Clanking noise in the rear!! Options

[Bradley]

My 95 gt is making really loud banging noises... like somethings loose almost when I go over the slightest of bumps. The problem is especially bad at low speeds. Had the problem since I bought the car thinking it was a bad strut but never got around to replacing it. Since I've had the car 3 years or so I can notice it progressively worsening over time. Had a mechanic briefly look at it on the ground he said it didn't feel like shocks/struts were bad.

Could it be a wheel bearing. Im about to go out and spin the wheels and listen for any noise but this sounds and feels like I almost have no rear shocks at all. Any suggestions?? let me know if i need to be more detailed...

[LewFX]

did you do anything to your car at all?

could be:
end links arent tight
bad struts
bad top mount
suspension arm

[pipes]

rear sway bar bushings check them

[ETNRIDER]

Try pulling your ebrake up slowly at a slow speed and see if it stops.

My 95 GT did the same thing and I replaced everything trying to make it stop (Bearings, Rotors, Brakes, Bushings, etc.) I was messing with the ebrake after I put the new rotors on and noticed the noise stopped when I engaged the ebarke one click up. Found out that A: I was missing a little washer that held my ebrake internals tight in place and B: I need to tighten up my ebrakes.

Good luck I hope this helps

Also I could not hear the noise when the car was jacked up.

This post has been edited by ETNRIDER: Jun 20, 2008 - 12:53 PM

[trdproven]

Rear sway bushings, end links, knuckle bushings. Or anything Lewfx says.

[Batman722]

rear sway bar bushings check them

Rear sway bushings.

rear sway bar bushings. They are about $7 each from the dealer and easy to change out.

doooooo it.

[Bradley]

I tightened up the e-brake a couple days ago and that didn't solve the problem (although im glad I adjusted them given I was at a good 13 clicks before i reached the top)

Rear sway bar bushings sounds like it might be the problem its not a wheel bearing i dont think and it may possibly be a bad strut although the sound is on both sides of the rear.

Ill keep posted thanks 4 the help

[808celica]

jack up the car and see if the wheel rocks when you push it a little.......that's when you know you gots a bad wheel bearing.......

[Urputus]

I have the same problem with my ST. When the car was on a jack I found nothing. Then I got under the car when it was standing on a ground and after moving with the anti sway bar I heard it again. It was from the rear-left end link (due to the backlash in the link). A guy from local Toyota dealer told me that I can't hear the noise when the car is on the jack because the wheels are low, springs stretched and end links tightened.

So I ordered new end links (front + rear) and hope that this will solve the problem. Another recommendation from the Toyota man was to change the bushings too.

[shane1]

My 95 gt is making really loud banging noises... like somethings loose almost when I go over the slightest of bumps. The problem is especially bad at low speeds. Had the problem since I bought the car thinking it was a bad strut but never got around to replacing it. Since I've had the car 3 years or so I can notice it progressively worsening over time. Had a mechanic briefly look at it on the ground he said it didn't feel like shocks/struts were bad.

Could it be a wheel bearing. Im about to go out and spin the wheels and listen for any noise but this sounds and feels like I almost have no rear shocks at all. Any suggestions?? let me know if i need to be more detailed...

i have the same problem at the rear knocken think it could be the shocks are stuffed.dont think it worth worring about.

[djyohimbe]

If you have a hatch it could be that it's a bit loose. Take 2 rubber washers and insert them between the hatch and the two rubber bumpers on either side.

[trdproven]

I have the same problem with my ST. When the car was on a jack I found nothing. Then I got under the car when it was standing on a ground and after moving with the anti sway bar I heard it again. It was from the rear-left end link (due to the backlash in the link). A guy from local Toyota dealer told me that I can't hear the noise when the car is on the jack because the wheels are low, springs stretched and end links tightened.

So I ordered new end links (front + rear) and hope that this will solve the problem. Another recommendation from the Toyota man was to change the bushings too.

Thats good to change, most likely that solves your problem. I've seen it before on my camry.

[Athorn]

I have this same exact problem in the rear of my car. I took it to a mechanic and he said to get sway bar links fomr an auto parts store. If that doesnt work ill try what you guys said lol.

[Urputus]

I have the same problem with my ST. When the car was on a jack I found nothing. Then I got under the car when it was standing on a ground and after moving with the anti sway bar I heard it again. It was from the rear-left end link (due to the backlash in the link). A guy from local Toyota dealer told me that I can't hear the noise when the car is on the jack because the wheels are low, springs stretched and end links tightened.

So I ordered new end links (front + rear) and hope that this will solve the problem. Another recommendation from the Toyota man was to change the bushings too.

Thats good to change, most likely that solves your problem. I've seen it before on my camry.

Does it mean that the change of end links helped to solve the problem with your camry?

Though I have the new end links I can't install them immediately, because I'm trying to find some uprated sway bars. So not to work on it twice I have to wait till I find suitable ones and buy them (which is not easy because you can find a lot of sway bars for GT4, but nearly nothing for my ST).

But as soon as I change the end links I'll inform you whether it helped me with the noise.

[Bigwaaagh]

I think I have the same problem. The sound comes from the right rear suspension. It's noticeable at slow speeds on wavy roads and while turning to the right.
I'm gonna check out the swaybar bushings soon.

[jason]

im with batman... sway bar bushings...

[CelicaGT04]

I think I have the same problem. The sound comes from the right rear suspension. It's noticeable at slow speeds on wavy roads and while turning to the right.
I'm gonna check out the swaybar bushings soon.

If it happens when you turn to the right you might have a wider problem than just end links and bushings..

[rock39]

tie rod,torn cv boot, strut mounts warped.

[Bigwaaagh]

OK, any known ways of visually confirming any of those defects? I'll be working on the brakes later this week, so I might as well check it all out...

[Maxtumare]

lol everyone is giving you some big response to your problem, have you checked that the jack is not loose? because it could be as simple as that.

[CelicaGT04]

For wheel bearing, when you lift the car on a jack and you can literally move the tire like this // while its mounted.. then you have a bad bearing.
For sway bar bushings, you really going to have to get under there and look im guessing..
And for end-links.. if yours are anything like mine (which are shot to HELL) then they either:

1. still allow for the sway bar to have too much travel (which is why mine clanks like hell)
2. End links are wont tighten and just turn (meaning the boot is broken and when you try to tighten the nut your bolt moves too.)

These are just some of the problems that i have had in the past.. so maybe some of it will help?

[Bigwaaagh]

Ok, thanks for the tips, will check it all out when I jack it up. The jack is tight in place, one of the first things I checked

However I think I've found the answer to my problem last weekend. I suspected the problem to be in the brake assembly, because the right rear brake has had a tendency to bang the first few times when applying the brakes, especially when driving backwards. It also seemed to "clank" more after the brake banged. Strange thing was that in the same weather conditions and on the same roads the problem would occur only about half the time.

What is evident now is that the brake pad(s) are a bit loose on the suspected brake. This will be helped by replacing the clamps that hold the pads in place. I'm not sure if this will solve the problem, and I'll be sure to check all the other things while working on the brake.
I'll post the result in here, but it could very well take 1 to 2 weeks until I get to working on the car again...

[Athorn]

Can someone post a pic of what the sway bar brushings look like. I have no idea.

This post has been edited by Athorn: Aug 7, 2008 - 10:57 PM

[Urputus]

Can someone post a pic of what the sway bar brushings look like. I have no idea.

You can see a detail of sway bar bushings on this page:
http://www.suspensionconnection.com/cgi-bi...r_bushings.html
Unfortunately nothing for our Celicas

[convert]

This is my first post on this site.

I have '97 Celica convertible, which has had rear suspension clanking since the day I bought it, six months ago. I really wanted a smooth running car, as I have been spoiled by my BMW Z3 and many others. But I need the extra room the Celica has.

I took my car to the mechanic to look for the clanking on several occasions, and he completely disassembled the rear suspension, finding nothing. The mechanic did say that he thought the noise was high up. I removed the jack... still no improvement.

Finally I opened the trunk, and started to shake things around. I found that the spring struts were just a little loose, and when you shook them, the same kind of noise happened. So what I did, was to cover those trunk struts with a little foam rubber (insulation material), and NO MORE CLANKING!

I hope if you look in this unlikely place, you may find the same happiness I have!

Convert

[convert]

Further to my last post, the clanking returned to some extent. So I took off the trunk lid struts and hammered the ball casings to close them up a little. I was afraid they might crack, but they took it well. After about ten minutes I had taken all the play out of them, and reinstalled them with no padding.

This time I was 100% successful. The car feels like new.

I think there must have been a plastic part inside the ball joints which had given up over time. If you feel my approach was too crude, just buy a new pair of trunk lid struts.