MagnusB

I have a rear suspension noise (clunk).
I replaced the rear dampers/coils including mounts a year ago and just replaced the drop links because they were worn (14Y old) and did cause some noise.
The main noise still remains.
I have tried but can't find the cause. Nothing is moving by hand or looks work enough to cause this.
What's the best way to troubleshoot this? Give up, assume it's worn bushings and replace all control arms?

Petza914

Those 2 items you've replaced are the usual culprits. I'd check to make sure the top fasteners for the shocks to the chassis are torqued properly. Next I'd look at Lower control arms or a worn transmission mount.

Bruce In Philly

2009 C2S 191K miles

Clunks.... argh. Read up here:

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...ed-advice.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...s-ideas-4.html

Peace
Bruce in Philly (now Atlanta)

My vote is the lower arm (aka coffin arm).

gaiakai

I was watching this video that was just released yesterday, might be helpful:

Bruce In Philly

That vid is interesting, but I don't see how it can really help. The tough thing about these clunks is that they cost money and time to fix so you want to be sure you are replacing the real offending part. I can tell by the advice given on this board that it comes from each of our personal experiences and that the offenders can be very different for each. For example, Pedro in that vid as well as others here quickly point to the drop links as some of the first items to fail. I never had drop links become noisy in almost 400K miles of my two Porsches. No, I am not saying that anyone who gives this advice is wrong, it is just that the problems can be so hard to identify and that... I think.. what actually fails may have much to do with the way your drive and the road quality in your area.

When I had my 2000 Boxster S, I had the 2nd highest mileage of these new vintage cars the dealer had ever seen. The guy with higher mileage would drive between Philly and Harrisburg on the interstate, a very smooth road. So I was the first to bring the car in with rear suspension clunks. The shop foreman, who had been there many many years gave up looking at it and finally put a set of chassis ears on it. Only then could he identify the lateral thrust arm as the bad guy. Over the next few years, he could easily identify this on other's cars just by the sound, the bumps on the local roads, and how fast he would drive the car. No need for chasis ears after that. My next noise in my rear was more of a rattle than clunk and they said "drop links".... they replaced them and no go... wasn't them... so they swapped them back and continued on their journey of discovery. I don't remember what the problem was for that noise. So.....

If you are going to ID the problem yourself to DIY, good luck as it is tough. This is why sometimes a dealer is a safe bet as they see these cars day in and day out can point to the problem quickly just from experience. The issue here is they charge and arm and a leg. This is why I purchased a set of chassis ears... they are fantastic however they are a real pain to use and will take a good part of a day dicking around with them.

Peace
Bruce in Philly (now Atlanta)