[paulkramer]

I've been hearing a metallic, light clunking sound from my front end for the last several - warm, Summer - months.

I'm pretty sure it's my struts or strut mounts, since replacing them both (with new OEM mounts and bearings and used struts) last year ridded the car (2002 Acura RSX, 132K Michigan miles) of a nearly identical sound.

Just like prior to replacing the old struts, the noise appears under load (engaging the clutch from a dead stop), over very irregular surfaces (not sharp impacts, but pavement that is washboard or similar) - and - most interesting to me - when the ambient temperature is warm/hot and the car is warmed up.

If the ambient temperature is below ~ 70, I don't hear the sound.

Because of the large, welded-on arm that holds the outer tie rod end, struts for this car are very pricey. I find it hard to believe that the mounts are bad already (I can't visually detect a problem with them), although our roads are horrible and get worse every day.

Before I go and drop a lot of money on new struts and/or mounts, can anyone explain how a strut or strut mount noise could be related to ambient temperature?

Also - I just replaced three of the four engine mounts (with new parts) and the remaining engine mount is OEM, replaced last year.

I would just purchase new strut mounts, but 1) I don't know if the mounts or the struts are making the noise and 2) at least one of the strut ends is rusted enough where it needs to be held with an allen wrench to remove the top bolt that the proper size allen wrench won't grip, so I'm not even sure I can disassemble that strut to install just a new mount.

(All the top nuts and camber bolts are tight and my stabilizer links are not broken nor are the stab bar bushings worn.)

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Check the sway bar end links. They are frequently responsible for front-end noise. Ensure they are tightened with a torque wrench--replace, if necessary. Tighten all front-end parts with a torque wrench. Otherwise, it sounds like the dampening action is attenuated, when the temperature warms-up and the hydraulic fluid's viscosity drops. In this case, it may come down to the brand or quality of struts you installed.

[paulkramer]

Thanks, tx.

I checked the endlinks; they are only a year or two old, tight and appear intact.

The struts (OEM Honda/Showa) now have roughly 70K miles on them and are 5 years old. I didn't pay much for them, so I guess I got my money's worth.

Even the highways here in Michigan resemble apartment parking lots filled with speed bumps. Aggravating, but c'est la vie.

[TxGreaseMonkey]

70,000 hard miles is not bad for struts. It sounds like you simply need to replace them.

[paulkramer]

I still don't understand how worn dampers can cause a noise when engaging the clutch from a dead stop. Think I'll order a fresh set of mounts too - it seems more likely that they are the cause, even if I can't see anything wrong with them.

LOL - pretty much the only thing I won't be ordering are new springs. Hopefully *they* have more life in them than 70K miles.

[paulkramer]

PS - while replacing my rear lower motor mount yesterday, out of curiousity I pushed on the inner joint of the passenger side driveshaft (remanned, installed a month or two ago). I pushed on the large metallic part, not the flexible joint itself. The whole part moved up and down slightly when I pushed on it. The other side (OEM part) did not move when I pushed up on it.

Is this movement on the passenger side (that inserts onto the int. shaft, not the differential directly) normal? I don't think so, and it seems to me that it would cause the noise I have been attributing to the struts.

[TxGreaseMonkey]

You may have "nailed" it.

[paulkramer]

Hope so, though I sure don't look forward to replacing the driveshaft again. 130 lbs-ft. of torque on the spindle nut means I have to take it somewhere to loosen and tighten it. :/

This is just nuts - I replaced the final, lower rear mount last night even though the existing mount was just one year old, because the replacement mounts came as a full set so I figured I should install all of them. They are made with a harder rubber than OEM, but with essentially the same design.

I haven't heard the noise yet today! This makes no sense, as three of the four engine mounts were brand new until last night, and I saw nothing wrong with the year-old rear mount (OEM) when I pulled it for replacement. Had it been torn or excessively worn, I would figure it was the cause of the noise.

The weather is cooler here today, so I'm not ready to say the problem has gone away. Tomorrow I will drive into the miserable parking lot that always lets me know if the rattle is still there or not!

Also - what sort of driveshaft fits so poorly that (apparently) the splines don't match the intermediate shaft splines?

I seated that driveshaft. Either the splines are the wrong size or they are tapered and the driveshaft has become unseated.

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Remanufactured or "re-engineered" driveshafts.

[paulkramer]

Raxles driveshaft. All new outer joints, which clearly were not the same as OEM, as the shapes were slightly different. I believe the shafts are OEM; not sure about the inner joint and the part that attaches to the intermediate shaft.

Raxles was highly recommended. They asked me to call tomorrow about this.

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Raxles are supposed to know what they are doing. Cardone often "re-engineers" splines--I don't like that.

[paulkramer]

I read countless bad stories about Cardone and other "re-engineered" shafts. They're only $60 and come with lifetime warranties. Which apparently is needed since people end up changing them every month or so. :D

[paulkramer]

I installed new front struts (OEM Honda/Showa) last weekend, along with new bearings, strut mounts and bump stops. I re-used the springs and spring top hats, which appeared to be in fine condition. No breakage or bending, just a little bit of rust on the spring bottoms and one corner of one of the top hats.

While installing, I decided to rotate one of the mounts of a fully assembled strut and noticed that the bearing groaned. Needing a car to drive, I installed it anyway, after taking it apart and double-checking the assembly.

Once the struts were installed on the car and I drove it (200 + miles), I did not once hear a noise from the strut bearings. However, I did notice that when I turn the steering wheel back and forth, the ends of the damper shafts wobble a little bit, almost imperceptibly.

Should I be concerned about either the bearing noise or the slight wobbling of the damper shaft in the strut mount?

Everything is torqued to spec.

Almost all of the front-end noise is gone now. New struts, mounts, bearings, stabilizer bar endlinks (they seemed fine until I banged on one with my hand and noticed that it made noise) and engine mounts. Whew! Trying to get my hands on the correct size stabilizer bar bushings. They don't look bad, but they're cheap and easy to replace. I am also wondering if I should spend $20 on new subframe bolts, since Honda recommends replacing them whenever they are removed.