Clunk from right rear after suspension install.

[DadzMach]

Hi all-
I am having an issue that I hope someone can possibly give me some good info on.
I had the Steeda Stop the Hop kit installed, front camber plates, IRS Subframe Bushing Support kit, the Billet Aluminum Vertical Link with Polyurethane Bushings, Adjustable rear toe links and the Magnaride Dual Rate springs 555 8243.

Anyway, had it all installed by an ASE Tech with over 30 years experience working at Ford.

I picked up the car when it was complete and almost immediately heard a “clunking” sound from the right rear. Sounds like it’s coming from directly on the other side of the panel below the rear window right about where the shocks bolt in. It only happens over bumps and potholes, not at all while driving down a smooth road or even slightly bumpy road. If I put my hand on the inside trim panel I can’t really feel it happening but I am 99% sure this is where it is coming from.

So I dropped the car back off and picked up a few days later after I was told it was all fixed. It was raining when I picked it up and really didn’t hear anything. I thought all was OK. So over the weekend I drove my car and I had the same thing happening but it wasn’t as loud but still there for sure. The Tech told me he had re-torqued all the bolts.

So now I have to wait a week to bring it back to let him try to fix it again. My concern is he won’t be able to get it fixed. If that happens I am not going to mess around and take it to other shops, I plan on having a truck come and pick it up and drive it the 1000 miles to Steeda to let them go over it. Obviously I don’t want to do this because it’s expensive and time consuming and I don’t want to be without the car for 3-4 weeks.

Any ideas on what it could be? I am guessing maybe a bad spring mount or the spring not sitting in the pocket properly, but I don’t think it’s the first since I had zero issues until this was done.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. My car is a 2023, 6 speed Mach1 without HP package.

I am open to any ideas. So please feel free to give any advice. Hopefully Steeda will see this and maybe have an idea. I am going to call them tomorrow to see what they say.

photo just because.

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[Gnatsum21]

Its from the sway bar. And yes, needs to be tightened. Ask me how I know.

 

[DadzMach]

Its from the sway bar. And yes, needs to be tightened. Ask me how I know.

So you are saying the sway bar just needs to be tightened? Is this something I can try without a lift? And it it the sway bar brackets that need to be tightened or something else?

Thanks for the reply!

 

[Gnatsum21]

So you are saying the sway bar just needs to be tightened? Is this something I can try without a lift? And it it the sway bar brackets that need to be tightened or something else?

Thanks for the reply!

I brought mine back to Steeda, they installed it, I only live 10 mins away. Its a little bit tricky they told me, but I was in and out in 10 minutes. Maybe a forum member can answer this.

 

[Prodigal]

Mine is in the shop right now getting all the same parts installed. Hopefully it’s problem free when I pick it up. If not this thread could become highly relevant to my interests. Hope a few yanks on a wrench solves your issue OP.

 

[Prodigal]

I brought mine back to Steeda, they installed it, I only live 10 mins away. Its a little bit tricky they told me, but I was in and out in 10 minutes. Maybe a forum member can answer this.

Lucky duck! If I lived 10 miles from Steeda there’s no telling how much more of their catalog ide own than I already do.

 

[SH!FT]

So you are saying the sway bar just needs to be tightened? Is this something I can try without a lift? And it it the sway bar brackets that need to be tightened or something else?

Thanks for the reply!

You paid good money. Let them handle it. They'll get it dialed in.

Lot's of potential energy under there... I wouldn't mess with chassis or suspension without the capability to safety support at the pinch welds and subframes. Ramps could end real bad.

 

[DadzMach]

Mine is in the shop right now getting all the same parts installed. Hopefully it’s problem free when I pick it up. If not this thread could become highly relevant to my interests. Hope a few yanks on a wrench solves your issue OP.

Me too, thanks!

 

[DadzMach]

You paid good money. Let them handle it. They'll get it dialed in.

Lot's of potential energy under there... I wouldn't mess with chassis or suspension without the capability to safety support at the pinch welds and subframes. Ramps could end real bad.

Thanks, I’ll follow your advice!

 

[Jjmoberg]

Not sure why doing suspension work on ramps would ever end badly. If you have all the weight on all the parts, none of then can go anywhere as you loosen and re tighten them. If you need to tighten anything that is loose at this point and nothing is just flat installed incorrectly or out of place, like a spring in a perch/pocket, a drive on lift would be best. But if i was at my house and i needed to tighten just sway bar end links, or especially the mounts, on ramps is exactly where i would do it. The mount bushings get in a bind if they are tightened with the suspension unloaded. On past vehicles i have had a loose end link once, and a bound up mount once, be the source of a suspension clunk after an upgrade.

You could loosen every single sway bar, strut mount, toe arm, camber arm, etc bolt with the weight on ramps and retighten with no safety worries. Your alignment may go to hell, but you may not have that dialed in yet anyway.

Now if a spring/shock/strut/coilover needs to come out thats another story. Have to unload the suspension completely to get springs out safely

 

[shogun32]

That is the problem with almost every professional shop. The do everything in the air on a 2 post and all of it is tightened wrong.

 

[DadzMach]

That is the problem with almost every professional shop. The do everything in the air on a 2 post and all of it is tightened wrong.

That’s what I am thinking as well. Unless he worked on my car on a different lift, I think it was all installed on a two post lift.

 

[RobZ71LM7]

Usually its the sway bar end link. They require a lot of torque and most not familiar with the car don't use a torque wrench and simply tighten to what feel right which is usually too loose.

 

[Beaujangles]

I have all that "Steeda Stuff" and more on my Bullitt and have been chasing the same noise for about a year or so now and to no avail...as the clunking appears to have no effect on the handling or performance of the car. I gave up on trying to find the source and just live with it since I am the only person who drives it. However I live about 3 hours from Steeda in Pompano I have considered taking it to them to get it sorted out.

 

[SheepDog]

Hi all-
I am having an issue that I hope someone can possibly give me some good info on.
I had the Steeda Stop the Hop kit installed, front camber plates, IRS Subframe Bushing Support kit, the Billet Aluminum Vertical Link with Polyurethane Bushings, Adjustable rear toe links and the Magnaride Dual Rate springs 555 8243.

Anyway, had it all installed by an ASE Tech with over 30 years experience working at Ford.

I picked up the car when it was complete and almost immediately heard a “clunking” sound from the right rear. Sounds like it’s coming from directly on the other side of the panel below the rear window right about where the shocks bolt in. It only happens over bumps and potholes, not at all while driving down a smooth road or even slightly bumpy road. If I put my hand on the inside trim panel I can’t really feel it happening but I am 99% sure this is where it is coming from.

So I dropped the car back off and picked up a few days later after I was told it was all fixed. It was raining when I picked it up and really didn’t hear anything. I thought all was OK. So over the weekend I drove my car and I had the same thing happening but it wasn’t as loud but still there for sure. The Tech told me he had re-torqued all the bolts.

So now I have to wait a week to bring it back to let him try to fix it again. My concern is he won’t be able to get it fixed. If that happens I am not going to mess around and take it to other shops, I plan on having a truck come and pick it up and drive it the 1000 miles to Steeda to let them go over it. Obviously I don’t want to do this because it’s expensive and time consuming and I don’t want to be without the car for 3-4 weeks.

Any ideas on what it could be? I am guessing maybe a bad spring mount or the spring not sitting in the pocket properly, but I don’t think it’s the first since I had zero issues until this was done.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. My car is a 2023, 6 speed Mach1 without HP package.

I am open to any ideas. So please feel free to give any advice. Hopefully Steeda will see this and maybe have an idea. I am going to call them tomorrow to see what they say.

photo just because.

No tech with 30 years of experience would let the car go without first having test driven it to ensure there aren't any issues or noises. Also, with all of those parts you mentioned being replaced, the "tech" should have loosened all of the control arm bolts (any pivot point) and re-torqued them when the car was sitting on its wheels at ride height.

Clunks like yours are generally the Sway bar links not being tight enough, or the bushing mount but could certainly be the subframe being loose, or the adjustable toe links. How mechanically inclined are you?

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