sound is completely gone, reminds me of when I had the car stock lol. I started at one end and rolled the tape to the other with some overlap, then back to the starting position, so I'd say I have about 3-5 layers of it on the bar. Then I put some grease in the bushings and applied them back on the bar. The bushings don't completely close up all the way because of the added thickness of the teflon tape, but I don't think that is a problem.
As for the performance side of things, I'm not sure if it will affect performance, the bar is supposed to move inside the bushings otherwise there would be no point to grease it. The clunking sound is probably just bad rubbing due to a lot of friction (hence the point of grease/teflon tape).
 
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