My 98 Sport makes a clunking noise from the area of the drivers side front tire like some thing is loose whenever I back out of a parking spot and also when I'm just driving and hit some bumps. They don't have to be canyon sized bumps either, just small tiny road imperfections and there is clunking noise that feels like my tire is about to fall off. It started happening back in April when I had my brakes done and when I took it back figuring they left something loose they said that there was no problem.

Anyone have a clue what it might be?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Could be:
-loose sway bar end link
-Loose caliper
-loose ball joint
-worn CV joint
-loose steering linkage
-etc...
Hope you figure out the problem..if you need help see ing if any of those things are loose i may be able to elaborate more. let me know.

Originally posted by 95XLT
Could be:
-loose sway bar end link
-Loose caliper
-loose ball joint
-worn CV joint
-loose steering linkage
-etc...
Hope you figure out the problem..if you need help see ing if any of those things are loose i may be able to elaborate more. let me know.

I'm having that same noise. Did u find out the problem. I replaced my spindle but didn't torque the bolts to the specifications. Just torqued them tight. Could that be the problem?

My clunk went away when my Ford dealer replaced the tie rod ends - about a $300 job, fortunately mine was under the extended warranty. Good luck!

loose brake pads can make that noise, there is nothing wrong with them, they just rattle. Got a 95 Grandmarquis that does that.

My four door has the stock shocks and it makes noise. LOL It also has 117k on it. :)

Well I just went to plce that did my brakes and they said nothing is loose there but they can hear/feel the nosie I am talking about. They said that it could either be something with the front sway bar bushings or the shocks. They said to start with replacing the shocks and that they would cost $160.00. Anyone have any idea how much/difficult it is to change the sway bar bushings?

Do a search for torsion bar adjusters. When they wear out, they make a clanking noise whenever your suspension moves up or down. As far as the sway bar bushings, they take about 30 minutes to replace all of them on the front. Figure on about 10 minutes if you just replace the link bushings. Before plopping down the money for them, remove both links and then back down out of your driveway. If the noise is still there, it's not your bushings. Besides the torsion bar adjusters and sway bar bushings, other things that can cause the noise are worn wheel bearings, ball joints, and tie-rod ends.

Thanks for the help. I'm gonna go check it out and see what I come up with. I'll let ya know if I get it fixed.

Check the brake caliper assembly. When it gets loose it'll make a lot of noise. Find a really bumpy road, drive normally and see if if makes the noise, then, press on the brake a little and see if it still makes any noise. If it doesn't tighten the caliper bolts and make sure the pad springs are installed.

2001ExpSport - I have checked it and had it checked at the shop today. It's not that. And when I drive down a bumpy road like you suggested, with or without pressing the brakes I get the noise. When they looked at it at the shop today they were pushing down on the front end and you could feel it then too. It was like a popping type noise. Any got any suggestions?

I have the same noise! I haven't taken it to the dealer yet, though. I still can't tell if it is coming from inside the driver's door or from the front suspension. But, it is getting more constant so the dealer should at least be able to "duplicate the problem".

I have also heard that loose anti-sway bars could cause this.

Next time I have a day off I am going to give it to the dealer for a day and see what they find.

If you get the problem solved, please let us know. Thanks!

Disconnect the sway bar and then drive it. You are going to have to go thru a process to narrow it down. Check the shocks to see if they are loose. Next, with the front end lifted, turn the wheels back and forth by hand, not by the steering wheel. Look at the torsion bars see if they are seated in the lower arm tightly. Look for any worn areas..ie. no paint or raw warn metal. Look inside the engine compartment, give everything a tug to see it if is loose. Have someone get on their hands and knees while another pushes down on the front end to try to locate the popping noise.

It may take a few days, but you'll find it.

Could be a warn ball joint too. That is at the top of the spindle arm.

Sounds like radious arm bushings to me,I got a hellava chuck under my explorer on both sides when I hit bumps,potholes,hit the brakes a little hard,but i know what your prob is,RADIEOUS ARM BUSHING,Mine too.Take a peek bet i'm right.

M. johnson


p.s these don't look to hard to replace,but then again I'm not a certified mechanic.

Radius arm bushing haven't been used since the '94 Explorer. His is a '98. How much do I win?

Well I went to the Ford dealer this week and they said that my front u-joints are noisy. They say there is nothing wrong with them mechanically, just noisy. They offered to replace them for $390.00. They wanted $139.00 for each u-joint. I chose not to get it done because I've seen at Napa the front u-joints for $17.99. Plus I think they were just telling me something, anything just to respond. The noise is driving me nuts. I'll figure it out some day though.

Have you determined the cause of the noise yet? My '93 has the same symptoms. I replaced the lower ball joint and radius arm bushings, which did not help. The brakes have been replaced. The noise is infrequent, but annoying!

No I have not been able to determine the cause just yet. Since it mostly happens over bumps I've gone ahead and bought a new set of shocks and will be installing them this weekend. We'll see if that may be the cure. If not, at least the shocks didn't cost me too much and it was something that was going to be needed soon anyway. I'll let you know after I install them if it helps or not.

I've got the same problem with my '92. The worst is when I go over speed bumps in a parking lot. I gets worse if I lightly apply the brakes as I'm going over them. The klunking almost feels like it's comeing from under my feet on the drivers side.

TODD92 - You have nailed it exactly what mine is doing. I changed the shocks but the noise is still present. I am setting up another appointment with the Ford dealer tomorrow since I complained about my first visit and they sent a letter asking me to bring it back free of charge. I hope we can find a solution this time. I'll update if I get any word.

It's funny what the place you had the brakes done at told you- "...let's start at the shocks and see if that fixes it...$160...". I hate going to mechanics that chase problems like that. Glad you didn't do it!

my truck makes the same noises now and it started after i changed my brakes also... sounds like something is loose down there and banging away, but it really doesn't sound like metal to metal contact. only happens over bumps, small ones and big ones. speed doesn't matter here either. hope it ain't the shocks cause i don't have money to replace them!

It sounds as if this is a common problem on Explorers, so I'm surprised that the dealers don't know what causes it. I have a '98 XLT V8 with about 50K miles, and it started making the front end clunking noise around 5K miles ago. My wife used to have a '98 Explorer Sport, and it made the noise at less than 40K miles. If someone figures this out, please let us know.

Well the Ford dealer had my explorer for about 20 hours (7:30 - 5:30 Tuesday and Wednesday) and all they can tell me is that they can hear and feel the noise but aren't sure what it is so they told me to bring it back if/when it gets worse. After the first day I had to go down there and point out the problem and they said "ohhh that's what you are talking about, we heard/felt that but didn't think you were talking about that". I wanted to go nuts on them. So I guess I'm stuck with the noise/vibration until a wheel falls off or something. I have all the paperwork though so if something happens I'm not gonna pay a damned dime to get it fixed. One thing though is the service manager told me it's definitely not the u-joints so I'm glad I didn't listen to the first guy and drop the $390 to get those replaced. Now I remember why I got away from owning Fords in the first place, the service sucks!

Had the same problem with mine after a wheel bearing was replaced at the dealer. It was the driver front same problem you are having. I had it to two dealers that could not figure it out. I then brought it to a non-ford dealer a 4x4 shop that is local. They found that the Ford dealer that replaced my wheel bearing did not tighten my Calipar up when done. This tech tightned the caliper and no more noise. Hope this helps.

I've made sure the calipers are tight on a few occasions but that's not it. So far I've replaced the shocks, sway bar links, and sway bar bushings but the noise/vibration is still present. Anyone got any other ideas?

Sure you don't have a exhaust hanger loose and the exhaust pipe is contacting the frame or other body part somewhere ? I know exhaust pipes can make some noise banging around under a car . It could hit the tranny crossmember and cause that noise under your feet . Give the exhaust a shake when the truck is cool so you dont get burned .

sounds funny to me cause i have a 96 with 110,000 on it and it has made the noise for over 50k miles and the calipers havent fallen off and i changed the pads in the front and it didnt go away, i realy would like to know why ford cant fix the shake and clunk we sploder owners are experiencing

I am having this same problem on my wife's 93 eddie bauer explorer. The sound is coming from the passenger side when we go over any bump. It makes a loud clunking sound. I think I may have narrowed it down to this:a radius arm bushing is worn out.

On those noisy calipers..slither a ton of grease on the slide bushings....you remove the black rubber grommet and put grease in there...synthetic grease..perferrable

Well I had it back to the Ford dealer:hammer: on Friday since the noise has gotten alot worse. They were able to determine that it is coming somewhere in the vicinity of the front half of the vehicle and that's it. They said for as little as $70/hour (with such a bargain like that it was tough to say no) they can go through and check each component and try to narrow it down or I can wait until it gets even worse and then take it back again.

I have been trying to narrow it down myself and one thing I noticed is that with the vehicle in drive I can let off the brake and let the idle move the vehicle (so I'm only going like 3-5 mph) and you can hear/feel the noise when it's just rolling along, especially if I hit little cracks or bumps in the road. Ford got out the scope and checked the ring and pinion and said it's not that. So I know it's not the ring and pinion, or the shocks (replaced), or the sway bar links(replaced), or the sway bar bushings(replaced), or loose calipers(been checked numerous times). With this information does anyone have any idea what it may be? I just want/need to get rid of the noise and Ford is no help.

i'm guessing ball joints. Lift the front of car and put 2 jackstands under, then go to each front wheels and grasp at the top of the tire and the bottom and push on top and pull out on bottom and just keep doing that to see if you can get the clunk to hapen. if the clunk does happen, have someone else grab the upper or lower ball joint to see which one is loose.
Good luck:us:

You never did say if you checked out your torsion bar adjusters and rear wheel bearings. When either of these go bad, it will cause a metal to metal clanking sound on bumps as minor as an expansion joint. Remove the torsion bar end covers and look for material getting squeezed out from the top of the torsion bar. If it is getting squeezed out, you have the metal from the torsion bar contacting the bottom of the metal frame everytime your suspension moves. To check your rear wheel bearings, jack up a rear tire and push in on the top while pulling out on the bottom. Any movement and your bearing ware bad. It is normal for your entire wheel to move in and out, just not the top while the bottom moves the opposite direction. Repairing these items on my '97 cured my rattling while driving down the road.

My torsion bar adjusters had the rubber pushing out, but it wasn't that on mine. I guess it is different for everyone though. From what I understand, the torsion bar adjuster does not move unless you adjust it, so a small crack or joint in the road should not cause the part between the frame and the bar to move at all. i am not sure if this makes any sense, but the delaer said it is normal for the rubber things to be hanging out and they they rarly, if ever, replace those rubber things.

Well the noise/clunk has now shifted to the passenger side and much worse. I was at the ford dealer the other day to get an alignment done and asked them to take a look at it again. First they told me that the noise is because of the aftermarket suspension parts I have. I had to challenge them on that and told him the reason for the aftermarket suspension parts (new shocks and sway bar links) are a result of the clunking and were installed to try and stop the clunking. So they are wrong again. The service guy offered to go for a ride with and when we did he felt the clunk and told me that with taller tires I am experiencing the tires crinkling over bumps. Again I challenged him on that saying they didn't do it with the firestones so why would it do it now and they are the same size tires. So once no solution to the clunking but a whole lot of BS answers from ford.

I have no idea what else to try. It's driving me nuts. It is especially worse on cold days the clunk happens easier and much louder. Anyone got any ideas?

Here's an off the wall suggestion:

Have you checked to make sure the front diff is tight in it's mounts?

Here's an off the wall suggestion:

Have you checked to make sure the front diff is tight in it's mounts?

At this point nothing is off the wall to me. I have not checked that. I might just give that a try and the motor mounts too.

I have read all the posts and it sounds like MANY people have problems with there 95+ X. This is what you need to do. Take floor jack. Jack up under the lower control arm. As close to the tire as you can get. Jack the tire 5 inches or so off the ground. Now grab the tire at 12 and 6 the try to move the tire. This part here you might need somone with some @@ (balls) cause what you are checking here is the upper ball joint. The only way to check it is to have ALL the weight of the vehicle off of it. Then move to the next side. If you feel any movement you have a problem and that is probably were your noise. For you guys who have pre 95 X's you just jack up the axle and place the jack stands under the front axle and do the same thing. The pre 95's are diffent design than the 95's+. The pre 95's don't use a upper and lower control arm and a torsion bar. By the way. Your 98 X don't have u-joints don't let For see you them casue you don't have any. You have CV joints. On the pre 95's if you go to the trouble of changing the lower ball joint, you should change the upper too. I know it might not be bad. But if the lower has 5 million milles on it then the upper has the same amount. I think I have explained how to check the upper and lower ball joints. And to check the tie rods wiggle the tire by grabbing the 3 and 9 o'clock position, if you feel play then you have a tie rod loose. But make sure you know which one it is. If you have a 95+ then you have a inner and outer tie rod. If you have a pre 95 then you have a outer on the driverside, a drag link connected to the pass. side that hooks to a center link. Make sure you get the right part. I hope this clears somethings up for people. If you have any more questions just post em. I specialize in front ends at work mostly. Hope this helps. Oh by the way...good luck! :)


Eric

I have just about the same problem, but mine is a loud squeaking noise when I'm driving and hit bumps both big & small. I also get the noise if I am stopped and turn the steering wheel from side to side. It started out being very infrequent, but its starting to be there all the time now. the dealer has been no help so far , I leave the truck there all day come back to get it at closing time only to hear "When we looked at the truck it wasn't making the noise, you'll have to bring it back when the noise starts again" So full of shit !! the minute I got in it to drive home I didn't go 100 feet before the noise was there. It wouldn't be bad but when I dropped the car off in the morning I gave the service manager a ride so he could hear it just to avoid this kinda thing. Its a 98 Explorer Sport 45,000 miles, it has the extended FORD warranty on it till 6 years or 72,000 miles. The tires have been replaced within the last 6 months (recall), the front brakes (with rotor replacements) were done 2,000 miles ago ( at this dealer ;-) ) Transmission & transfer case fluids changed at the same time, I have my oil and filter changed faithfully every 6,000 miles with MOBIL One oil . I want this fixed its driving me nuts !!

Has anyone found the cause of this noise? I also did a brake job and soon after have a similar popping sound from the drivers side front. Checked everything from brakes to the suspension and could not find anything wrong.

I suggested upper ball joints. Nobody has replied so I am unaware it that was the problem.


Eric

I'm almost willing to put money on this bet (if I were a betting man).

Your upper control arms are loose. My '95 did the same thing, pop&clunk when making sharp left turns or over bumps. the PO (my wonderful BIL) kept taking it in and nobody could find the problem so he never worried about it. I didn't either till it started bothering me enough to do something about it. Jacked it up, turns out the wheelbearings are out of adjustment big time, and the left upper arm was loose at the pivot. did an eyeballed alignment on it and torqued down the pivot bolts and it went away.

i have the problem but i have yet to try the last few suggestions. i will one day.. been working on the house non stop. thanks for all the suggestions.. i'll update when i try them.

I have the same problem with my 98 XLT. 70,000 miles on it. I hit small bumps and the suspension in the front creaks funny. I haven't even started looking at the truck yet. I have not had my brakes changed yet. I just checked and they still have over 50% wear left.

Let me know if anyone finds anything out!!

mikeh

I found the prefect solution to the problem...get rid of the POS and buy a nice 2002 Dodge RAM 1500 like I did a month ago.

Originally posted by kgd102
I found the prefect solution to the problem...get rid of the POS and buy a nice 2002 Dodge RAM 1500 like I did a month ago.

That's a really expensive fix for something that's only marginally better.

Its not really a "pop&clunk" its more like a RUBBER "Squeaky, Creaky" noise both turning the wheel from side to side when stopped, or going over bumps.

Now this has happened to me, I think I've tracked it down to the tie rods and Fords wonderful sealed for life balljoints.

Well.. for us 1994 and older owners.. the noise you are hearing if it feels like its under your feet is most likely the radius arm mounts.. for you 1995 and newer owners.. I havent a clue as i have never owned one.. but for one the suspension is different in them.. the 94 and older have Twin Traction Beam suspension.. and the 95 and newer have IFS independent Front Suspenstion which doesnt use the same principle so the same cluking noises are most likely two seperate things..

Originally posted by mikeh
I have the same problem with my 98 XLT. 70,000 miles on it. I hit small bumps and the suspension in the front creaks funny. I haven't even started looking at the truck yet. I have not had my brakes changed yet. I just checked and they still have over 50% wear left.

Let me know if anyone finds anything out!!

mikeh
Creaking is almost always ball joints.-

I have a 95 exporer xlt 65,000 miles. mine just started making the same clunking noise over bumps.

I have a 95 exporer xlt 65,000 miles. mine just started making the same clunking noise over bumps.

I have a 95 exporer xlt 65,000 miles. mine just started making the same clunking noise over bumps.even at idle
over small bumps it does it.
any help from any one who got it fixed would help

I have a '97 XL and it makes the creaking as well, its NOT my ball joints or control arms, they are absolutely fine (and brand-new), it COULD be my wheel bearings but the one of the driver's side has been replaced twice already, I'm thinking its probably the mounts for my front dif, as the bushings look REALLY worn but to replace them is pricey as well because you get the hanger and the bushings for that as well. I'll keep you posted on whether changing that fixes it. Also, funny thing, it doesn't do the noise when its raining, you can feel the "loose" feeling still when the suspension moves over large bumps but no noise, so thats also why I think its the mounts for the front dif, because they are the closest to the ground.

The clunking is most likely ball joints mine started around 70K. Also check your front sway bar end links and bushings. Mine were bad clunking also.