Hi all i've had this problem for some time about 2 years and no one can figure out what is, best way I can think of to describe the sound is putting a bunch of crushed cans in a bag and dragging it behind your car. the sound has a few conditions to start up 1st,the car needs to have been running for about 15-20 min this only applies if the car has sat overnight, if you let it cool down for a couple hours it will start making the noise almost instantly 2nd, not really a condition but hitting any size bump makes the noise start 90% of the time even little lines of repaired cracks on the road make it go off and sometimes it will just start randomly. I'm 95% sure the sound is coming from the drvside rear there are no rocks or anything like that in the treads or in the hub/brake assembly believe me i checked, I took it to various mechanic shops and they all said my bushings looked fine I have run out of ideas and website to check out, any help would greatly appreciated I will post a video soon so you can all hear the sound.

 

Firstly welcome to the forum.

My best guess is that there is a cat convertor, and/or the muffler/s rattling internally.

Cats that are breaking up do make that sound.

Climb under the beast with a rubber mallet and bang on the cats and mufflers. There should be no sound of loose bits during this test.

 

Thank you for responding Grant, when this this first started I made a list of things it might be one was the cat, do you know if it would make the noise if the engine was off? I pulled up to the top of a hill and turned off the engine and put it in neutral and let it roll down and it still made the noise? I really didn't want shell out for the cat replacement but if that is the case guess its got to be done, but I will try the rubber hammer if i hear pieces moving I guess that settle it Thanks for suggesting.

 

check for loose heat shield too

 

Spike,

I would NOT have expected the noise to be the same coasting down a hill with the engine OFF.

That narrows it to whatever is rotating during that thrill.

Wheels, front and rear, so rotors, etc, and the associated shields that may be rubbing on the rotors?

Half shafts, doubtful, but they do rotate.

Prop shaft, again doubtful, BUT shields etc are cloise by.

Rear bits of the transmission, not sure what rotates in these "newer" type trans units, so others with that knowledge will be needed.

It sort of rules out torque convertor, cats, mufflers etc, as the engine OFF kills their involvement in my opinion.

 

Sounds like front sway bar links to me.

 

Thanks for responding all I think later today I will check all 4 rotors and their shields, I just checked the sway bar the bar and the bushings and it looks intact and feels very snug no play at all (maybe that's a bad thing? still getting my head around mechanics) but the front control arm? the elbow looking one seems kind of loose there was a good amount of play when I checked maybe it could be that?

 

If I've understood you then there should not be any play. Any good mechanic can check such things.

 

To check the sway bar and end links is very simple. Unbolt the end links from the spindle and let them hang. Drive car to see if the noise is gone.

It's one nut per side and can be done without lifting the car.
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Hi all this is the video sorry for the poor quality, in the video the noise sounds more like a plastic bag in the wind

 

tbird6 Thanks for your suggestion, so would I just let the bar hang downward or would I remove the bar, if left to hang would it mess with anything while turning or driving in general?

 

ok so I tried letting the sway bar hang and the noise was still there, so I decided to take off the wheels and get another good look at all the suspension parts and found that the bushing on my rear driver lateral link had 2 big tears in it "https://imgur.com/N2LF7Il" fingers crossed.

 

With your last description of the sound could it be any of the plastic under body shields?

They can vibrate if not bolted down.
Have you got under the car to look yet?

Bushings usually give squeaks and if you are talking about the upper control arm boots yes nearly all them at this date will be torn.

Can't see the picture. Another tip. Please post the pictures to the list and DO NOT host them off site. We have dozens and dozens of great threads with all the pictures missing.

If posted to the list they will stay as long as this list survives.
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ignore this post please

 

I hope we can get to the bottom of this. I'm having the exact same problem with the exact same conditions. I find it very strange that it starts and stops at exactly 10 miles per hour. This has been one hell of a head scratcher for me! I'm also convinced that it's coming from the rear driver side as well..

 

Not to doubt you but how exactly are you measuring "exactly 10 miles per hour"?

 

The word "exactly" was used very loosely.. everytime this sound starts or stops and I look at the speedo it's at the 10Mph mark, not 5 not 7 not 15 not 11.. always at 10mph.

I'll be more deliberate with the words I choose.

 

Hi clubairth1 I did check all the plastic guards under the car and the wheel wells they are all secured no bolts missing or cracks/damage, what I meant in my previous post was due to the crappy audio it sounds like a plastic bag sorry for any confusion. also how would I put a picture in the "list"? sorry i'm very new to this site.

 

To add a photo, use Go Advanced and well down the page is Manage attachments. Browse from that to the photo and Upload.

 

cool it worked, Thanks. So here is the part I think might be making the noise, any thoughts?