Clunking/knocking noise 07 Opel Astra

Steve F

Hi all
The above car recently passed its NCT after having to go through a retest due to broken damaged rear coil spring
Prior to the the test I had become aware of a clunking/bumping sound from underneath when ever I drove over uneven road surfaces or even more noticeable driving slowly through town and hitting a man hole or ridge across the street.
I thought the NCT would find the problem and I would have to get the fix done
However,the only thing it found was the aforementioned coil spring
At a guess I would say it is something to do with the front as the noise happens as soon as the front wheels hit something
What could it be that wasn't picked up on the NCT?
94,000km on clock
Any advise would be welcomed

kilianmanning

Steve F wrote: »

Hi all
The above car recently passed its NCT after having to go through a retest due to broken damaged rear coil spring
Prior to the the test I had become aware of a clunking/bumping sound from underneath when ever I drove over uneven road surfaces or even more noticeable driving slowly through town and hitting a man hole or ridge across the street.
I thought the NCT would find the problem and I would have to get the fix done
However,the only thing it found was the aforementioned coil spring
At a guess I would say it is something to do with the front as the noise happens as soon as the front wheels hit something
What could it be that wasn't picked up on the NCT?
94,000km on clock
Any advise would be welcomed

Probably a drop link rattling or play in a bottom ball joint. Both things in my experiences would be likely to be missed in the nct.

Special Circumstances

Drop link or anti roll bar bushings would be my guess. They seem to allow a bit of leeway with the bushings, but a small bit of movement can lead to a lot of noise.

Lie down near front of car and grab the anti roll bar and give it a good wiggling on one side then the other. On one or both sides of the car you'll probably notice a bit of a clunking near the wheel side (drop link) or near engine ( arb bushing).

Assuming it isn't wishbone or ball joint related.

Steve F

Thanks both
Next question...what sort of money would we be looking at to fix the above options?
Thanks

Special Circumstances

Bushing 10-15 for the pair rough guess? Some can be awkward to fit so labour is gonna be the dominant factor.
Drop link could be anywhere between 15 and 50 per side depending on make. These are generally a pain to get old one off but handy to fit new one.

All of the above is rough guess from my amateur experience. Its a problem that sounds very bad and annoying but not big money to fix.

Balljoint? Dunno years since I got one done. A balljoint can cause some spectacular fvck ups if it's left go too long. You'd assume the nct would have caught it if your wheel was likely to separate from the car any time soon...

MercMad

I'd agree about drop links. An Astra is fairly straightforward to do, just phone your local guy. The NCT should have picked up a ball joint IMO but not always Drop Links

Steve F

Update on this Lads
Took the aforementioned car to the garage Saturday and it was indeed a drop link that needed replacing on front near side. Only cost about 20 Euros so no biggie.Glad to hear my front wheel wasn't about to fall off
Thanks again for the advice Fellas
Steve