Front end suspension noise only in the rain

[Wallygator1]

I am experiencing a clunk/rattle in my drivers side front end suspension of my 2013 SHO. The thing is that it only happens in the rain. The dealership feels it is the strut but isn't 100% sure so they won't touch it. Can anyone help me with this?

 

[beequick]

Do you hear it while turning, going over bumps, all the time? Need more information

 

[shaker281]

A clunk or rattle should be a sign of a very broken/worn strut, not really a common failure mode I should think. I would surmise that leakage and harsh ride or jouncing would be far more common. How the rain plays into that is hard to imagine.

If there are a lot of miles on the car/struts, then preemptive strut replacement is not the worst case scenario, I suppose.

 

[Wallygator1]

Thank you for your responses. Beequick, to answer your question, the noise occurs when driving over bumps. Turning the car doesn't seem to have any impact on the noise. Dont hear the noise when turning on a smooth road surface. Any bumps in the road cause the noise. 70K miles on my car. The noise goes away as soon as the rain dries up and then I dont hear anything.

 

[SHOdded]

Ball joint/control arm and tie rods are common failures on these vehicles, tie rods being the most common. Some strut mount failures have also been noted.

 

[6500rpm]

We used to see a fair number of sway bar links fail in Limited's in the fleet a few years back. We used to just take the bottom link loose and zip tie it back in a safe position and drive over bumps and see if the noise quit if you can't just physically feel the slop. Also broken strut turn plates (usually makes noise when turning also). The only in the rain thing is mind blowing???

 

[Wallygator1]

Hi everyone. Been a while since I wrote my about my suspension issue when raining. Still exists, no worse, no better. 90k miles on the car now.
Left side clunking when wet. Dread rainy days. Anyone got any ideas or recommendations??

 

[shaker281]

OK, this is way out there, but what if the noise is associated with loss of traction while going over bumps on a slippery surface"? Hence, coming from the the AWD engaging? It would maybe explain the "when it rains" situation. Though not particularly helpful in isolating the solution. Or the ABS engaging?

Does it happen only under acceleration or also when coasting? Just something to consider.

 

[Wallygator1]

Good thought but it happens all of the time when raining. Seems that when I hit any imperfection on the road surface I hear the clunking like soemthing is loose. I'm sure it comes from something in the strut tower. DRIVING ME CRAZY!!

 

[luigisho]

If it is coming from the strut tower then replace the mount and maybe the strut (they recommend struts in pairs for replacement just to be thorough)