Need Front Suspension Advice

[MightyVoice]

Last March I had an independent Volvo mechanic replace my passenger side strut mount/bearing. Ever since I've gotten an intermittent knocking/clunking noise when the passenger side hits bumps. When I took it back he said it must be a bad strut, so we replaced that strut with a new Sachs unit. Noise still there. Took it back and we replaced the sway bar link. Noise still there. I've lived with the noise since then, but I'm at the point now where I want it solved and I'm weighing my options. Essentially its annoying and make me hate the car.

I took the car to the Volvo dealer and went for a drive with the tech. He heard the noise, didn't think its was a big deal, surmised its probably a bad strut on that side. They did a four-wheel alignment for me (was getting uneven tire wear on both fronts) and inspected the suspension....said everything is fine. They want $1,300 to do mount/bearing/struts on both sides. I see that FCP Euro has a kit for less than $400 shipped with Sachs struts and Corteco mounts (https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/vol...it#description).

I have heard the front struts are a bear on this car due to the springs. I have access to a spring compressor at another dealer....has anyone done this job themselves?? Will I regret trying it??

I went back to the indy mechanic last week just to touch base on the issue again, but he seems very busy and given that he had three chances to fix the issue already I'm not sure I want to go down that road again. It seems my options for Volvo-specific indy mechanics in my area is pretty limited, and I normally wrench on cars myself so outside of the dealer I don't know of another shop I would trust to do this job correctly.

The car currently has 77,000 miles on it. Both front struts/mounts/bearings had been replaced under warranty back at 35,000 miles. By the time the passenger side failed again earlier this year the CPO was over and Volvo said I'd have to pay to replace....hence me going to the independent guy.

Thanks in advance for the advice everyone!

[Wayne T5]

Your location doesn't indicate where you are in Ohio but if you were in my neck of the woods (Cleveland area) I could recommend a place or two to take it to. You can PM me if you'd like to keep your location private.

I can't imagine that you need new struts if one has just been replaced and the other one was done 42k miles ago. That said, I just did quick struts on my 850. Quick struts include all parts assembled so it's literally remove six bolts to replace the strut unit so no spring compressor needed. I think the set of quick struts was less than $500 from IPD.

[MightyVoice]

Thanks for the response Wayne, PM Sent. I don't think they sell a quick-strut kit for the 2011+ s60 models, at least not that I've found, maybe someone else can prove me wrong on that.

My guess is something is defective with the mount/bearing, as when that was initially installed is when the problems began. I don't know what parts were used for that, but I don't think they were OEM Volvo. I figure if I am going to have the mount/bearing replaced I might as well do the strut again just to be sure.....and I might as well do both sides since there is over 40k miles on the driver set-up......although the driver's side is rock-solid perfect and I do hate to fix what isn't broke!

[fireman0977]

Thanks for the response Wayne, PM Sent. I don't think they sell a quick-strut kit for the 2011+ s60 models, at least not that I've found, maybe someone else can prove me wrong on that.

My guess is something is defective with the mount/bearing, as when that was initially installed is when the problems began. I don't know what parts were used for that, but I don't think they were OEM Volvo. I figure if I am going to have the mount/bearing replaced I might as well do the strut again just to be sure.....and I might as well do both sides since there is over 40k miles on the driver set-up......although the driver's side is rock-solid perfect and I do hate to fix what isn't broke!

Ive had the exact thing happen with mine. It was the strut bracket on the top that wasn't tightened down all the way that made the noise. I know it shouldn't happen but its easy to check. Grab an allen wrench and a pass thru socket and try to tighten the nut on top of the strut and see if it is loose at all. Again i know it sounds dumb but its an easy thing to check.

[MightyVoice]

Dang, that's a good suggestion fireman, appreciate that, i'll give that a try sometime this week, that would be a nice cheap fix!

[Tonyfr]

If you are replacing struts, you can use this video. It's the same as the Volvo repair manual even though it is for a Land Rover.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyOnZl9yA1k

[budleach]

Ive had the exact thing happen with mine. It was the strut bracket on the top that wasn't tightened down all the way that made the noise. I know it shouldn't happen but its easy to check. Grab an allen wrench and a pass thru socket and try to tighten the nut on top of the strut and see if it is loose at all. Again i know it sounds dumb but its an easy thing to check.

I really hope for the OPs sake that that is the problem. Easy fix. I've done it myself before, things can compress a little more once you get the weight of the vehicle loaded on the suspension. Now I always double check that after the suspension is under load.

I would be surprised if that is the problem here, only because the problem started after replacing the mount and bearing, and the problem was unchanged after replacing the strut itself later on. So the same mistake would have had to been made twice. Possible, but less probable. Then again, it was the same mechanic rebuilding the strut assembly each time, so he likely followed the exact same process both times.

If that turns out not to be the problem, my money is on a bad strut mount (bottoming out). It is the one piece (that could cause a knock) that was installed at the start of the problem, and has remained unchanged since.

[MightyVoice]

I don't have a pass thru socket so I've got to wait a couple of days until I can borrow one. I would be surprised if that was the issue as well just due to the fact that the job was essentially done twice....but its worth a quick check in hopes of saving several hundred dollars (at least) over just throwing all new parts in there again. One way or another I'll be happy to get it sorted out (even if I have to pay again) as the noise really detracts from what has otherwise been a rock-solid car. The ironic thing is that the indy-mechanic is the same guy who did the job years ago at the dealer when I had it all replaced the first time under CPO. The small world of Volvo mechanics, lol