Am I a Hazard?

Wrecked944 · 11-14-2003, 05:13 AM

I have a really loud clunking sound coming from the left rear end of my car. Mechanic thinks it might be a bad CV but can't find any damage on the boots or the axles. Since money is tight these days, I am inclined to ignore it and crank up the stereo. So am I a prudent and financially disciplined economic citizen or am I an accident waiting to happen?

Rot 911 · 11-14-2003, 05:17 AM

Really loud? You are an accident waiting to happen. Your cv joints can quite easily go out even though the boot is in good condition.

dickster · 11-14-2003, 05:17 AM

i think you know the answer to that

Wrecked944 · 11-14-2003, 05:19 AM

Okay, then dumb question #2...what, exactly, are CV joints and what do they do?

dickster · 11-14-2003, 05:22 AM

they are joints in your drive shafts (between gear box, and hubs) that allow the drive shafts to move up and down with the suspension.

on-ramp · 11-14-2003, 05:26 AM

make sure all lugnuts that secure tires onto car are tight.

had the same clunking/knocking sound a while back and that was it. loose tire

Rot 911 · 11-14-2003, 05:30 AM

Course you can always keep driving with a bad cv joint. That is right up until it breaks and takes out part of your exhaust and beats the bottom of your car until it looks like the surface of the moon. Other than that, really no problem.

na2ub · 11-14-2003, 05:41 AM

CV = Constant Velocity. CV Broken = No Velocity. I would get it fixed ASAP or at least stop driving until you have the $$$.

Thomas Owen · 11-14-2003, 06:12 AM

I would not want to be in the car behind you when this lets go. Better hope the the outcome is just a slow coast to the side of the road to await tow....

Dantilla · 11-14-2003, 06:53 AM

CV's are relatively cheap.

Fixing a car that had one let go isn't.

You decide.

Jadams1 · Jadams1's Garage

Yes!

Wrecked944 · 11-14-2003, 08:24 AM

Wow, thanks for the info. I'll take the car off the road right away until I can get it fixed. I actually took the car to two shops (one was an independent Porsche mechanic while the other was a Porsche dealer) and both seemed strangely unconcerned by the clunking. The most either one said was "sounds like a cv" but neither offered to replace the CV's because they appeared to be okay. So I figured I should ask the true (Pelican) experts before I went spinning into a guardrail.

NOTE: Driver is more mechanically clueless than he appears.

Cornpanzer · 11-14-2003, 08:39 AM

Janus,
Replacing the CV's are not really too difficult of a job. As long as you have a safe jack and a sturdy pair of stands, you can probably do it yourself.I would recommend that you replace the entire halfshaft. (the axle shaft between the two CV joints). It is usually cheaper in the long run.
It is very odd that you would have a bad CV if the boots are in good shape.
I would recommend that you go to your local book seller tonight and pick up our host's excellent book "101 projects for your911". It has two pages with pictures dedicated to this job.

masraum · 11-14-2003, 08:55 AM

Just in case check that the sway bar mount hasn't torn away from the body, under certain circumstances that can make a clunking noise at the rear of the car. I only mention this because it's not clear how closely the two shops looked at your car. If they just went by your description without checking things out you may want to verify that the CV is the problem.

Eugene at Pelican Parts · 11-14-2003, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by JanusCole
NOTE: Driver is more mechanically clueless than he appears.

How did you manage to rebuild a transmission without handling and understanding the CV joints? Haha... boy, that's rich.

When do you hear the clunking? Around corners? Upon acceleration? Sitting still?

speeder · speeder's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by AlwaysWong

When do you hear the clunking? Around corners? Upon acceleration? Sitting still?

Only when listening to 50 cent?

Get it checked by someone willing to actually diagnose it. Might be something that can be ignored for awhile, might be a serious issue.

jbripps · jbripps's Garage

Not to step on toes here, but I have a similar noise, that only occurs while coasting in 1st gear........I've been told it's a c/v joint, so I plan on replacing the axle on the off season here. Does that symptom sound right? Already had the tranny rebuilt, and the noise existed before and after.

regards,

Wrecked944 · 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AlwaysWong
How did you manage to rebuild a transmission without handling and understanding the CV joints? Haha... boy, that's rich.

Ouch !! I wish you hadn't mentioned that (didn't you read my website?

). Actually, after rebuilding and re-installing the tranny, I ended up spending lots of $$ having the passenger side CV and sway bar stuff replaced because I had apparently accidentally destroyed them. My mechanic has often said, "I don't know if I make more money fixing your car or fixing your mistakes."

Quote:

When do you hear the clunking? Around corners? Upon acceleration? Sitting still?

Happens whenever the car is in motion - foward or reverse. Makes more noise when under acceleration but pretty much always clunks somewhat. The sway bar thing may be a clue. I'll investigate this weekend.

Quote:

I only mention this because it's not clear how closely the two shops looked at your car

Well, in both cases I speciifcally asked them to fix the clunking. I must admit to a bit of annoyance that I brought the car to two shops to get a problem fixed and yet it is still broken. However, in their defense, I told both shops that I didn't mind replacing every freaking part in the rear end and they both declined to blindly replace parts. And again, neither seemed terribly concerned that I was driving away with a clunking car.