2005 MK3 Estate 2.2Tdci. I'm getting a thump, or clunk noise over even small bumps in the road. It sounds like something hitting the underside of the body and I have pinpointed it to just in front of the passenger side wheel arch in the rear. I have poured over the internet researching and trying different things and I am still coming up empty. Based on what I found online, I have:

1. Checked the hand brake cables are indeed secured.

2. Checked for sloppiness of any of the rear suspension bushings by prying on them trying to get them to move abnormally.

3. pulled out the inner carpet in the rear and checked everything I can.

4. Test drove with the seat folded down to eliminate a loose latch issue.

5. Using a stout piece of wood, pried between the subframe and the Anti-roll bar to see if those links were ok, and check for sloppiness in the shock bushings.

6. Checked the exhaust and wire tied it away from any narrow areas.

7. Tried searching everywhere under the car looking for anything at all loose. I've even rode in the boot while my wife drove to pinpoint the sound.

Probably more that I am not recalling at the moment. I cannot duplicate the sound in the garage. Sounds like a rock made it's way into a channel in the body and rattles on every bump. but it's one solid hit and it's done.

Before I start throwing hard earned money at this thing, am I missing anything? How can I properly check these joints? Is there a way to check the subframe bushings? I'm short on tools, so I would have to hire this job out.

I appreciate any advice or other things to check. I am tempted to go pickup a set of the Anti-roll bar end links just to see as that is something I believe I can tackle. Might even remove the links and go for a careful test drive to see if the thunk is gone.

Exhaust

The exhaust has just been replaced, so I did look at that closely. I could jiggle the exhaust enough for it to contact one of the hangers, but it wasn't the same noise. But just in case, I also wire tied it away from the mount and still have the noise. I will update my thread, but thanks for the reply.

Just a quick update. I'm still shaking my head with dumbfoundedness. This morning I removed the ARB links from one end and tied them up. Went for a drive and still have the knock. I looked again at the spring; I see nothing. I've even banged on them with my fist in various states of compression and I don't get any odd noises. It sounds like it's still one solid piece.

That leads me to believe my sub-frame bushings are gone. What I can't figure out is how to check if they are indeed bad. Everything still seems tight, but that may not be a good indicator. I just hate to throw money at new bushings and labor to replace them in the hopes that it fixes my problem.

Any other suggestions?

I had the exact same situation with my one a couple a weeks back and changed the subframe bushes and the noise is gone its very hard to replicate the noise outside of drivng it. But yeah when you go over a bump its sounds like a big thump coming out of the rear of the car like someone I underneath hitting it with a hammer.

Thanks! That is good and bad news for me. Good because it sounds like that is the solution to my problem as well, but bad because I'll only own the car another year and I was hoping not to put that much money into it. I just don't have the tools to do this myself. I have access to a shop, and perhaps I'll look into that more, but I can't really be without the car for more than a day.

Thanks! That is good and bad news for me. Good because it sounds like that is the solution to my problem as well, but bad because I'll only own the car another year and I was hoping not to put that much money into it. I just don't have the tools to do this myself. I have access to a shop, and perhaps I'll look into that more, but I can't really be without the car for more than a day.

You can buy polybush kits cheap on ebay and fit them yourself very easy fone no need for special tools. Should take more Tha a couple of hours to fit them

Very slow on the update, so I apologize, but it's taken me a while to swallow my pride.

Mechanic found that the bolt fastening the shock was loose. That was it. I thought by my violent wiggling of said shock, I would have found that. At least it was a cheap fix!

Glad it's fixed and cheap