Lately I've noticed a strange clunking noise that sounds as if its coming from my driver side suspension. I have no idea what it is, so any suggestions would be great.

About the clunking...

This clunking sound doesn't always happen. It sometimes happens when going from a stop to a start (in either reverse or drive). It happens frequently when turning my tires to the left while at a slow speed or stopped. It sometimes happens when turning right at a slow speed or stopped, but then it sounds like its coming from the passenger side. There appears to be no difference when it clunks (everything appears to be working fine, no strange sounds after clunk). It's loud, you can easily hear it with the radio on & windows up.

Considering how many times I go from a stop to a start and turn at a slow speed, the clunking sound is really quite rare, sometimes only making the sound 1 - 2 times a day.... still more than it did before though.

Help?????????????

 

balljoints?

 

Might be your muffler bearing. have you changed it recently?

I can check it if you want to come by sometime... probably wont be free till after the calico trip.

 

happens to me too....when ever i start up the truck and leave my driveway (moving slightly towards the left) it will sometimes sound like there is a clunk from the right side of the truck.


Doesnt happen all the time though...kind of rare but it will sometimes be a loud clunk or a faint clunk.

 

my muffler bearing makes noise....i have the replacement too, havent installed it... waitin for the blinker fluid to come in.

 

Ahh, I still need to order my blinker fluid.. my lights havent been blinking near as well the past few months.. also need to get my vacuum grease to make sure my hoses work well.

 

So back on a serious note.

Tommy, my truck does it too. There was a thread I thought on here a few weeks ago about the same thing. It seems a few of us were having the same problem. All of us seemed to be new trucks too.

For a couple it turned out to be loose hubs causing the clicking. I put a 650ft/lb impact wrench to mine and the clunking didn't go away. The break light and ABS light came on the other day for my wife, so if the Hub is to blame, it seems it ate itself and the exciter ring before I could get to it in time.


I however, am under the thought that for me, the clunking is the drive shaft, its about shot. But, I have a superlift so that is to be expected.

Yours is 2wd though, so if its a commonality between all our trucks, that would kinda rule out the drive shaft and hub.
Could be a ball joint problem, are your Tbars cranked?

Hrrm, maybe there is a factory defect Ford has yet to recognize?

 

There's a tsb out for 2007 ball joints. Mine failed at 15000km. I'm not sure it applies to 2006 but you're describing exactly what I did before they replaced mine, though the clunk is still there in mine...

I was suspecting hubs too, my brake/abs light came on the other day and sometimes it clunks and the front end loses it's power.

 

I'm having the exact same problem with my '07.
Dealer checked it out and said it was in the steering column, so they added some grease in there which fixed it for about a day.
I haven't had a chance to bring it back to see where the real problem is....

 

Been having that mine is a 2003. I was told upper/lower balljoints need replacing but the more I hear it the more it sounds CV axles which I thought was only on Front wheel drive vehicles

 

ns_red7, have any links to the Ford TSB?

Forzda, the front of the Ranger is IFS, uses CV axles for the drive axles since it's not a solid axle.

Bright red Ford, if it were the steering column or shaft, you'd feel it in the wheel when it 'clunked', I feel it through the truck, not the steering wheel when it happens to me.

 

Actually, in my case I do kinda feel the clunk through the steering wheel. And it sounds like it may come from there. I can sometimes make it clunk when rolling at slow speeds and just moving the wheel back and forth. Other times it will happen when rolling over bumps at slow speeds without moving the steering wheel. And then some days it doesn't do it at all.
Kinda strange actually.

 

yeah...my truck is an 06 (newer like most of you guys) and it rarely happens at all.

 

Thanks, I may take you up on the offer.


Same here. I don't think it's part of the steering. It makes the sound when going straight when going from stop to start.

x2 This could be helpful. I was thinking of taking my truck to the dealership to have it checked out, but I haven't had any enjoyable experiences since I modded my truck. Having that TSB would definitely help getting them to view the problem seriously though.

 

On my beater its the shocks that clunk while going over bumps.

 

http://www.fordforum.com/ford/make_F..._19844/TSB.htm

2007 Ranger TSB for "Some 2007 ranger - pop, clunk, and/or click noise from steering. *nj "



http://www.fordforum.com/ford/tsb.htm

good place to look up TSB's

 

mine makes a kinda clunk or pop when is start off.. pretty much exactly the same as TommyC said..

ball joints make sense.. 3 of them i KNOW are toast which probably means number 4 is gone too haha

i wont be repairing it so i wont be able to confirm weather its that or not..

 

mine does it sometimes too... my ball joints are pretty new

 

Mine do that also

 

I had the same problem. i found out that the hub nut was lose and put a washer behind it and tightened it down. Wallaaaa..... no more noise.

 

IFS just sucks, we all need to put a solid axle under our trucks and well all be good to go