I have a low grade clunk at slow speed ,and for the life of me I can't figure it out. Back story. I have 170k miles on my manual TL. I replaced all the suspension components last year, except for the front axles,wheel bearings and ball joints. There is a clunk even on fairly smooth roads. I've jacked my wheel up looking for play, inspected the suspension visually, motor mounts seem OK - can't find anything. The car handles well too. No issues. Anybody have this issue? I'd have though ball joints or sway bar links but they seem ok. Maybe inner tie rod end. Or even the rack? At higher speeds, there are no noises. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

I had a similar experience with my MDX, milage was very low (60K). It was tie rod links

 

What inspections did you use to confirm bad tie-rod link? I ask because I have similar clunks when going over normal side streets/parking lots. I had all 4 struts replaced with no real improvement. Then the front and side engine mounts replaced, with no improvement, and the rear sway bar links with no improvement. I have had several mechanics inspect the suspension and they cannot explain the clunking. It is driving me crazy. Any suggestions welcome.

 

My car was still under warranty. The inspections were done by the dealer.

If you want to confirm tie rods road worthiness just put your car in the air and take a pry bar to gently move them. Typically you will see a bad joint if one has failed as it will move quite a bit.

 

Is it a clunk you feel in the steering wheel? You should also check heat shields, especially the catalytic converter shields. I had to pull out the rear and 3rd converter shields completely and hose clamp the front.

 

No, I do not feel the clunking in the steering wheel. The clunk is mostly audible, but sometimes I think I feel it from the floor or seat. From the driver's seat the sound can come from the front and/or the back. From the rear seat, it sound like the noise is coming from the back. My car has 176k miles on it, all on original suspension, other than 4 new struts installed at 161K, and rear swaybar links at 162k. I pulled on the exhaust system to see if it was loose and clanking around, but the system was tight, and I could not make it clunk.