Help with knocking noise

[Ben93]

Hello I recently had my clutch and flywheel changed on my 06 corolla d4d 2 litre a day after whilst driving I noticed a clunk sort of sound from front left side of car over pothole or bumps that I've not had before. I also get a metal clunk sound if I try to pull away fast etc. I'm worried what this could be as it wasn't there until work was done.

[oldcodger]

Hi,

Had a similar problem when I let some clowns change my clutch.

To get the box out you have to support / raise/ lower the engine block so its easy for something to get bent or knocked out of position.

On mine they had bent the exhaust heat shields and when I  engaged reverse it knocked against it.

Have a look around and see if anything looks out of place, bent or loose, a gearbox out needs a lot of disassembling so its easy to miss things when putting back together.

Check for the more obvious things like wheel nuts done up correctly and the other suspension bolts around that side.

Best thing would be to take it back to the garage who did it, they can soon put it on the ramp and have a good look around.

[Ben93]

Checked driveshafts ball joints nuts wheel etc all looks fine. I have a funny feeling it may be the heat shield but I am not taking the plastic panel off and crawling under it on a trolley jack it's going to have to be a ramp job. Longs he's not broken anything major I don't care. It just sounds like lots of loose rattling metal it's worse over bumpy road surfaces than actual speed bumps that are smooth which makes me think it's more likely something like a shield or cover flapping around. Touch wood it is but it's going to a different place to check I'd rather pay someone else as the guy who did it's getting defensive so I don't trust him. Don't get me wrong the clutch and flywheel are fine car pulls like a train now no clutch judder or anything bites about an inch off the floor is that nice and easy. Just making such a horrId clank I thought the wheel was gonna come off but none of them joints look bad. I've looked at the engine mounts I could find easily too they're all on ok. 

[Ben93]

He did the whole job in around 5 hours roughly. He was doing the last bits up properly that I watched so if he's bent the beat shields or anything I don't think it was deliberate but the defensiveness has put me off 

[Ben93]

Although it's quite a solid clunk a lot thicker sounding than a heat shield unless it's really banging hard. 

[oldcodger]

Hi,

The heatshields I was talking about  are the very beginning of the shield run and can be seen from behind  the top side of the engine, though as you say they do give a much more high pitched sound when the exhaust downpipes hit them.  They are quiet soft and very easy to catch and bend out of shape, though generally of little consequence apart from the rattle.  Just look for an even gap between the two parts or you might see one side much closer or bent.

It could be so many things, from a loose engine mount bolts to some smaller item catching somewhere. Such noises can sound so much worse from inside.

Sounds if he's done a good job with the new clutch, so think I would at least try him first, he might be only too apologetic and happy to sort things.

With mine, just the initial inertia of letting the clutch out and moving a foot of two, caused the engine to move and hit the heat shield; does yours or is it just when going over a bump, can you do a static test and bounce the shocks and see if that causes the noise ?

[Ben93]

It also does it if I pull away fast when clutch engages or if I put my foot down in 2nd or third or if I release accelerator quickly. Anything that jolts the car really. The strange thing is if I hit a pothole with eight wheel it don't really do it if I hit it with left wheel it does it but the noise is sorta central of the car but slightly to the left. It's not a nice sound but I don't think it's anything that's going to cause a big issue after checking the joints. Yes he did do a good job with it only cost me 220 labour and I live in the south east in greater London so a lot better than the 400 quoted elsewhere.

[Ben93]

It's probably something silly and he wouldn't have meaned to have done it I even see him double checking the wheels with a big car before I left and took car so he is careful.

[Ben93]

Found the noise. Lucky really could of ended badly had a loose wishbone nut so was smashing up and down underneath. Got about 2.5 turns on the nut to get it tight noise all gone. 

[Notoyboy]

That's good news, and lucky you persevered in tracking down the noise!