Suspension clunk and steering rack bushings

The Screwdriver · Jun 13, 2006

I have a 1999 GT and I had MM CC plates with MRT Street Suspension installed last year. Ever since then, there's been a weird clunk/pop noise in the front suspension when weight shifts from side to side in the car. It alrernates turning left and right and will easily do it in tight turns over an incline- like pulling into a driveway.

Anyway, I finally took it to a "performance" car shop to look at. They said the steering rack bushings were old and oil soaked and were sloppy and that is what was causing the clunk noise when the rack was loaded on one side or the other. So I asked them to install poly bushings.

A few hundred! dollars later (.75hr diagnosis, 1.5hr labor, alignment) the clunking is still not solved. It is much much better and only clunks every once in a while... but it is still there. Also the bill shows "Ford rack & pin bushings 4pcs OEM #EGS 4-10104G" A web search shows 4-10104G as being offset rack bushings. I'm guessing EGS is an abbreviation the shop uses.

Any opinions? Did I get ripped off? Should they not have used offset bushings? Why would the description say OEM when I'm going with poly instead of the stock rubber?

Thanks,
Jim

oxfordgt · Jun 13, 2006

is your car lowered? You use offset bushings for lowered cars to correct the geometry. You will need to look at the bushings to tell if they are poly or not. Use your fingernail if you can dig your nail into it then its rubber and you got robbed, poly ones are much harder and harder to get your nail into it.

I have QA1 kmember, a arms, coil overs and stang suspension 4 bolt cc plates. I have clunking when i go over bumps and some creaking when turning the wheel and shifting the weight, but I think it is because of the lack of rubber in the suspension to suppress the noise.

DTNODYA · Jun 14, 2006

If your car has the stock K-member then you should not use offset bushings. If you have an aftermarket K-member then you should.

So no, you should not have used offset bushings. IMO

SVT can clear this up for you I'm sure.

The Screwdriver · Jun 14, 2006

Thanks for the replies. The car is lowered with the MRT street kit. Not much though... maybe an inch in the front. Stock K member and everything else.

I didn't order the bushings... this shop did and they didn't tell me they were ordering offset bushings ahead of time. Not sure if that's what I should have expected or not. They said the stock bushings were shot and needed replacing. I asked for poly ones and they ordered and installed them.

Thanks,
Jim

tomustang · Jun 14, 2006

My first guess would be a balljoint or inner tie rod

DTNODYA · Jun 14, 2006

tomustang said:
My first guess would be a balljoint or inner tie rod

Yeah, I kinda agree with you because the bushings he got aren't aluminum ... Check what Tom said before you pull your rack back off. The offsets may work fine if your problem is ball joints of tie rod ends.

four.six · Jun 14, 2006

try greasing your balljoints, or replacing em...

The Screwdriver · Jun 14, 2006

Thanks again. I'll take a look at the ball joints. What kind of grease should I use - regular chassis grease? Do I have to take it apart or can I just put some grease on it?

Wish I could reproduce the noise while underneath the car instead of only when driving... but I guess that's the whole point of trying to narrow it down. Thanks again!

bemol · Jun 14, 2006

Try checking if there is some play in your MM plates bearings with a dial. Mine clunked when installed.

Dan

dew22 · Jun 14, 2006

Good news, bad news.

I'm almost positive I know what your problem is because I chased it for 2 years, changed tie rods, ball joints ,rack bushings, new control arms twice.

On my car the control arm bushings bind and then shift in the control arms themselves you can see wear on the metal sleeve of the bushing where it hangs up and then releases. The only thing that fixed this condition on my car was frpp control arm bushings. That’s the good news.

The bad news is that the frpp bushings will make your car harsh so I took them off.

I'm sure tomustang or some of the other knowledgeable suspension guys know what I'm talking about (I hope). If I get a chance I'll snap some pics and maybe they can weigh in with some advise. I've almost given up almost

dew22 · Jun 14, 2006

The Screwdriver · Jun 15, 2006

>>you can see wear on the metal sleeve of the bushing where it hangs up and then releases

Thanks so much... this sounds promising. Is this something you can see without removing the control arm? Or would I have to remove the bushing to see the wear on the sleeve? Pics would be great so I know where to look. I have no problem getting under the car... but when it comes to suspension I don't really know where to look yet.

Thanks,
Jim

The Screwdriver · Jun 15, 2006

2002GreyGT · Jun 16, 2006

I had the same clunking sound on my 02 GT even before I lowered it. They replaced the steering bushings and it went away. My shop did it for free (well they repaired it after my accident so maybe they felt they had to).

2 years later when I put on my suspension kit, CC plates, Sub frames connectors and all. They replaced the same steering bushings again since they were worn.

In short I think every few years these bushings go out on our cars and need to be replaced. Unless you use Poly they might last longer.

I am not expert, just my experience.

I was going to have all poly's put in but someone on here said sicne I was under 100K miles not to worry yet.

~K

dew22 · Jun 16, 2006

The Screwdriver said:
Thanks so much... this sounds promising. Is this something you can see without removing the control arm?

.

Yes you can see the wear without having to remove them. Hopefully this weekend I'll get the chance to take a couple of pics so you can see what I'm talking about.

The Screwdriver said:
Thanks,
Jim

No prob.

Hopefully I'm wrong and it's something simple in your case.

I've replaced almost everything in my front suspension multiple times, rack bushings offset, non offset, poly, rubber, 3 sets of control arms 1 stock & 2 sets of cobra spec arms, 2 bump steer kits, 4 sets of ball joints (don't ask ) shocks, springs, cc plates. The noise/pop/clunk whatever you want to call it always came back until I got the frpp control arm bushings and it completely went away. I decided to put the stock control arm bushings back in because I'd rather have the pop than the harsh ride the frpp bushings gave me.

Also the Lightnings were having a similar problem and if I remember correctly the fix was to tac weld the sleeve to the control arm. I think I may try this next but I can’t imagine that would hold for very long

dew22 · Jun 16, 2006

double post

dew22 · Jun 19, 2006

Here's the pic I promised. You can see where the sleeve is being worn.
This travel is what's causing my "pop". If anyone has any suggestions I'd appreciate it.

The Screwdriver · Jun 19, 2006

Thanks for the photo. I don't think I know what to look for though. I can't tell where the wear mark is where it hangs up and binds. Stupid question... I know the arrow is pointing to the bushing... but is it pointing to the wear mark?

Thanks,
Jim

jonesm9295 · Jul 20, 2006

Every CC Plate installation causes this issue?

Just wondering how many have installed aftermarket CC plates after lowering thier stang only to have this clanking/popping sound start...? I am getting ready to have these installed and would rather be at factory ride height with zero clanking of the stang.

MJ

1fast03pony · Jul 20, 2006

Its the rack brackets.. the metal bars that hold the rack to the K member... the offset bushings didnt cause the problem.. I had that clunk with stock bushings... I changed the brackets, and put on offset urethane bushings.. I tightened it all up nice and it never came back. 1 Year since that happened.

Get them at ford, theyre cheap.. I forgot the part number. They're called Rack Brackets.

This will fix it right up, and takes minutes to change.

Suspension clunk and steering rack bushings

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