Aftermarket suspension life expectancy?

[dasrider]

I've been dealing with this rattling for a while now whenever it's been hot and dry, not if I drive in the rain though, interestingly. It's gotten worse so I recorded this coming home from work recently. Phones being what they are the road noise is obvious, but the rattling is certainly distinct from the driver's rear of the car.

'16 GT Premium, Non-PP, 76k miles, ~20k on suspension upgrades.
I had the Steeda build your own suspension kit installed right at a year ago now. I went that route as I didn't want to deal with piecing it together and to make installation simpler. Pro-action adjustable shocks/struts, min. drop springs, billet rear shock mounts, adjustable front camber plates, the works. I had a trusted local performance shop install it along with Steeda adjustable end links front and rear. About six months later I had the same shop install a set of Steeda 1/8" rear spring spacers to level the car a bit. Custom alignment by these guys had this thing dialed in!

Car handles on rails, no complaints there, but the rattling developed, most notably from the rear. This thing is my daily driver, no TDs, AutoX, etc. I've put a crap ton of miles on it because I genuinely enjoy driving it and these suspension upgrades have made the car into what I thought it should have been originally.

I'm researching rattles and noises here and it appears aftermarket billet rear shock mount bearings failing or incorrect installation of the springs are potential culprits. I'm going to find some time to pull things apart on my end but would like to know of anything else to investigate? I'm sending Steeda a message next for any assistance on what to check for too.

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[dasrider]

fyi, I've already completely torn the trunk area apart looking for any loose bolts, panels or pieces. Tightened any visible nut, bolt or screw including the rear seats, but no joy.

 

[Mike Pfeifer]

If it absolutely does not do it in the rain, then I would assume the water is getting into where the rattle is and perhaps acting as a lubricant. Sometimes what sounds like a rattle is a creaking from a rubber bushing or spring pad or something like that. That’s where I’d be looking.

 

[Jobodizo]

I went through 3 sets of the billet Steeda shock mounts before I got tired of dealing with it. To their credit, Steeda repeatedly sent out replacement parts under warranty. I just hated having to do it after a ridiculously low number of miles. Ended up pulling them back out and putting the PP mounts on my non PP car. There was a minute handling difference, but better than hearing the knocking.

 

[NGOT8R]

Take a look at your spring isolators (top and bottom). Mine were torn with very low miles on them. If you’ve never changed them, this is probably a good place to look for the culprit. The pigtails may have worn holes through your isolators and the spring and RLCA are now making metal to metal contact and causing the noise.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/th...rn-2019-bullitt-with-very-low-mileage.200243/

 

[NightmareMoon]

Not a fan of the Steeda shock mounts (had a couple sets before moving on). Personally, I currently like the J&M rear upper shock mounts.

But the simple answer is you just need to get under there and do a bolt and nut check. Hit everything you can reach with a torque wrench and confirm everything is correctly snugged up

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