Cluncking Noise From Front Left N Right

[dakkarm3]

hey. my dad has a 98 es with 90k. in very neglected condition. i just took over the car and changed spark plugs, pad/rotors, fuel/air filters, oil change, new tires, new koni struts and a wheel alighnment. car is feeling 10x better, however it still has this very awkward sound especially on cold starts. it sounds like its coming from right above the drivers side wheel well. sounds like a few clunks in a row, like something is loose. what can this be. i took the wheel off and made sure nothing is loose. can it be like a bad tie rod or control arm???

this sound is heard easily on cold starts, like in the morning, for the first few minutes of driving. it then dissapears abit. sounds like its coming from the other side too, as well.

also, everytime i go over a slight imperfection in the road i hear the noises plus noise from the back.

any input appreciated. thanks.

[ArmyofOne]

sounds liek a bad motor mount or mounts...

[andrecat112]

how do those koni struts work for you? and where did you get them?

[steviej]

however it still has this very awkward sound especially on cold starts. it sounds  like its coming from right above the drivers side wheel well. sounds like a few clunks in a row, like something is loose. what can this be....

this sound is heard easily on cold starts, like in the morning, for the first few minutes of driving. it then dissapears abit. sounds like its coming from the other side too, as well.

also, everytime i go over a slight imperfection in the road i hear the noises plus noise from the back.

any input appreciated. thanks.

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my first thought is that it was the TRAC/ABS pressure modulator resetting itself upon start up. Open the hood in the morning and have someone start the car.

Pay particular attention the box near the windshield washer fill. This box has four metal hoses coming out of the top and about 2 inches from where they exit the box, they make a right angle bend. See if the noise comes from this box on start up.

my second thought because you say it makes the sound when the car is in motion would be to look at motor mounts and/or suspension bushings.

steviej

[dakkarm3]

guys. thanks for the quick responses.

steviej, i will check what you brought up tomorow morning;

regarding motor mounts how do i check those?

another thing. i drove a buddies es 300 today. 98/99 w 50k on the clock. great condition. drives very tight. my car does not drive tight at all, and like i said i just replaced the struts and put new michelins on 4 corners + the tune up.

what can cause the difference in both cars. ?

to answer the question of how i like the konis, i really cant tell till i get this car back to its original ride quality which used to be pretty good(along time ago). as of now, id say that the konis are nothing special. i really didnt have time to do too much research, and the price was descent, so i went for the konis from tirerack. thats where i get most of my stuff from, and i had konis on my bmw before and they were great for an oem replacement, they just last longer.

they feel ok on the lex, but i dont want to jump to any conlcusions till i have the car feeling like normal. when i hit bumps i feel like something is not absorbing the bumps the right way......car just feels loose and weird, even though it has gotten better with the rescent improvements. before the new tires and alignment it was floating.

ill check the motor mounts and the other stuff listed above, any other input will also be appreciated. thanks.

[ArmyofOne]

guys. thanks for the quick responses.

steviej, i will check what you brought up tomorow morning;

regarding motor mounts how do i check those?

another thing. i drove a buddies es 300 today. 98/99 w 50k on the clock. great condition. drives very tight. my car does not drive tight at all, and like i said i just replaced the struts and put new michelins on 4 corners + the tune up.

what can cause the difference in both cars. ?

to answer the question of how i like the konis, i really cant tell till i get this car back to its original ride quality which used to be pretty good(along time ago).  as of now, id say that the konis are nothing special. i really didnt have time to do too much research, and the price was descent, so i went for the konis from tirerack. thats where i get most of my stuff from, and i had konis on my bmw before and they were great for an oem replacement, they just last longer.

they feel ok on the lex, but i dont want to jump to any conlcusions till i have the car feeling like normal. when i hit bumps i feel like something is not absorbing the bumps the right way......car just feels loose and weird, even though it has gotten better with the rescent improvements. before the new tires and alignment it was floating.

ill check the motor mounts and the other stuff listed above, any other input will also be appreciated. thanks.

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it sounds alot like loose coil springs, i know thats not feasibly possible, but ...

well lets put it this way, in order to get a coil to clunk, you would have to not know what you are doing when you install it, and if that were the case (i can tell by your posts it isnt) then you would have had them professionally installed or left them alone. my contour did this when it had a brokmen spring though, thats why i brought it up.

check motor mounts first. they are under the car between the subframe/motor. sometimes you can see them from the side of the subframe, they have rubber insertts, if the rubber is shot and dryrotted, the mount brakces will hit each other, causeing a clunk.