Just replaced rear strut mounts

[zmuff]

Well, I replaced the rear strut mounts on my car yesterday...much easier job than I had thought it would be. Kudos to e34.535i.sport for his excellent write-up he posted a few weeks back. They didn't look near as bad as his. The loud clunking coming from the rear shelf is gone, but the odd occasional pinging sound is still there. I'm kind of at a loss now on what it could be.
The pinging sound occurs at very low speeds on uneven surfaces when the car body is rocking left to right. I have replaced: strut mounts, subframe bushings, dogbones, and the swaybar links. What's left? I have not done the trailing arms or the differential mount. Could it be them or am I missing something painfully obvious? I'm open to suggestions. Thanks all!

[RallyD]

It is most likely your sway bar to chassis bushings.

If you hit the bump equally with both wheels, no noise.
Hit the bump at an angle, noise = sway bar related.

[e34.535i.sport]

Hey there Zmuff thanks, glad it went well for you. Have you replaced the end links on the sway bar? I changed them and that got rid of some of the noisy germlins from the rear end! (If so check the nutsw are still tight as they can come loose!)...

Excellent suggestion by RallyD, the bushings are on my list of things to do! I'll get round to it one day...

[CharlesAFerg]

I just recently purchased that whole 16 piece kit, but I think I should wait to install it and get some of those mounts too, because if everything else is new, who knows what will happen - might as well change them, yea?

[Jon K]

16 piece kit?

[zmuff]

Thanks for the suggestion RallyD. I had recently pulled my swaybars and bushings all the way off for cleaning. They are Racing Dynamics with polyurethane bushings and they would squeak like an old barn door. I used some molybdenum grease and haven't heard a sound since. So I don't believe there is an issue there.

I noticed that both sway bar links did not have metal bushings in each rubber center, so the bolts compressed into the rubber pretty far. Can anyone confirm that there is/is not a bushing? Seems like there ought to be. Could be the culprit. They were installed maybe 18 months ago.

[Tiger]

There are ebay seller who sold everything you need to change in a package... for front and back suspension.

[e34.535i.sport]

I just recently purchased that whole 16 piece kit, but I think I should wait to install it and get some of those mounts too, because if everything else is new, who knows what will happen - might as well change them, yea?

It can't hurt, and if they're the originals like mine they may not have long left! :p

[e34.535i.sport]

I noticed that both sway bar links did not have metal bushings in each rubber center, so the bolts compressed into the rubber pretty far. Can anyone confirm that there is/is not a bushing? Seems like there ought to be. Could be the culprit. They were installed maybe 18 months ago.

I changed mine for Lemforder ones a few months back and they just had a rubber bushing inside, metal around the outside.

[uscharalph]

16 piece kit?
The kit is most likely not Lemfoerder.

[CharlesAFerg]

The kit is most likely not Lemfoerder.

Meyle.

Honestly Jon you can't be serious, of all people you should know! :D

I'll put on enough miles for the warranty to kick in if they fail anyways.
Besides, I've heard good things, so don't go bashin.


They should be fine.
I can't afford the Lemfoerder parts. I'm a student.

[Claude]

Well, I replaced the rear strut mounts on my car yesterday...much easier job than I had thought it would be. Kudos to e34.535i.sport for his excellent write-up he posted a few weeks back. They didn't look near as bad as his. The loud clunking coming from the rear shelf is gone, but the odd occasional pinging sound is still there. I'm kind of at a loss now on what it could be.
The pinging sound occurs at very low speeds on uneven surfaces when the car body is rocking left to right. I have replaced: strut mounts, subframe bushings, dogbones, and the swaybar links. What's left? I have not done the trailing arms or the differential mount. Could it be them or am I missing something painfully obvious? I'm open to suggestions. Thanks all!

How did you reinsert the rear subframe bushing ? Commun mistake is to put grease on it to ease the job if so the new bushing may play inside the subframe and that small play may still be a clunking noise cause.

[zmuff]

I slowly inserted the subframe bushings with deliberate, firm pressure using (whispering) KY jelly until completely driven to the hilt. Damn! I need a smoke now!

I wanted something slick while it was wet, water soluble, and then dries up. I'll climb back under and see if I can see any evidence of slight movement, could be tough to see though.

I'm pretty sure that subframe bushings are listed on the outside of the KY tube under "acceptable uses". I'll have to go look. LOL

[RallyD]

just don't buy uncle rico's 32 piece set