OFFICIAL: Weird or popping noises from front right suspension thread

[aintsheswede]

My noise is back. Back to dealer. Have to check if they changed the bushing as well as the bolts. TNN 61-10 was just the bolts. The TJ 17498 came a bit later and suggested the new bushings as well. Will ask about the spring seats though. THanks for that.

[DenverC70]

One thing I have not seen mentioned here is whether your steering wheel is in a different postion after you hear the sound. I have a 2007, and I hear a combination thunk/spring sound occasionally when backing out of the garage and hitting the brakes. Then the steering wheel alignment changes a few degrees. Sometimes its dead center, somtimes a couple degrees right or left. Never know where it will be when I get in the car. Drives me nuts. Only 25K.

[sunkids]

Same here, I just got my car about 3 weeks ago. Just noticed the sound since last week. Everytime I back out the garage, with a little brake. I can hear/feel the spring clicking noise from the front(maybe break). Called dealer yesterday, they said it is normal when the car is fresh started in the morning but should not do that during the day. So I will monitor this and maybe visit the shop tomorrow.


Modified by sunkids at 6:47 AM 12-9-2009

[aintsheswede]

Sunkids, what year? Is yours new or used? Called dealer again today to check on B pillar inserts on order. Magically they were now in. When I called a couple of weeks ago, they curtly told me they would call. But I digress.

Made appointment to look at front end noise again. But I also reviewed they invoice from the first trip. They referenced the Tech Journal 17498/9, but according to invoice, only replaced the bolts and nuts. Out of curiosity, I had purchased that TJ (what a ripoff...$6.50, plus $7.00 shipping!!). It specifically says to replace the bushings also, with a new part that has 0.5mm less clearance. I tried to mention this to dealer on the phone, and he said they would have to start from scratch. Also, they have no loaner cars and there is a rental place up the street. Well, first call tomorrow is the service manager. Because I think when they state the followed procedure in the Tech Journal, and then didn't, and now I have to go back, they should first start with that problem before "starting from scratch".

Actually I think they would be thankful we have narrowed the problem down and upset their own tech didn't follow the whole procedure, causing more work for them. If Volvo is going to sell Joe Public the tech journals and TNN's, the dealers need to wake up and smell the coffee. Instead of being offended we are trying to assist them so we don't have to go back 3 times. Since the reality is that costs us both time and money.

Okay, sorry about the rant. Just get upset when getting service under warranty feels more like buying a car than having it fixed. Especially when the vehcile had a list price of 55k. Don' get me wrong, I so far love this car. Just wish the dealer would help me love it. Instead of making me think about our Santa Fe with 100k miles and its single trip to the dealer for one minor part, other than oil changes, in six years!

[sunkids]

Just came back from dealer, too bad the rain is heavy that time. So "can't duplicat the issue".

I brought this 2006 XC90 2.5T AWD about 3 weeks ago. Before I picked the car, dealer replaced all 4 rotors and break pads. So the break systems are brand new. The spring noise only happen in the morning when the car parked overnight. They said that is normal, because rotor rust. Anyway, I also mention the noise from rear back when the car is cruising at low speed, same answer "can't duplicate the sound". Anybody has the same noise from back?

[sunkids]

Loud creaking/poping sound from the left front end! After 20 mints hwy driving on to local road. I heard couple loud springly poping sound from the front. Loud and scary sound ever heard on the XC90. It seems happened on the low-med speed when the car is bouncing around or hit a speed bump. I phoned the dealer this morning and the earliest app is next Monday. ODO will past warranty in 40KM! I didn't hear any sound this morning on the way to work, so I start to worry if they can duplicate the sound next week or not. HGU.....

[aintsheswede]

Make a record of call to dealer and mileage at the time. You already have a record of the noises previously while under warranty. Should be on invoice when you had it checked out last time. Even if dealer said it was normal, which it isn't, or shouldn't be on a car like this, it is now getting worse. So, you have a record of this issue, and this is just a contiuation of the same problem, that wasn't fixed under warranty. So they should fix it. If it is in fact the same noise.

[Husker Z]

Shims installed on my spring seats, cured both sides. But, not before they replaced the endlinks, swaybars and something else in the rear.

Shims immediately fixed our popping noises.

[AOW162435]

Do you have a part number for the shims? I'd like to install these myself, rather than risk something going awry at the dealer...

Andreas

[Husker Z]

Quote, originally posted by AOW162435 »

Do you have a part number for the shims? I'd like to install these myself, rather than risk something going awry at the dealer... Andreas

I'll check tonight when I get home and look at my description of service thing I get from the dealer.

I think the official name is called a sound isolation dampener or something like that. It's basically a piece of rubber or something that wraps the bottom coil on your spring. It's an obvious flaw when you look at it. It's a metal spring sitting in a metal spring seat and any movement creates a loud pop!

[Husker Z]

Quote, originally posted by AOW162435 »

Do you have a part number for the shims? I'd like to install these myself, rather than risk something going awry at the dealer... Andreas

Here is what my invoice reads:

"Installed Coil Spring Insulator"

Part #: 30645888-6 Insulator

This is the first time since we pulled this car off the lot that it's been 100% silent.

[XC90Dirk]

So, I found that part number (30645888, without the -6) on Swedish Auto Parts, but see that it's the "Rear Spring Insulator" and it appears to be a big, donut shaped item, presumably of rubber. (#4 pictured here, only $6.55!)

In looking at the front suspension diagram, I don't see the same sort of piece:

I would assume the upper spring seat would be prime territory for such a thing. I experience the same creaking and boinging going over "technical" terrain like the lip of my driveway and the speed bump in the parking lot at work. It would be nice to slap in a $20 fix to quiet things down.

Dirk

[Husker Z]

From the picture, that looks exactly like the piece they put on ours. I don't know if they did the top of the spring or not, I can't see it, I can only see the bottom. I've never had a noise in the rear, only in the front. Although they replaced every bushing in the rear for me, for no reason as I KNEW it was popping in the front, but why listen to me I only drive it all the time!!

[nedmonds]

All, I know most of this thread deals with the suspension, but just wanted to share my experience with our 2008 CPO with 20k miles. We have noticed ever since we brought it home noise at low speed - generally decellerating. First trip, dealer replaced rotors. Still not fixed. Went on a test ride with the tech and he noticed it right away. Turns out there was a service bulletin regarding Driveshaft Splines. Fix was to put thread compound on there and the clunk was gone.

[XC90Dirk]

Is there any way to test the end links for proper performance? It seems that these links are a source of some of the front end noises (frequently found broken, unless I'm reading things wrong) and I'd like to know if my 82,000 mile links are still alive. Is there a test procedure?

[AOW162435]

"Installed Coil Spring Insulator"

Part #: 30645888-6 Insulator

Thank you! It's been quite some time since I checked the forum....


Andreas

[AOW162435]

I just received the isolator rings from Swedish Auto Parts and will report back once I've installed & tested.


Andreas

[Husker Z]

I just received the isolator rings from Swedish Auto Parts and will report back once I've installed & tested.


Andreas

Any reports yet? Ours has been silent since they installed them and I noticed on my mom's 2010 XC90 R-Design, they came from the factory already installed.

[XC90Dirk]

Today my front suspension really started in with the "sproing" noises. I took a peek at the front left coil and found a piece of molded plastic clamped to the coil and freely sliding around. At first I thought it was a piece of some kind of PlastiKote sheathing that had broken loose and was moving around, but I was able to pop it off and it's clearly something designed to clip on, and stay on, the coil spring.

Has anyone seen this? It looks like a section of item #4 in my post above, the spring insulator, but is only about 1/4 of the circle depicted there. It seems like spring seats and insulators would be a good step forward to repair this.

[cire]

ITS FIXED!!! I have had this problem since week 2 of owning my 2009 XC90. After multiple trips to the dealer with no fixes I decided to have the brake pads replaced with Akebono's for less dust. Well when they pulled off the front right pad it was broke. The pad itself had seperated from the shim. The dealer was amazed! Said they had never seen it. With the new pads on no noise what so ever!! They ended up putting on stock pads cause the Akebono's were the wrong ones for the front. I did get them replaced under warranty though. But I tell you guys this my be a fix. It was for me I have had the car since brand new in Feb 09. It is so nice to take a turn with no noise!!!

[zamo]

It is happening on the front left side of my '10 R-Design. I am going to the dealer on Saturday... will keep posted with updates.

BTW my old '08 XC90 experienced the same exact issue. What the hell is wrong with Volvo. 8 years with the same model and still have not fixed the issue.

[zamo]

It is happening on the front left side of my '10 R-Design. I am going to the dealer on Saturday... will keep posted with updates.

BTW my old '08 XC90 experienced the same exact issue. What the hell is wrong with Volvo. 8 years with the same model and still have not fixed the issue.

It seems that they have fixed it this time. This is what they did:

[Hong Kong]

OK at the end what part exactly we need to change or add. at front to stop this noises?
Thanks for answer.

[nedmonds]

It seems that they have fixed it this time. This is what they did:

This is exactly what Volvo of Orange County has done 3 times now over the past 10 months. Works for about 60 days and then the problem comes back. Any chance the OEM pads are out of spec slightly causing them to shift around in the calipers? If the problem comes back again, I'm thinking about insisting after market pads get installed.

[dutyfree]

It took two visit to dealer to fix this problem, mine is MY07 3.2. Dealer replace the following parts:

31304040 bushing
999403 flange screw
985660 flange lock nu
30793286 bearing bushing
8678497 bearing bushing

Dealer install chassie ear to determine where the noise coming from

Found the following:
Rear Sub frame bushing making noise

[Hong Kong]

dutyfree thank you for list. In the spring I will leave my car to service to fix all this crap and change everything
what is possible and old parts I will send to Volvo factory main designer engineering and one Milka chocolate inside...

[Adashi_510]

Mine's a 2009 XC90 V8 AWD R-Design. The problem was a creaking sound, from the front-right side, noticed during low-speed turns and especially while also turning up or down a hill (or driveway, etc.). Had the Volvo service center listen; I think the 'chassis ear' was also used. Anyhow, what fixed this in my case was the replacement (under warranty) of the subframe bushings. It seems to me the problem's solved, but I'll post back in case the noise returns (as it seems it has for other owners).

3507923 Right Rear (E)
3507924 Left Rear (F)
8678497 Right Front (G)
8678497 Left Front (H)

They're labeled as such on the following image, obtained from the ipd website. The Volvo service center I used had these in stock; otherwise if you need to go commercial, it looks like they're available on ipdusa.com for USD 154.88 for the complete set, Volvo OEM parts.

[darinb]

Well after much headache I finally got rid of my crunching. Here is what I have to report:

I replaced:

Spring Seats
Struts
Strut Bearings
All motor Mounts
Strut bar bushings
Subframe Bushings
Sway bar links
lower transmission rod

The culprit for my popping/creaking was also the Subframe bushings. I did them myself but it was no easy task. I do not recommend it for a beginner.

Also wanted to note that the spring insulators are obsolete if you are installing new struts. The new version of the struts have a rubber pad where the bottom of the spring meets the strut. The new struts made going over bumps a lot smoother.

Replacing the motor mounts made the engine much quieter again. I was getting some vibration when in gear and more when the A/C was on. The upper mount and the transmission rod seemed to make the most difference. The lower mounts helped too though as the rubber felt hard on the old ones. I also replaced the spark plugs which smoothed out the idle.

The strut bearing and spring seats still seemed to be ok when I took them off. The 06 XC90 appears to have some beefed up spring seats.

It was a lot of work to do all of the above myself, but the suspension should be good (crosses fingers) for another 100k miles (except for the transmission rod) now so I think it will be worth it.

[rainandsun]

this is really helpful for me. i find new things i mean new ideas. but sometime if i find difficulty in fixing my car, i went here at automd, they have the auto repair manuals topic and also have the shop finder. very helpful.

[MrBalance]

I've had these same exact noises since buying my 08 XC90 with 15K miles on it two years ago. Suspension "creaking" when articulating at low speeds, a popping/clicking noise when decelerating or accelerating but at low speeds, same noise when slowing down going downhill or turn onto the slight incline of my driveway.

My real question is, Is this just an annoyance or should I visit the dealer (again) out of a concern for the safety of my passengers? I don't like the noises, but I hate going to the dealer! If I am not risking a suspension failure (assuming this is the common XC90 noise and not something worse) or other vehicle failure, I'll just live with it. Your expert opinions please.
Tx folks.

[Gredge]

This thread is quite helpful but seems to refer to two different types of noise:
-- a clicking/grinding/popping during low speed turning and accelerating, and
-- a "bong / clunk / sprong" random noise over speed bumps or when loading / unloading suspension.

My '07 / 2.5t / RHD / 40,000km started doing the "bong" from the front left when loading up into right-hand corners, mid-way through a 250km drive to the beach (fully loaded, with three sleeping kids...). Great for the confidence!

Experience suggested this was not a dangerous noise in the early stages; whilst loud and unusual, it sounded like a fussy spring or a resettling swaybar rather than a bushing or rod-end. With no change in geometry or steering response and no shifting clunk under brakes or on turn in, we kept going (already gently anyway with the babies on board).

At the beach, I got under and had a good look at every joint. All clean and very tidy. Took it for a drive with the local mechanic, found the "clunk / bong" was totally repeatable. We jacked it up and gave it a good wobble all round and could neither feel nor see anything troubling, bar the possibility the top of the shock strut wasn't fully bedded in. He gave the main nut a good rattle with the pneumatic gun; no more bong. For now.

I'm guessing it's a spring-bedding-related thing as suggested here. I'll take it in to see the service guys and let you all know what they say.

[muttwagon]

i have a 2007 XC90 R-Design and had a strange groaning/creaking/popping noise from the front right suspension when decelerating from 30mph to 25mph, braking down a sharp decent (driveway), accelerating from a stop, and in some turns. i thought it was a suspension issue because the front right strut was bad and recently replaced, but i just had the problem corrected by the dealer. they identified it was an "axle spline" problem that was corrected by using a special grease/product on the splines. just throwing that out there for others that may be having something similar.

[bigtomhammer]

I would like to add my 2 cents here. My 05 XC90 2.5T AWD was also making crunching noises when I went over bumps, and starting and stopping. I was with you all and decided that who knows how long it would take to fix it and how much would it cost. So I let it go on for a while. I decided to buy some aftermarket parts for my XC90 from IPD and put some items on that would help stiffen up my suspension. I purchased the ipd HD Polyurethane Transmission Torque Mount from IPD http://www.ipdusa.com/products/4888/...n-torque-mount and took off the old one. To my surprise, the rubber inside basically fell apart and there was none left. I replace it with the IPD one and my crunch is completely gone. With the exception of alittle engine vibration now (which doesn't bother me, I kind of like to feel the engine), no crunch. Now, not saying that it would help all of you, but it made mine go away.

Thanks

[Hong Kong]

This is the solution for cracking sound in XC90 and similar engine supports.
Put on the back side left and right. To be sure I put it also in the front.
Tested and solved problem. No more shame sounds at trafic lights in town and laughing
people when they hear cracking noise they think this is Lada Niva not Volvo.



I already changed all this parts: Nr. 5 both front and rear, Nr. 6 was totaly broken when I change it, Now I will change also Nr. 9 and 8 but you must also change bolts for this parts.

[jmduke3]

So, are we looking at subframe bushings for the win?