Clunk gets better when cold
#1
01-21-2020, 10:42 AM
Clunk gets better when cold
2008 US Fit Base
I had a clunk that was occurring when going over small bumps. Traced it to sway bar end links. Replaced them.
Right after replacing end links, the sound was gone! I drove around the neighborhood, and never got a clunk. Great! The next Monday, I drove to the train station and a different clunk appeared. This one doesn't really seem to be associated with bumps in the road. It happens largely on start and stop, and while turning at a slow speed. Sometimes, it gets really clunky. So I'm thinking something is binding or maybe it is ball joints or control arm. I take it to the local shop that I get minor repairs done. He puts it on the lift and declares it needs new struts. He calls two suppliers and says they don't carry struts for the Honda Fit, it's a dealer part only, and that it's going to be expensive. Before I leave, he calls another supplier, and says he can get KYB struts and the total with labor will be $950+. I'm a bit stunned, but I really wanted a diagnosis. I would have paid for a half-hour labor for that to have someone tell me what the issue was. But, no charge, so that's good.
I get home and find I can buy KYBs for $80+ tax/s/h and get Sachs for $105+tax/s/h. All told, I should be able to get some decent struts for $250-300 including all the hardware. A friend and I go over the vehicle, and we cannot duplicate the clunking while stationary, using every trick he could come up with rocking the vehicle. Driving around, yep, there it is. We do see a tiny bit of play in the stop of the strut. The boots on the control arm looks good.
We both google, and he does find someone with similar symptoms, and the explanation is that getting the vehicle off the ground while working on the end links, extends the old struts and they are finally worn out, and that noise happens. So basically, we come to the conclusion that the struts are the likely candidate.
I've been driving my other car (1995 Volvo 960 if you care) while waiting to buy the struts and other parts. But I've been driving it about once a week just to keep it running.
Today, the temperature is 29F when I get out. It is silent. I drive it more than a mile before the first clunk, and even then, by the time I get to the station some four miles away, it has only clunked a few times, and almost inaudibly.
Has anyone heard of this before? Less clunking in cold weather? I googled it and see the exact opposite with people discussing clunking in cold weather.
I had a clunk that was occurring when going over small bumps. Traced it to sway bar end links. Replaced them.
Right after replacing end links, the sound was gone! I drove around the neighborhood, and never got a clunk. Great! The next Monday, I drove to the train station and a different clunk appeared. This one doesn't really seem to be associated with bumps in the road. It happens largely on start and stop, and while turning at a slow speed. Sometimes, it gets really clunky. So I'm thinking something is binding or maybe it is ball joints or control arm. I take it to the local shop that I get minor repairs done. He puts it on the lift and declares it needs new struts. He calls two suppliers and says they don't carry struts for the Honda Fit, it's a dealer part only, and that it's going to be expensive. Before I leave, he calls another supplier, and says he can get KYB struts and the total with labor will be $950+. I'm a bit stunned, but I really wanted a diagnosis. I would have paid for a half-hour labor for that to have someone tell me what the issue was. But, no charge, so that's good.
I get home and find I can buy KYBs for $80+ tax/s/h and get Sachs for $105+tax/s/h. All told, I should be able to get some decent struts for $250-300 including all the hardware. A friend and I go over the vehicle, and we cannot duplicate the clunking while stationary, using every trick he could come up with rocking the vehicle. Driving around, yep, there it is. We do see a tiny bit of play in the stop of the strut. The boots on the control arm looks good.
We both google, and he does find someone with similar symptoms, and the explanation is that getting the vehicle off the ground while working on the end links, extends the old struts and they are finally worn out, and that noise happens. So basically, we come to the conclusion that the struts are the likely candidate.
I've been driving my other car (1995 Volvo 960 if you care) while waiting to buy the struts and other parts. But I've been driving it about once a week just to keep it running.
Today, the temperature is 29F when I get out. It is silent. I drive it more than a mile before the first clunk, and even then, by the time I get to the station some four miles away, it has only clunked a few times, and almost inaudibly.
Has anyone heard of this before? Less clunking in cold weather? I googled it and see the exact opposite with people discussing clunking in cold weather.
#2
01-22-2020, 05:22 PM
After doing a little searching and reading last night, I did find a few threads where (non-Honda) folks experienced similar clunking except when warm. Seems the explanation was that bushings get firmer when cold and don't clunk. That seems backwards to me. A cold firmer bushing would be hard and clunk more. But the fast majority of posts by people seem to be expressing complaints of more clunking while cold.
Control arm ball joints look good. No play. Buddy was thinking CV, but how do we confirm that? One thing I read is that it clunks steadily at slow speed, but my clunking is intermittent and while pretty frequent at slow speed is not rhythmic. This description (2) sounds like it https://itstillruns.com/test-cv-joint-7776252.html But none of these sound like it. https://www.autoshack.com/signs-of-a-bad-cv-joint Definitely not metal on metal sounding or screeching.
So I may need CV after all as well. But that doesn't explain why it would be quieter when cold.
Control arm ball joints look good. No play. Buddy was thinking CV, but how do we confirm that? One thing I read is that it clunks steadily at slow speed, but my clunking is intermittent and while pretty frequent at slow speed is not rhythmic. This description (2) sounds like it https://itstillruns.com/test-cv-joint-7776252.html But none of these sound like it. https://www.autoshack.com/signs-of-a-bad-cv-joint Definitely not metal on metal sounding or screeching.
So I may need CV after all as well. But that doesn't explain why it would be quieter when cold.
#3
02-10-2020, 11:44 AM
Replaced struts with KYB, so now front struts and sway bar endlinks both replaced. Strut bumps looked totally baked. Ride much smoother now. Amazing how you don't realize it's degraded over time.
Now, clunking still there, so it looks like a CV replacement. Shuddering while on somewhat aggressive acceleration, particularly in gears 2 & 3.
Going to install aftermarket because Honda wants too much (as in 10x as much).
Now, clunking still there, so it looks like a CV replacement. Shuddering while on somewhat aggressive acceleration, particularly in gears 2 & 3.
Going to install aftermarket because Honda wants too much (as in 10x as much).
#6
02-11-2020, 09:20 AM
Was actually looking at this PDF from TrakMotive, and I have symptoms 2 & 4, I would say. But note that #4 says "Similar vibrations can also be caused by a bad intermediate shaft bearing on transaxles with equal length halfshafts, or by bad motor mounts on FWD vehicles with transverse-mounted engines" [emphasis added by me].
https://www.trakmotive.com/wp-conten...haft-02.17.pdf
https://www.trakmotive.com/wp-conten...haft-02.17.pdf
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