S-Types seem prone to early suspension knocking noises that are hard to eliminate.
After driving my 2007 S-type 3.0 litre for a year listening to suspension knocking that appeared to come from the passenger side rear and paying a mechanic to replace all the bushes that the threads on this forum say could cause this, including sway bar bushes, I have finally found the cause. Some of the bushes had a little wear and play so replacement was justifiable, but the knock persisted.
As I am the main driver, I never really listened to the knocking from any other position in the car. Recently a friend sitting in the front passenger seat said that he thought that the noise came from the front! On swapping positions to have a friend drive the car, I also realised that the noise came from the front. That person when driving agreed with me that when in the driver seat the knocking appeared to be from the rear. So I was not crazy.
The mechanic stripped the front passenger-side suspension and found some of the internals of the shock absorber were hanging out. Replacement of the shock absorber has fixed the knock and improved the handling considerably.
So the lesson is to try a different seating position in the car if you are having trouble finding one of the suspension knocks in your S-Type.
Graham Barker
S-Type 3.0 litre 2007

 

I just thanked you
Do you happen to have pictures of the broken bits of the shock?

 

I would like to see it to. We have not had that reported before and it may be more common as the cars get older.
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Did not take photos of the shock absorber. There was part os a seal hanging out where the spindle of the shock enters the body. The shock had occasional made creaking noises at an earlier stage.
I am not sure whether this is an age-related breakdown as the car has only 55,000 km on the odometer. I bought it at 45,000 km and it was making the knocking already at that time.

 

I'm at my wits end with similar rattle from front left side. All the usual bits are changed - inner/outer tie rods, lower curved control arm with new bushing, lower shock bushing on lateral control arm. The shocks were replaced in fall of 2013 with Bilstein 24-065955 so I didn't suspect it to be the culprit. But more I ponder, I can't see any other component making the noise.

The lower and upper ball joints are tight, no play at all. So when I saw your post, my interest piqued. I will try warranty the shock as there is swish noise going over slow but large bump and rattle over small bumps on the road.

 

In the XK8 series, the factory shocks are known for an internal valve failing, breaking off, and creating a highly-annoying rattle inside the shock whenever the car is in motion regardless of the speed or road surface composition. The rear shocks appear to be more prone to this failure than the front shocks are. When it happens, the shock continues to function normally but the rattling heard inside the cabin will drive you nuts. I had to deal with this last October in my wife's 2006 XK8 after the right rear shock rattled all summer long and I waited until summer's intense heat was gone before I went after it. A pair of new rear Bilstein shocks made the car quiet again....

This does not appear to be a common problem with our S-Types but you never know....

 

I had this happen in one of my front shocks which, because my car has CATS, are the active Bilsteins. Australian price $1200 each. Now, three years down the track, I am hearing a very similar noise which appears to be coming from the rear. He Sighs.

 

That ventriloquist noise is common in many cars. My wife told me her challenger was making a knocking noise from the front end so I drove it and I thought it sounded more like he was coming from the rear end but while I was driving it, I moved my head around the passenger compartment, whereas she did not. When I told her I thought it was coming from the back of the car she thought I was crazy. I let her drive the car as I sat in the passenger seat and from the passenger seat it was definitely sounding like it was coming from the back of the car well she insisted it was coming from the front of the car, so I told her to sit in the passenger seat while I drove it and if that point she said oh my God, it is coming from the back of the car turned out it was the driveshaft center link bearing, which was bad as well as a bad CV axle on the rear drivers side.

So the Phantom noise location can make you think you’re going crazy looking in the wrong spot and it’s all due to the way the noise reflects around the interior of the car causing a ventriloquist effect. It’s a good lesson to learn. Lol

 

Yes, but was it worth being right? Repeat after me: “I’m just the husband.”

If anything happens to you, and we don’t hear from you within a reasonable amount of time, we will alert the authorities and show them your message.

Here is one option for isolating errant noises:

https://steelmantools.com/products/w...vice-kit-61082


A little spendy for DIY usage, but an interesting concept with multiple remote microphones.

I have a Steelman electric stethoscope and love it. It’s a single microphone that is highly directional. It’s so sensitive, I was able to isolate the sound of a pinhole leak in the AC evaporator on my truck. The leak was so tiny, my refrigerant sniffer couldn’t detect it, but the stethoscope did.

As far as the ventriloquist effect, my pickup recently developed a squeak that was driving me nuts. Seemed to be coming from inside the cabin, from the passenger door or rear jump seat. My wife, son, and I all tried multiple times to isolate it. Finally crawled under the truck in desperation. Found a plastic pad worn out between the leaves of the spring pack.