Jump to content

2018 Acura ILX front left suspension clunk


Trouble Maker

Recommended Posts

Having a hard time narrowing down what this might be.

 

It's doing the typical only clunks over bumps on the front left.

It almost sounds like something is loose at times.

 

The issue is, I've looked at everything, including with the brakes completely off when I did them on Saturday and don't see anything obvious. Every joint is fine, looks fine, is not loose. No obvious damage or play anywhere. This is including both the sway bar end links and the sway bar bushings/mounts. Hard to tell in this state (0g, no turning or load) about CV joints, but the amount of play feels ok, same on both sides. I even rapped around on everything with a hammer to see if there were any 'weird' noises or sounds similar to what I hear over bumps, and if I noticed something also did the FR to compare, nothing.

 

I've searched around on the net and only found 2 things. 2013-2017's have a TSB on a suspension noise in the rear. Similar complaints as me about the front and maybe usually on the right side, but no clear conclusions. Mostly it seems people took their car to the dealer and they threw parts at it.

 

The one thing I did notice and was going to replace is there's a rubber isolation pad around the bottom of the spring, between it and the lower sprint perch. On the drivers side it's half way out. I should have taken a pic but didn't. Could this cause some play in the spring/perch interface which would this symptom? It's this part. https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=6110013&cc=3441504&jsn=1384

https://www.acurapartswarehouse.com/oem/acura~rubber~r~fr~spring~lower~51684-tx6-a01.html

 

I'm essentially hoping that either there will be something more obvious when I take everything apart, or maybe replace this and it fixes it. The part is cheap and I like to try to diagnosis and replace what's broken. It seems like a good first step and I'm planning to do it. But I also don't want to take this thing apart and put it back together multiple times to throw small parts at it either. So, just looking for some guidance.

 

Thanks!

Edited by Trouble Maker
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hmm, not the same model, but same make and just a few years earlier. I think it would have been taken care of with some part change or increased TQ spec by 2018. But, It seems like it's worth a try since it's so quick/easy.

 

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2016/SB-10083969-2280.pdf

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did try and I haven't been able to so far, maybe I need to go eat some fast food or work out and try again. :)

 

I think I've only tried while the wheels were straight, so I should try it with them at a few different angles. Driving it seems to be a little worse/easier to duplicate with some turning. But, I think it may be easier/worse during turning because of the increased load on the front left corner during a right turn. So same affect as if it was a steeper/bigger bump. Still, it's worth a try. I might as well also try again with the wheels straight while I'm at it, but put some more effort into it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wife's CRV developed a suspension clunk recently, I couldn't find where it was coming from - dealer found it when doing a trans seal: the MacPherson strut in the front had worn out. It wasn't leaking, just that the rod had developed play and was knocking against the inside of the shock body when compressed. maybe take a look at that?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll try the sway-bar (end link) disconnect first to help isolate the issue, that's a really good idea Steve. Then I'll likely take the strut off/apart to reposition/replace the rubber isolator and see if there's anything else going on there; strut itself, top mount, some other part I can't currently see (up top for example). Thanks, seems like a reasonable game plan at this point!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My wife’s Nissan had a clunk in the front that would randomly present. Dealer said there was a recall on the strut assembly and fixed it free. A month or two later and it started again. Now we’re probably gonna wait and just trade it in.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, I really don't want to start guessing and throwing parts at this. That's a good way to take a lot of time and money real fast to not fix an issue in an area like this. Worse yet my feeling is I can either put OEM parts and know they are going to be good but more expensive, or maybe replace good OEM parts with aftermarket parts that may not preform as well.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This weekend was a bust.

Removed sway bar (disconnected end links at top), still same noise.

 

I ordered the wrong side spring isolator, the info online was confusing about which side was which, so I made my best guess and it was the other (right/passengers side) part.

 

So I removed strut, compressed spring and re-positioned bottom spring isolator. I also relocked the strut top mount. It may have been incorrect clocked/indexed and anecdotes say the symptom can be what I'm experiencing. But I didn't pay enough attention when I started working on it to be certain which way it was positioned. Apparently the OEM top hat/mount has a direction due to the slant of the mount, but some aftermarkets don't, which doesn't make sense to me. Best info I could find says to face it forward (there's an arrow on it), so I did that. Still has the same noise.

 

I did not completely take apart the strut assy. to inspect the shock, but I decided to order a new (OEM) shock. I'm at a loss for what else i it could be. I just got word from our dealer that they are on backorder with no known ETA. There seem to be little/no OEM replacement aftermarket options that I can find. I was originally going to compare OEM strut VS aftermarket fully assembled strut and I couldn't find those, so OEM it is. So, I'm back to square 0 almost. I think I will completely take apart the strut next weekend to inspect it and see if I can find any obvious issues with the shock or any other parts (mounts, etc.). In the mean time I'll keep searching for alternatives, call some other dealers to see if I can come across one.

Edited by Trouble Maker
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
I took it apart and back together a few times trying to diag the problem sans actually taking the strut apart. Then life, construction project got in the way. Parts availability was an issue too. Finally took it all of the way apart and so' enuf the strut (shaft) had lateral play in it. Tracked a part down in Akron and had it shipped here for more than I would have otherwise paid. But I was able to get the part, put it back together, and it drives great!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...