Rattling from the front !!

[besidetheseaside]

Hi Guys, Had a rattle on the front of my car for years now and it is starting to get on my nerves and appears to be getting worse. Driving on a straight smooth road no noise, turning left no noise, turn even the slightest amount right or hit a small bump and I get a rattling almost metallic tinkling from the passenger side front shocker area.
I have obviously checked and double checked everything, and have replaced all the bushes and ball joints, just got the track rod ends to do tomorrow but there is no discernible play in the old ones anyway. I am at a loss at the moment, has anyone had anything similar occur, any pointers, thoughts ??
Many thanks, Don.

Volvo 940 1993 2.0 turbo wentworth estate.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by besidetheseaside

Hi Guys, Had a rattle on the front of my car for years now and it is starting to get on my nerves and appears to be getting worse. Driving on a straight smooth road no noise, turning left no noise, turn even the slightest amount right or hit a small bump and I get a rattling almost metallic tinkling from the passenger side front shocker area.
I have obviously checked and double checked everything, and have replaced all the bushes and ball joints, just got the track rod ends to do tomorrow but there is no discernible play in the old ones anyway. I am at a loss at the moment, has anyone had anything similar occur, any pointers, thoughts ??
Many thanks, Don.

Volvo 940 1993 2.0 turbo wentworth estate.

Have you checked the cat heat shield Don? Sounds daft but i've had that in the past on other cars, only rattle under certain circumstances and (usually) found by accident during other activities such as oil changes etc.
To save you crawling underneath, grab the tailpipe (cold of course!) and give it a shake and see if you can hear the rattle.

Usually suspension components give a definite clonk, thump, thud a heavier rattle if they're loose, worn or whatever.

Could be slightly worn N/S/F wheel bearings and a bent, broken or otherwise damaged brake dust shield.

[bob12]

Are the front brake pad anti-rattle shims properly in position/OK? Bob

[besidetheseaside]

Thanks guys, I am hoping to be on a ramp tomorrow to do the track rod ends and for a new back box so I will check all those items mentioned. It is a frustating noise, turn right out of my drive and it rattles, turn left and it doesn't, weird.......

[TonyS9]

ABS wire securing point on the disk guard? They tend to rot out (steel AL mix)

[Ian21401]

Originally Posted by TonyS9

ABS wire securing point on the disk guard? They tend to rot out (steel AL mix)

I’ve had to re-secure both of the small brackets on the front brake back plates on my 940. I used pop rivets.
My car also has a history of loose heat shields. They cause some strange noises when they come loose and contact various parts of the underside.

[Forrest]

The weirdest rattling noise I’ve had on the 940 was when the garage lost a spark plug down one of the holes in the chassis frame near the engine . It made its way down this box section to pretty much under the driver’s seat where it then sounded like something loose on a shelf trundling around on turns. It took me a little while to track down the cause. Although there is a hole in this section under the car it is smaller than the one in the engine compartment and too small to pass a spark plug. I managed to get it out through the route it must have entered using string and wire.