It took only 20 mins here. Hahaha, replacing struts on this car is the easiest thing you can do, as long as you have a lift.

They do it because if you run out of warranty sometime shortly after the repair, you'll be covered by that.

 

No, all stock suspension- just replaced in the spring as you know. I'd get an aftermarket suspension if it would fix the noise but I think guys on this thread said they had complete aftermarket parts.

Should we make a list of our Nissan file #'s?

 

Whoever said that has a different noise than us. No question about it. Notice how the topic became A LOT more isolated and focused when I posted the video of the clunk? Because we finally got on one page here.

 

Yep, I agree.

Another good thing is I fixed the subwoofer-cover rattle with a bit of foam double-sided tape...worked like a charm.

Now that the clunk is gone, I also have a rattle somewhere back there that comes and goes that I'll have to figure out...sounds like my license plate rattling but it's tightened down all the way so I dunno...kind of a high pitched tapping...

Eff.

 

Guess that's the build quality difference between a Nissan where not all of the plastic panels will meet up perfectly and a Porsche or Audi where everything fits just right and feels solid...oh well, still love the car!

 

Got mine back after 5 days in the shop. It's gone...again. It was on the left side this time, right side the first time. Again they put foam in the shock tower. Nothing visible from underneath, prolly just some noise dampening under the inside panels, no matter it's totally gone with no parts replaced, just like last time.

 

Well... it looks like I've joined the "Rattle Group" too. I have the same rattle/clunking sound - mainly on the right-rear passenger side. I've read this thread with interest... and really appreciate everyone sharing their experience with this annoying issue. I was hoping it was something clearly identified and easily resolved - but it seems like its not the case. Bummer.

I'm off to the dealer sometime this week and hope its not a nightmare...

 

I also have this problem in my 03 Touring with 73k. Mine definitely isn't coming from the hatch, it's clearly coming from the shock/strut area. It's making more of a screeching noise. I hear it when I'm going slow, or parking or backing up.

 

replacing the shock, mounts and bushings worked for me.

Now the driver side is making the noise, almost like they swapped it from one side to another.

 

This is good to know. Were the techs able to figure this out quickly - or did you have to go back multiple times? So when are you going back in for the other side?

I'm headed to dealer in the morning...

 

Dropped the car at the dealer today... and after 3 hours they informed me that they are "puzzled." Gee... that sure is reassuring. I mentioned the stuff from this thread - the "master-tech" claimed it is not the shock. They want to keep the car overnight and into tomorrow. They don't seem to have a clue.

350z2k3, which dealer in Tampa-Bay area did you go to? Maybe I can have my guys call your guys and maybe resolve this a bit quicker...

 

Mine was diagnosed quickly, on the first visit. In fact when I first got there the service advisor recalled a similar issue on another Z and mentioned it might be the shock.

Diagnosis was internal shock failure, they replaced the parts I listed earlier in this thread.

Dealer was Ferman Nissan of New Port Richey. Not the friendliest guys but the shock and parts replacement did fix the passenger side noise.

I'm not sure when i'll be able to take it back in, I might go to Autoway Nissan of Clearwater which is closer to where I work.

If your car is under warranty and they can't make a diagnosis, politely request that they replace the parts listed in this thread. If they refuse ask to talk to the service manager and request through them. If it is indeed the same noise, this should fix it. Be persistent but stay polite. If all else fails take it to another dealer.

 

Just a quick note on the aftermarket strut/shock discussion - my noise is different than what's being discussed here (and why I stopped commenting after my last post). I'm pretty sure mine is related to the rear hatch struts and NOT anything related to the suspension.

As for the other rear noise I had, something is broken in the muffler and that's being replaced... or will be when I get it back - someone hit me in a parking lot yesterday so front bumper/quarter panel/rim being replaced and that will be awhile as none of the damaged parts are stock.

 

Arnold is right, different noise.

 

ok here's my update-

I got my car back from Nissan of Manhattan yesterday. The noise is almost completely gone. They had the car for about a week. They seemed to try much harder than any previous dealer.

I drove it around the city and found the nlise was not nearly as frequent or prounounced as it was. The tech said the strut mount was making noise (even though they were brand new, replaced at my request several weeks ago by Great Beck Nissan), so he "repositioned and looped" them. I'm not sure exactly waht that means. He also said that the back panels were loose and seemed to be banging against the metal pieces in the rear of the car (near the latch).

If you'd like to go there, they seem very willing to work on it. They were really nice.The service guy is named Chris and the tech is Ignacio. I'm going to go there from now on. Maybe they can even get rid of it completely sometime soon. It's MUCH better than it was. The only time it was better than this was when I had all the suspension parts swapped out of both sides-when the noise was completely gone but came came in a couple of months. Hopefully, this will not get worse again.

If you go to Manhattan, ask for Chris and tell him Kevin with the orange Z sent you for the same problem.

 

fyi-had that done months ago, noise went away and came back

 

Hopefully my 05 struts hold up. Seems like a common issue with 06+ hardware to me.

 

I wonder if there is an aftermarket solution. Anyone know?

 

Get a really loud exhaust pipe. I bet you won't hear the sound

 

what do you think of something like this? funny how it only goes up to 2006-

http://www.autopartsdeal.com/catalog...nd+Strut+Mount