jwcrum

Has anyone experienced a clunking noise in the rear compartment of their 4runner. It's not something outside the car, and their is nothing loose in the car, so it must be between the body and the interior paneling?

If anyone has had this problem, fill me in.

CTB

You are sure it is not outside the car? I am just asking again because driveline clunk is a potential culprit. Maybe your spare tire has come slightly loose.

If you are certain it is on the inside, another thing to check might be to make sure the rear seats are completely locked down/into their brackets. Anything in your rear storage compartments that may have come loose?

Just a few ideas...

jwcrum

i have checked the spare tire, rear seats, and storage compartment and everything is fine. i don't think it could be the drive line because it only happens when i go around corners or hit bumps and it always sounds like it's right behind me inside the car.

it's so frustrating. :mad:

RgrChu

I've got this annoying clunking sound that's isolated to the right rear wheel well.....I have checked everything.....inside and out.....when I'm alone I don't hear it....if there is weight or a passenger in the backseat and I hit a bump....it's there......Passengers say that they can feel it and that it's coming from directly below and rear of the seat.

I've checked the spare tire (which was upside down), and all the usual interior culprits (seats, buckles, loose crap, etc).....Talk about annoying.....I'm going to use it as an excuse to get Bilsteins....although Les Schwab has said that it is not the shocks.....


:pat: :pat: :pat: :pat: :pat:

this is 5 thumps on the 1-5 thump yourself in the head scale.

DH6twinotter

You could check your jack under your back seat (if you have a 3rd gen, I'm not sure if it's mounted there). I heard a "thump" for a while and somebody here mentioned the jack. Well, I think that is what it was. I moved it around a bit and havn't heard it since. I felt like a retard after that. Oh well, folks here are nice.

Have fun.
DH6twinotter

denverbikeguy

This has been driving me CRAZY!! Glad I'm not the only one...

I'm going to go check a few things when it's a bit brighter outside, this thread has given me some more ideas. We shall see! I've just been using it as an excuse to play the radio louder in the meantime.

waycan

I also have a loud noise everytime i hit a bump. It sounds like we might have the same noise haunting us. It definately seems to be inside the vehicle. It seems to come from somewhere around the rear drivers side door. It sounds like something heavy hitting the plastic panelling. I think it is either something loose on the seatbelt mechanism inside the wall or something inside the door. I wish I could find it, it is driving me nuts. But I'm a little scared of pulling the panelling apart until I am fairly sure of where the sound is coming from. If your noise is similar to mine please let me know if you figure it out and I'll do the same if I do.
Wayne



1999 silver 4runner SR-5

denverbikeguy

Grrr. Ok, it's not a loose seat, loose tire jack, or any of that. There isn't anything under the seat banging around, etc.

I have noticed however that the noise is much more prominent when the truck is rocked side to side, vs just up and down (i.e. go through a dip in the road at an angle and you can definitely hear it). That makes me thing it's something in the door or side of the vehicle more than under the seat. It also does sound inside, vs something under the car, and is on the left side of the vehicle.

Time to go take apart some plastic and see what we see! Updates to follow...

(goes off to get the ratchets and duct tape)

L33T35T 4Runner

OMG that's been driving my insane too!

I have this weird rocking/knocking sound also... it sounds like something is moving around in the storage compartment.

this should comes any time the car starts moving.. as soon as i put the car in drie it starts moving and making weird sounds. i cant figure out what it is.

Im gonna try to figure out what it is... I'll check my spare tire, jack under the seat, etc.

thanks for the ideas.. if i find out i'll be sure to share this with everybody!

L33T35T 4Runner

Well ive been trying to figure it out.. AND I CANT!!!

Ive figured this much:
Its not something moving around inside my car.. atleast not any personal item, since i took everything out.

it happens mainly when the car starts movement or chages velocity a medium ammount, light just starting the car rolling and then slamming on the breaks. Or when I'm backing out of my garage, as soon as i start rolling, it makes that sound, but its only like half a second long.

ahh.. i should try to record this sound.. its so annoying!

denverbikeguy

Haha, yeah, I'm with you on that one. I think we all know what it sounds like though. I'm about to the point of having someone ride back there while I hit some bumps repeatedly, and isolate it for me. I've tried with the seats down too, same thing happens.

It's either under the truck somewhere and I'm just on crack (i.e. something big or heavy is loose - hmm, that wouldn't be good, but I'll ramp her up tonight and look all the same), or something behind the panelling is bouncing around. I really am at a loss though. However I'm about to call Toyota to schedule a suspension recall replacement day, so I will ask them if they know of this issue (since it's pretty common I think) and can suggest a fix.

DuB

maybe it's the rear cover? could the mounts be loose? I know I get this VERY annoying squeaking out of the passenger side mount for the rear cover :mad:

Texastwstr07

I take it you've gone under the truck and wiggled everything possible? Onf the left hand side is the gas tank. Make sure all the mounting bolts are secure. Is is tinny sounding?

Erc

Mine is tinny sounding. I'll add the gas tank to the list of things to check. It's too damn cold here in NJ now to work outside. I'll have to live with all the rattles until it gets warmer

Texastwstr07

Check your heat shields, gravel guard and give the Cat and muffler a whack with a rubber hammer. Sometimes and internal piece comes loose and you cant find it cause it's inside there.

jwcrum

i just wanted to thank everyone who's replied so far to this thread. i'm so glad it's not just me that's hearing this noise.

the clunking is without a doubt coming from behind the plastic paneling inside the truck. if anyone figures out what it is please let me know. if i get a chance this weekend, i might take off some paneling and see if i can find it.

good luck everyone.

Erc

I'd be happier if I was the only one with the noise. So many of us having same clunks, squeaks and rattles tells me that the great quality I've always heard and read about is not really there.
Also, how is it that the dealers don't know exactly where to look, if so many of us are having the same issues?
Sorry, I'm just rather upset that my brand new 30k truck has so many "minor" issues.

keisur

but only after I added my OME springs. I am thinking it might be the little tie rod dealy's that secure the swaybar to the frame in the wheel well. I replaced the bushings so I might have missed a washer which would give it some room to rattle over bumps. Mine does sound like it is inside the pass side rear panel just behind the seat but it could be the sound propagating through from the swaybar connector. I will prob check it tonight in the garage since in houston we are actually supposed to get to 28° tonight. I am also thinking of pulling the panel off to see if it may be in there too. I would check the upper shock mount but you have to have u joints in your wrists and elbows to get up to the bolt, can you believe that design mishap??!!!! I about when I saw that I had to install everything by feel! I also replaced the shocks with longer pro comps so that could have caused adverse effects as well.

denverbikeguy

You know, I'm not so sure it is inside the vehicle at this point. I mean it sounds like it is most of the time, but I hit a couple bumps this morning in a slightly different way, and it just seemed like it was perhaps outside of the vehicle.

I'm intrigued by the fact that this is covering a wide range of vehicle years - mine is a 97, another is brand new, etc. Mine is also bone stock on the suspension.

I will try to take the mallet under the thing, hopefully tonight, but it's pretty cold outside today. The garage is too full of dismantled bike parts to really pull it in there (pity, I have a propane heater in there too! ).

L33T35T 4Runner

I'm almost positive its a spring or something... it had to do with the underbody of the car, thats for sure.

The other day i was washing my car and decided to give my rear axel and all the springs and such a hose down. Well suddently that sound disappeared... It onl came back the next day (didnt drive it after that so im not sure how fast the sound came back), but i think the water moistened two rubbing parts so it didnt make the sound. now that the water tried, those two parts are rubbing again, and its making that sound

so its probably a spring, or strut, or something under the car in the rear.