Clunk when turning

[Kev0607]

Hello everyone,

My S80 seems to have developed a clunk/knock. When I turn into my drive, I have to lock the steering fully to get the right angle. When I do this (turning left only), I get a loud knocking/clunking noise. It seems to be worse if I turn the steering fast.

I haven't had chance to jack the car up yet for a look. I'm thinking along the lines of track rod ends, a spring or maybe a steering bump stop/limiter?

Anyone else experienced this before?

[dubhnight]

Do you feel the clunk through the steering? I've had that very intermittently when going into full lock, feeling additional resistance, I haven't found the source but will be taking a look at the steering in coming weeks. I felt that it could potentially be some kind of sensor issue leading to the brake being applied to outside wheel when in full lock.

[xavierx]

Yeah mine does this currently, it is the suspension top mount/bearing in my case.

I'm going to replace the entire strut when I get time, as it is exactly the same amount of work as just replacing the top mount

I would jack the car up and check for play in any ball joints first

[Whyman]

I had exactly the same symptoms on mine.

You could hear the bearing making a noise by bouncing the suspension.

[Kev0607]

Thanks for the replies all.

It could well be a strut mount, but this noise sounds to me like its coming from underneath the car. I assume a strut mount noise would be more prominent from around the windscreen area, or higher up if that makes sense. Although, the noise may be spreading from one area to another. The spring could be “hopping”, as the bearing is worn.

I will try bouncing the suspension to see if I can hear any clunk.

With regards to if I can feel anything in the steering, sometimes there’s a numb/dull spot when I turn. Not sure what that could be? The power steering fluid was changed a while back. It may be due again?

[xavierx]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

It could well be a strut mount, but this noise sounds to me like its coming from underneath the car. I assume a strut mount noise would be more prominent from around the windscreen area, or higher up if that makes sense.

Not really, mine does feel/sound like is it coming from the steering rack, but it is definitely the top mount bearing on the drivers side in my case

[tommyweaves]

I'm assuming you're not just coming up against the steering angle limiter?

[Kev0607]

I did think the steering limiter could be a culprit.

I’ll look properly when I get a chance. Thanks for all your replies.

[Kev0607]

Better late than never, but this clunk I was experiencing whilst turning was actually the track rod ends. Replaced them and got the car aligned afterwards and it has been fine since, thankfully.

On another note, top mounts are common to fail on these cars (well... any car I guess with the state of the roads!). Is it the bearing that fails, or the mount? You can get an aftermarket strut bearing for around £30 (Febi Bilstein). The top mount, which includes the bearing is £60. Is it really necessary to replace the mount also, or just the bearing itself?

Looking at pictures, it seems like the mount is a metal plate. The bearing fits onto the mount, but I don't think the metal plate is the culprit for noise. Its more likely to be the bearing? Just looking for clarity on this.

[xavierx]

The top mount is a metal plate with a rubber isolator. The rubber does perish over time. the bearings were failed on mine, but I did the top mount at the same time for the sake of not having to take the shock out twice.

Might I suggest you look at Monroe instead of Febi (£20 ish for top mount and £15 ish for bearing) as Monroe are top-tier and have a 5 year warranty

Also Lemforder are top-tier, but would cost more than Monroe and no warranty benefit.

Alot of the "good" bearings are re-branded SKF anyway