My apologies if this has already been addressed by early 2011....

I have an 08 obviously, and about two years into blissful ownership my Z started making a "clunking" noise over bumps. I isolated it to the right side of the car by driving over speed bumps so only the right wheels bumped. I then reported to the dealer what I heard and had him take a drive with me. I thought perhaps the problem was the hatch, the spare tire, loose bolts, the rear struts or a combination of all the above. Lucky for me the Service Department over at Palm Nissan in Royal Palm Beach Florida found the problem right away and fixed it for me.

They removed both rear shocks and installed shims to lessen contact with the cars body. They may have tightened up some bolts here and there as well but I believe the struts rubbing were the problem. I was told that this is a problem for a lot of Z's.

Hope this is helpful for Z owners dealing with the clunks. I know my sanity is back.

 

It's a pretty popular subject....

https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...g-in-rear.html
https://my350z.com/forum/body-interi...attle-fix.html
https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...noise-fix.html
https://my350z.com/forum/exterior-an...unk-hatch.html
https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...ight-rear.html
https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...my-sanity.html
https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...om-a-stop.html

 

its funny how many different solutions to the clunking problem people have come up with. The shim solution was mentioned by one poster I believe. Of course we may all be experiencing many different problems with different solutions but I doubt it.

I think there is a real issue with the Z suspension being defective. Although the problem is not a safety or performance issue and hasn't resulted in a recall, it is still a defect nonetheless. The solution for me was rather simple and painless. Just wanted to spread the word. Carry on.

 

should we file for a complaint against Nissan then?

 

Btw op, do you know what kind of shim/pad they placed in there? It'd be great if you could write a DIY or something

 

+1

I read this post yday, and came in here today to post what you just posted. lol

 

bump?

help anyone?

 

Sorry guys...I don't check in here very often. The board always seems kind of dead. Anyway, no I don't know what exactly was used. I would just get it done at a reputable Nissan dealer. Ask them to consider putting a shim in and they should know what to do given the number of people who have experienced this particular issue. If they don't know about this problem try another dealership. I can only vouch for Royal Palm Nissan. The whole process only took an hour.

As far as filing a complaint....I'm not sure Nissan would do a recall given it's not a safety issue. I think they are just allowing Owners to get work done during warranty rather than just fixing everyone's car. Sheety but probably makes good biz sense.

Update: the clunk has not come back although the suspension never was soft and some rattle will always be there. These are not Benz's that's for sure but for the money I can't think of another car I would want to own.

 

Problem for me is I'm out of warranty, so I need to find a DIY or something along the lines of that...

 

check out the other threads....last guy (posted a sound video) said that the problem was his oem hatch struts!