Weird creaking noise in Esprit V8

[mike carroll]

Hi,

I have a strange creaking or knocking noise that seems to be coming from the bulkhead behind the seats on my 98 V8SE, whenever I go over a bump, which tends to be pretty intrusive. The car's had this since I've owned it, so it's nothing new, but thought I would ask you all if you experience the same.

It's almost as if the bulkhead is flexing slighty. I assume that the bulkhead is still made from marine plywood, as per earlier Esprit's - this is pretty much what it sounds like. Creaking or flexing wood.

My previous 89 Esprit didn't have this, but then it wasn't as hard sprung as the V8.

Anyone have any similiar experiences or comments? (yes, I know I could address the issue by just not driving over any more bumps...)

Cheers,
Mike Carroll

[kmaier]

Check all of the body mounting bolts and be sure to check the rear suspension mounting. I had my right rear suspension trailing arm mounting bolts come loose which was the cause of creaking noises... was there from day one (bought it new) and found it during a routine service. I also lost a suspension shim for rear toe adjustment as a result. Hope this helps.

Regards, KM
2000 V8

[lotusguy]

Mike,

KM's advise is sound and should be checked out, but, if no problem is found there, I think what you are experiencing is a shifting bulkhead due to loose or missing nuts on the bulkhead mount. These have been known to come loose.
Not sure about the V-8's, but on some models, you must peel back or make a small incision in the carpeting on the cockpit side of the bulkhead in order to get a wrench on the bolt (the nuts are on the engine bay side). I tightened mine this past summer when the engine was out and used a drop of threadlock to prevent them from loosening again. Hope this helps...Jim '85TE

[Peter J. Park]

I had this problem on my 97 V8. The plywood bulkhead does compress and allows the mounting point hardware to bang about a bit. On the advise of Lotus I bought some fender washers from Home Depot, (1.25"OD x 5/16"ID)and installed them BETWEEN the chassis mounting tab and the bulkhead, two to each bolt to give about 1/8" spacer. It's a tight squeeze and you may need to cut slots into the washers to get them in.I also replaced the nuts and bolts to a higher quality since the originals were not up to the job IMHO. I was able to access the bolts without destroying the carpeting by removing the bulkhead speakers and getting between the carpet and bulkhead, it is tight though but possible. This took care of the annoying noises completely.
Hope this helps. Peter.

[mike carroll]

Thanks for the responses, fellas. Sounds like Peter's had the same problem as me, so will follow this plan of attack.

Thanks again.

Cheers, Mike.