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Various Moans And Groans On My 03 Mondeo Graphite


YoungSmiffy
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Hi everyone, I bought my mondeo graphite about 6 months ago and I've started to find various creeks and groans are starting to raise their ugly heads now, I've got a few, so ill just list them, hopefully you guys will be able to shed some light and i can get them sorted.

Right here goes, 1st and most concerning, there's a very severe rumbling coming from the front end (breaks/suspension ) when I'm breaking from 50 mph upwards, I've checked the breaks and they seem fine, I've had it tracked and that was fine? Any advise would be gratefully accepted.

2nd is just as worrying, every so often there's a really loud squeaking/catching noise coming from behind the middle of the dash ( roughly manifold area is it? ) there's obviously something loose, so again guys suggestions would be great.

3rd a bumping noise from the back end, I've had suspension done, but it still bangs when I go over mild bumps in the road, is this maybe worn bushes? As i was told this can happen and the rubbers perish and leave the metal pins to rock around?

And 4th is just general, is it normal questions, ie are the mondeos normally quite raspy in the exhaust department? Or should i look to get it replaced, because it does seem to be a little sluggish, and I'm maybe thinking it could be related to the creaking from the manifold area? ( maybe a split in a weld or just rotten?). There's an extremely annoying 'rattle' that makes the car sound like a tin can when I go over a bump going down the road, am I right in thinking this is a heat shield ? And is it okay to remove? And last but not least where would you guys suggest is the best place for mondeo parts, both internal and external? Because i needed a new front bumper the other month and tbh id of had more luck getting blood from a stone than getting a colour match bumper for my colour car ( its a graphite, so its graphite grey) , no luck anywhere in west yorkshire and good old motorhog could only get me a silver bumper which I'm currently sporting, apart from eBay it would be nice to know of a good, well stocked, reliable breakers yard as i want to replace various parts as the originals are either slightly damaged/ scratched or very badly worn. Sorry if I've bored you all, but your obviously the guys who know and love mondeos.

I anticipate your feedback, many thanks, Mick, Wakefield, West Yorks.

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Does it have an engine? What is it (at least knowing diesel/petrol would be a big help)?

Some of the stuff in the middle does sound like heat shield. You've got to get underneath, or at least, get your hand underneath and try to wobble bits around, and see what moves and what makes a noise. Sometimes wobbling the exhaust knocks into a heat shield and then it might be the exhaust itself and its mountings or the heat shield. Usually, heat shields are there for a reason, so I am not a big enthusiast for just removing them, although you will probably find someone who has done just that and does not have a problem (it may be that Ford were a bit conservative, and the heat shield is only needed in extreme conditions...but, also, it might just be a bit close to, say, a fuel line).

And last but not least where would you guys suggest is the best place for mondeo parts, both internal and external?

For the kind of thing that you were talking about, a breaker ought to be a good suggestion. Why don't you try a site like breaker link that sends your enquiry out to multiple breakers (there are others apart from breaker link, but their names don't currently come to mind - I'm sure that you'll find some if you search)?

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Hi YoungSmiffy

Your first problem is a process of elimination first check wheel bearings by jacking the car spinning the wheel and listening to the centre of the wheel (don't catch your ear on the wheel studs, it hurts a lot, I speak from experience lol) if no noise is there, whilst the wheel is raised grip the wheel with hands at top and bottom and check for any movement then grip the wheel at 8oclock and 2oclock position and after that 10oclock and 4oclock if any movement is found pop your head under the car (ensure the car is on an axle stand and safe from moving) and get someone to repeat the steps of trying to move the wheel you should see any play/movement in either the ball joint or trackrod end if you have movement from the wheel in all positions it is usually play in the wheel bearing.

Now as a rule on Mondeos the suspension links fail pretty regular and can cause some very strange noises from the car. I have found the original Ford ones outlast any pattern part by a long way. With the car flat grab the links and check for free play if there is any change them.

You said you have checked the brakes and all seems ok, If the problem only happens when you break we must concentrate on that area, first try and bleed both front calipers if the fluid flows fast and free then that's ok if the fluid drips out or the pedal needs excess pressure to push to the floor then your flexi hoses are blocking with gunge and breaking up inside, a pretty regular problem I found on a lot of fords more older cars than 2007 on. This problem causes uneven braking leading to vibration or the car pulling and sometimes abs kicking in. The brake pads and discs, have the runout on the discs checked at a garage it's not an expensive job if the discs are out of tolerance change the pads and discs. if you have no idea how long the pads have been in the car change them anyway as they may have gone hard. Check the calipers are working correctly by asking your local mot station to drop the front end on the rolling road and test the pressure they work at they should be pretty even. Another thing to do is ensure all bolts holding the subframe and all the suspension tops including the rollbar bush pins are tight and no play in any of them.

Finally ensure the wheel alignment is set correct not just the toe in/out on the front but the four wheel alignment, front wheels are aligned with the rears and the toe in/out on the front and rear wheels is set correctly as a misaligned toe on the front can cause brake problems when breaking, rare occasion but it does happen.

2nd problem the noise from behind the dash. sit in the car in a quiet place turn the heaters on and have the heat going up to the screen then turn off the ignition key after a couple of seconds you should here the internal flaps on the heater pipes closing a very quiet noise try this a couple of times see if the loud noise you hear appears. The best way is to remove the dash and have a good nose about in there to see where the problem comes from. Don't forget to check behind the audio unit to see if it is catching any where. if the noise is outside the car under the bonnet area check engine mounts and all components in the turbo area on a diesel or just manifold area on a petrol and the windscreen motor area.

3rd problem noises from the rear. Usual suspects again are the suspension links pattern parts if been fitted sometimes fail within 6 months. Have all the bushes on the rear checked for play and make sure the road springs have no small bits snapped at the top of them. Check the exhaust is not fouling the body due to worn rubber mounts.

4th problem As a rule no exhausts on Mondeos are not raspy. It is possible as you said the exhaust noise and noise in the manifold area is linked get a good exhaust place check it out for you. The annoying rattle could be a heat shield don't remove it if it has snapped the retaining area and is loose replace it or use big washers and re-fasten it to the floor, it is there for a reason.

Check the rattle is not the catalytic convertor broken inside this will give a loud rattling noise when under load and will cause the sluggishness you talk of and will also change the noise of the exhaust note. If the cat is broken inside get the car plugged in and find out what is failing/broken and causing the cat to fail, rectify the problem before fitting a new cat as if you don't and just fit a new cat it could fail very soon after and the guarantee will not stand if the car has other problems IE: fuel management problem or burning excess oil problem. Note the engine management light does not always come on when the cat is failing/broken.

As for the bumper try 247spares or similar there are a lot online who will search for exactly what your after if you give them the colour code. you can then courier it to you.

Apologies for the essay but just hopes it gets you sorted and back driving with a smile on your face.

Just ask if you need any more info or any clarification on anything. Cheers Sam

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1: Wishbone/Suspension Arms bushes (I had this problem and mine were pretty much gone)

2: Check exhaust around the first cat

3: 2 issues for this, the first being coil springs are snapped (Check that they have fitted the caps correctly, they should sit tightly at the top of the coil with very little movement) and other issue is wheel bearings.

4: Exhaust replacement (I've got the same issue at the moment and needs replacing)

The rattle is your heat shield, easy fix though just tighten up the nut on the shield.

Any parts such as bumpers, always use eBay (I find auto salvages very useless at times).

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