Mondeo Mk4 2.0TDCI Front end knocking / rattle

[Dee_82]

Garage number two, thinks its the Strut / top mount, (not the bearing)

im inclined to agree, perhaps not so much with the strut since shes working fine in my opinion but when I jack the car up off all 4 wheels then raise the control arm to the driving position I can push towards the car on the coil holder and preproduce a single knock. I cant identify if its the strut or the top mount but in either case, it moves a little, it knocks, and the other side, the passenger side, doesn't do it under the same conditions.

I dont know if the shock absorber is designed in a way that would allow the inner piston to knock inside the outer Shell, but the top mount itself has a rubber inner core that could corrode that would allow the top of the shock to rattle about.

Time will tell!

[Dee_82]

Final update, all sorted, the top mount had turned to dust which allowed the top of the strut to move back and forward, the strut itself was damaged, probably from all the knocking about which was also knocking about.

Garage only advised to changed one strut which goes against everything I had previously thought, I think I might wait a few weeks and do the other one as well. 

[pragmatix]

Im with on that change both, but glad your sorted.

[JohnPS65]

Almost certainly front strut top mount and bearing. I had a similar problem with my Mondeo. Knocking over rough road surfaces at slow speeds but no obvious signs of problems with drop links, bushes, or shocks. Replaced bearing and top mount and problem solved. Hope this helps.