Rear passenger clunk ?

90210

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2012 Mazda5 Touring
So did a bunch of suspension work and car is running great

2012 Mazda 5 touring
87k miles
Owners since new

Wife got rear ended at stop light last week. Bumpers scratches

Since then there is a clunk on the rear right side. I can hear it over bumps and uneven pavement. Any thoughts on what could be? What are things I should go under and check ?
 
I would start by trying to tighten the rear lower shock bolt. Maybe it is unrelated to accident...They need to be tighter than you think, 70-90ft-lbs...
 
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Ok

Thank you kindly

I forgot what I tightened to. I remember doing the specs . I have put 609 miles since the work. No noises

Clunk started after accident

But you could be right that clunk is not related to accident


I will look at all bolts in the morning

Appreciate it
 
Ok checked the shocks
Thats not whats making the noise
So not sure whats clunking

Figure next week I can take the car to tire shop for the new tires and alignment, have them take a peek
 
E6D15F25-4EA0-449B-A5DA-0CC127B643B4.jpegE6D15F25-4EA0-449B-A5DA-0CC127B643B4.jpegEverything is tight

This rear plastic panel is loose and is hitting

I believe this is culprit

Can I remove it for good?
 
Well fixed the plug on the rear tab. But the clunk is still there.

Rear passenger side clunk is happening, when I go over speed bump (both rear tires), or when I go over something just with right rear tire. hmm..


Sway bar end link in rear? rear tab .jpg
 
He’s saying likely rear shock mount

Because on right side we took full shock off

Test driven it
Now no noise on right side

But noise on left side
 
After 2 hours of checking everything and 5 test drives
Finally fixed it

Shock mount ok
All bushings and endlinks ok

He added a rear washer between the shock and the shock mount and that cures the problem
 
Sadly rear clunk is back
Not as rattly as before
But definitely back

I drive around with no Rear shock = noise gone

So it's definitely that area

Can't figure it out
 
Did you submit a claim with insurance after the rear ender? If so, I would let them handle it.

If not...Have the sway bar bushings been done yet? The Mazda3/Mazda5 setup EATS swaybar bushings. In my 100k miles, they had to be replaced twice! (every 4 yr 48k miles) I can tell you from experience, they will look absolutely fine, but will clunk like heck. You can not test the play in the sway bar bushings until both of the end links are removed.
 
Did you submit a claim with insurance after the rear ender? If so, I would let them handle it.

If not...Have the sway bar bushings been done yet? The Mazda3/Mazda5 setup EATS swaybar bushings. In my 100k miles, they had to be replaced twice! (every 4 yr 48k miles) I can tell you from experience, they will look absolutely fine, but will clunk like heck. You can not test the play in the sway bar bushings until both of the end links are removed.
I submitted claim with insurance. They say its body damage, and no suspension damage. SIGH. Still fighting them.

I disconnected the sway bar, the noise was still there

Noise was completely gone when I drove around with the shock completely off

I will go ahead and order the sway bar bushings anyways and the shock mounts. Any recommended brands?

For sway bar bushing on Rock Auto, they have regular ones, and "split ones," which do you recommend?
 
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I drive around with no Rear shock = noise gone
You've narrowed it down to a limited number of things.
1) Did you use new or old shock mounts (top)?
2) Did you torque the nut that secures the shock to the top mount tight enough? If not tight enough, the piston may move/knock against the underside of the top mount (this happened to me b/c I forgot I loosen it). Tighten it another quarter turn (careful you don't overtighten).
3) Did you torque the bolt on the lower shock mount tight enough? Tighten it another half turn (careful you don't overtighten). I notice the lower mount on the trailing arm may vary (slightly smaller, larger, not perfectly parallel/flat. Tightening the thru bolt more will help b/c while you may reach a torque value within recommend range, it may not adjust (squeeze) the 'box' enough to keep it from moving. See Mazdadude's post #2.
4) Did you try driving with just one shock to see if it is side dependent or possibly a defective shock?
 
You've narrowed it down to a limited number of things.
1) Did you use new or old shock mounts (top)?
I used the original shock mounts when I did the shocks two months ago

2) Did you torque the nut that secures the shock to the top mount tight enough? If not tight enough, the piston may move/knock against the underside of the top mount (this happened to me b/c I forgot I loosen it). Tighten it another quarter turn (careful you don't over tighten).
Yes, that was the first thing I checked. It was tight, after double checking.

3) Did you torque the bolt on the lower shock mount tight enough? Tighten it another half turn (careful you don't overtighten). I notice the lower mount on the trailing arm may vary (slightly smaller, larger, not perfectly parallel/flat. Tightening the thru bolt more will help b/c while you may reach a torque value within recommend range, it may not adjust (squeeze) the 'box' enough to keep it from moving. See Mazdadude's post #2.
Yes, after reading it here, double checked it, and it was tight.

4) Did you try driving with just one shock to see if it is side dependent or possibly a defective shock?
Yes, I drove without right passenger shock, and right noise was gone,a nd there was slight clunk in left. Drove without left, no noise. Bilstein rebounds perfectly fine. Mechanic thought there was a washer where shock meets shock mount ( I didn't have that during install), and he said it is moving around there clearly. After putting the washer, noise is down 50%, but it still there. Thus I am leaning towards new shock mounts?
 
I agree with Silentnoise713...(friday)

If you drove around with the swaybar discoed and still made the clunk, then not going to be swaybar bushings. And when you had your swaybar discoed you should have been able to feel any play in the sway bushings then.

I think that if it went away with shock removed, then your noise would be limited to the upper shock mount, lower shock mount, or the shock itself.
 
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I agree with Silentnoise713...(friday)

If you drove around with the swaybar discoed and still made the clunk, then not going to be swaybar bushings. And when you had your swaybar discoed you should have been able to feel any play in the sway bushings then.

I think that if it went away with shock removed, then your noise would be limited to the upper shock mount, lower shock mount, or the shock itself.
Thank you guys for your help

The links and the bushing felt fine to me, and I have been doing things to eliminate the issue.

I have the BIlstein replacement. The shock rebounds perfectly, no issues in driving. How could I tell if the shock is bad? I will order the upper shock mount today. It visually looked fine, but maybe that is where the problem is.
 
Mechanic thought there was a washer where shock meets shock mount ( I didn't have that during install), and he said it is moving around there clearly. After putting the washer, noise is down 50%, but it still there. Thus I am leaning towards new shock mounts?

It's probable it could be the 'top' mount but I'm not so sure...

The lower shock mount is actually a physical part of the trailing arm - the 'box' for a lack of a better word. The Bilstein come with bushings that should fit SNUG into the 'box', which the pass through bolt secures by clamping the box against the bushing against the training arm. If the Mechanic notice there's a gap, then the bushings are wrong length (err, width?). This is the same limitation with using Volvo V50 shocks, the bushings are smaller where you need to add a wash or two (or thicker). You can likely add 'another' washer (both sides) and really tighten the thru bolt to lock it down. If it is indeed a bushing issue, call Bilstein US. They are very reasonable and may be able to help you source a proper bushing (or you can measure yours with a dial caliper and shop online).

NOTE: Measure the width of the Bilstein bushing. Go to kyb catalog and look up the specs for Mazda 5 rear shock bushing and V50 rear bushing. Which one is closer to yours?
f61b3f48-7f1f-4c31-a697-1dbffe922c02-800.jpg
 
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Thank you guys for your help

The links and the bushing felt fine to me, and I have been doing things to eliminate the issue.

I have the BIlstein replacement. The shock rebounds perfectly, no issues in driving. How could I tell if the shock is bad? I will order the upper shock mount today. It visually looked fine, but maybe that is where the problem is.

Those upper shock mounts can fail in such a way that the isolated rubber mount will lift out of the rest of the mount, allowing the nutted shock assy to flop up and down. I would almost always recommend swapping these with new ones when you install shocks. (unless under 3yr 36kmiles on them).

If the shock absorber can be grasped and twisted in the lower shock mount with any play or slop, you will feel clunk. I like silentnoise713 idea of washer or bushing.(yippy)
 
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Those upper shock mounts can fail in such a way that the isolated rubber mount will lift out of the rest of the mount, allowing the nutted shock assy to flop up and down. I would almost always recommend swapping these with new ones when you install shocks. (unless under 3yr 36kmiles on them).

If the shock absorber can be grasped and twisted in the lower shock mount with any play or slop, you will feel clunk. I like silentnoise713 idea of washer or bushing.(yippy)
I bought my car new at 2011. Everything is original It has 89K miles now. At 87K miles I did the shocks. Rear were fine, front were leaking. Changed all at once.

Shock absorber cannot be twisted in the lower shock mount, and there is no play there.
 
The bottom
box" is tight and there is no play or movement there.


Mechanic added a washer to the top of the shock where it mounts to the body. He said that is the part that is rattling....

It's probable it could be the 'top' mount but I'm not so sure...

The lower shock mount is actually a physical part of the trailing arm - the 'box' for a lack of a better word. The Bilstein come with bushings that should fit SNUG into the 'box', which the pass through bolt secures by calming the box against the bushing against the training arm. If the Mechanic notice there's a gap, then the bushings are wrong length (err, width?). This is the same limitation with using Volvo V50 shocks, the bushings are smaller where you need to add a wash or two (or thicker). You can likely add 'another' washer (both sides) and really tighten the thru bolt to lock it down. If it is indeed a bushing issue, call Bilstein US. They are very reasonable and may be able to help you source a proper bushing (or you can measure yours with a dial caliper and shop online).

NOTE: Measure the width of the Bilstein bushing. Go to kyb catalog and look up the specs for Mazda 5 rear shock bushing and V50 rear bushing. Which one is closer to yours?
f61b3f48-7f1f-4c31-a697-1dbffe922c02-800.jpg
 
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