Knocking from front suspension.

[Porto]

Since buying my 2004 X-type, I have completed 2100km taking the kilometerage to 81220km. The car has a full Jaguar service history, the last full service completed by Jaguar Lisbon in August 2013 when I bought the car. Prior to the service the car had not been driven for seven months and has now developed a knocking sound from the front suspension when I drive over an uneven road. A friend who owns a Volvo said that it sounded like the dampers were worn but that unless it really bothered me, not to worry about it. I live a five hour drive from the dealer, so does his diagnosis sound correct and is he correct that it is something that can wait until the next service which may be a 10 months away?

[Jaguar Owners Club]

Hi Graham

 

I would advise that any knocking noise is checked out sooner than later. There are several possible causes for suspension knocking....worn or damaged dampers, broken road springs, anti-roll links and bushes worn/broken, loose wheel nuts, etc.

I would take it to a local garage or dealer, but either way a professional diagnosis is not difficult or expensive and it can certainly put your mind at rest.

Let us know how you get on 

 

regards    Trevor

[Porto]

Thanks for the advice Trevor. I took it to a local garage yesterday and they checked everything and found that most of the items you mentioned, dampers, road springs, anti-roll links and bushes had been recently changed. Presumably the previous owner had also experienced the problem and the Jaguar dealership had attempted to rectify the problem, unsuccessfully in this case. The car has only completed 80,000km and is like new underneath, so its a mystery but one the garage assured me, having examined the car, that it isn't a safety issue?

[Jaguar Owners Club]

Glad to hear that Graham...I suppose the only solution now is to turn up the radio   :)

[Porto]

Could be the answer Trevor, except I don't like Portuguese music!

[Porto]

Trevor's suggestion to turn up the radio partly worked so I decided to take it into the Jaguar dealer who has suggested that the anti-roll bushes are either worn/broken but there estimated price to replace them €5-600 (£4-500) seems rather high, any idea what it would cost in the UK?

[Old Peter]

Trevor's suggestion to turn up the radio partly worked so I decided to take it into the Jaguar dealer who has suggested that the anti-roll bushes are either worn/broken but there estimated price to replace them €5-600 (£4-500) seems rather high, any idea what it would cost in the UK?

Over here the cost of a pair of bushes cost about £26 [eBay].  The rest must be labour charges.

 

Over here the rate per hour a Jaguar Dealer charges is £138 per hour.

 

I would guess that if you sourced the parts over here the shipping costs to Portugal would not be that high, and a good local mechanic would not charge that much to fit them.  Do an internet search and see what come up.  Parts Gateway would give you a firm quote for your car, as would Davis Manners Group. 

[Porto]

Thanks Peter, I think labour rates are universal at main dealers and allowing for them taking an hour's lunch break between the work and two hours or so actual labour, plus VAT at 21%, their estimate is probably correct. I think I will bite the bullet and go ahead, at least as a main dealer they will have to give a year's warranty on any work carried out.

[Jaguar Owners Club]

I would also ask them to guarantee that their diagnosis will actually solve the problem otherwise it could be money spent in the wrong area.

[Porto]

As the cost of replacing the anti-roll bar bushes at the Jaguar dealer was rather high and i didn't fancy a ten hour round trip, I went back to a local garage and they suggested changing the sway bar bushes, are these the same as the anti-roll bar bushes?

[Diddler]

i suggest they are the same. I have just had all the bushes replaced on my Jag and guess what, it still knocks, the only ones that where not replaced where anti roll bars bushes and I was advised that this was probably the problem. Just this minute ordered a pair from Jaguar Spares North East. £23.00 A PAIR.

[Jaguar Owners Club]

sway bar and anti roll bar are the same component.

its worth getting the bushes at £23 and getting the garage to replace them

[Porto]

Many thanks guys :)

[boatdriver]

Hello Graham

 

I have recently bought a 2004 2.0d sport and during the test drive I heard a knocking from the front. The dealer agreed to have it looked at. The result was a new drive shaft being fitted to the offside. This cured the knocking sound. as to the cost I don't know as it was an MOT feature and the car came with a years MOT.

 

Just might be another angle to consider.

 

Regards

 

James

[Porto]

Hi James,

 

I appreciate your input and I will certainly ask the garage to check the drive shafts when it goes in next week, although the noise only occurs on poor cobbled roads and at the moment everything points to the roll-bar bushes.

 

Regards

Graham

[tmcthree]

I had a knocking sound coming from a Ford Focus I owned a while ago. Took two trips to the garage to find what it was, and cost me £270 (which included a service). Turns out a rock had somehow become lodged in the suspension. £270. On the positive side I did get a free paperweight. 

[Blue Verl]

I bought my X-Type back in January.  I soon became aware of a knocking from the rear suspension when i went over any sort of bump.  I took it to a garage who diagnosed worn bushes on the anti-roll bar which were changed for just £28, including parts an labour, however, the knocking was still there!

 

Last week i took the car to another garage, local to myself, who had looked after my previous car (a Volvo).  They diagnosed worn elements of the rear lower suspension front arms.  They changed both near and off-side units and i am delighted to say the problem has been totally resolved.  All inclusive this clocked in at £217.  The car feels and sounds great now.

[Porto]

Pleased to hear guys that your "knocking" problems have been resolved. I eventually got round to taking my car into my local one-man-band garage and he replaced the front roll/sway bar bushes and the problem has been solved. It was not a five minute job, he had to lower the front suspension arms and disconnect the steering arms because the nuts that hold the bush bracket in place are too long, however, the total cost was €40.59 with the bushes costing €13.50 and labour €19.50, VAT €7.59. Quite a saving on the €4-500 quoted by the main Jaguar dealer. Such a pleasure to drive it now, even on cobbled and potholed roads, without hearing that horrible clunking noise.

[Old Peter]

I'm pleased you got it sorted out, Graham.  The local man was worth it!!

 

Peter.

[msmicksmith]

I developed a 'quiet' knocking on my X and have today replaced the front anti roll (sway bar) bushes. Pig of a job but worth doing. When I raised the car I could move the roll bar through the bush with little effort and whilst doing so could hear the 'quiet' knock. When measuring the old against the new the diameter of the hole in the bush was 3.5mm different and my car has covered 104k miles. It is perfectly feasible that your bushes are the cause of your knock.

If you are, or know someone who is, a competent DIYer then it's perfectly feasible to do it yourself. It took me 3 hours and that included having to sort out the captive nut which sheared loose from the subframe mount. I can post a comprehensive guide to it if you want with photos.

[msmicksmith]

Sorry, I posted my last comment without fully reading yours! Pleased to hear you have it sorted. The price you paid was excellent too. With a vehicle lift I could have done mine in about an hour and a half so I would have expected a local garage to charge around £170 for it. I got my bushes from Kent Jaguar Spares. Genuine parts for £15 each delivered!

[Porto]

Hi Mick,

 

Well done on solving the problem yourself, I looked on YouTube and it seemed quite a reasonable job and that was the opinion of my garage owner, until he tried to release the nuts holding the bushes in place which could only be achieved by undoing the subframe and lowering it. It took just over an hour to complete the job and as you say the price was excellent.

[DAN_V6_SE]

On another `knocking` note, just had a horrendous knocking on my 3.0 Sport, took it in and on closer inspection it is a snapped spring.

 

Can anyone tell me if the 3.0 Sport springs are different from Standard 2.1 or 2.5 etc or are they the same across the range? Cheers.

[msmicksmith]

There are differences between the diesel and petrol models and between manual and auto, and there is a change for the facelift models too (2008 - on).

Provided you have them for the petrol model in either auto or manual, depending on which your car is, they'll be the same.

Bear in mind there are two types though. Comfort and Sport, so obviously you'll need the Sport ones.

 

If you're looking second hand I'd recommend not bothering. You ideally need to replace both springs, as they lose their tension over the years and you'll find that a new one will be shorter than the one you remove most likely, due to the old one losing its strength etc.

If you fit only one new spring you'll get uneven 'bounce', and a second-hand one will have no guarantee that it won't snap in a week, month etc.

 

Try these - http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk

 

They do good quality OEM parts for your car for £40 each or Genuine Jaguar ones for £80

[DAN_V6_SE]

Nah I`d never buy a second hand spring.lol. OK well that clears it up then so the Sport is a different spring to the others. Certainly sounds a good idea to fit both sides at the same time too. I`m not doing it myself I`m leaving it with a garage whilst I`m at work to sort, just want to make sure they do not fit the incorrect item I want my car to be exactly how it is meant to be. ie not a set of SE springs that will make my car wallowy if mine actually has some stiffer ones on which I`m guessing they are from what you say. CHeers.