More Golf problems.... HELP !
Discussion
Golf developed a banging noise on Tuesday (speed related - i.e. faster you go, faster the noise). Almost sounds like a wheel trying to fall off, but all wheels are firmy secured (noise if from the front of the car, possibly passenger side). Took the car to garage on Wednesday & the strut top mount on passenger side was very worn & making a similar noise when the strut was shaken, so yesterday it was replaced.
Picked car up last night & drove home all fine. Driving into work today, 60miles into the journey (of 66 miles), and the banging has come back ! The car had the same fault about 4 months ago, but it stopped & never came back (until Tuesday), but it's now a LOT worse than it was then, so I want to get it sorted. The car has now had : New wheel bearing, new (2nd hand) driveshaft & CV joints & new strut top mount.
Anyone got any bright ideas ? The noise almost stops if you are on a very very light throttle, but as soon as you lift off a little or acclerate it's banging like a blacksmith ! (makes no difference if you brake while it's banging, so it's not the brakes - I don't think ???)
Picked car up last night & drove home all fine. Driving into work today, 60miles into the journey (of 66 miles), and the banging has come back ! The car had the same fault about 4 months ago, but it stopped & never came back (until Tuesday), but it's now a LOT worse than it was then, so I want to get it sorted. The car has now had : New wheel bearing, new (2nd hand) driveshaft & CV joints & new strut top mount.
Anyone got any bright ideas ? The noise almost stops if you are on a very very light throttle, but as soon as you lift off a little or acclerate it's banging like a blacksmith ! (makes no difference if you brake while it's banging, so it's not the brakes - I don't think ???)
Gets slightly worse when you go round a right hander - yes... (CV joint ?)
Tyres are fine though (I had passenger side off at lunch time in car park - getting VERY strange looks while I had my head stuffed in the wheel arch!
)
The car only had new tyres fitted about 6 weeks ago, the the same noise happened in November with the old tyres (although it then stopped for 3 months ???).....
Tyres are fine though (I had passenger side off at lunch time in car park - getting VERY strange looks while I had my head stuffed in the wheel arch!
) The car only had new tyres fitted about 6 weeks ago, the the same noise happened in November with the old tyres (although it then stopped for 3 months ???).....
Jack the side of the car up where the noise is coming from.
Put the car in 1st gear, engine OFF.
Attempt to rock the wheel back and forth. If either the inner or outer cv's are badly worn youll get a load of movement.
It should be possible to get a small amount of rotation, say around an inch at the surface of the tyre.
HTH.
PS, safety first, use an axle stand to support the car and dont go crawling about under it without one!
Put the car in 1st gear, engine OFF.
Attempt to rock the wheel back and forth. If either the inner or outer cv's are badly worn youll get a load of movement.
It should be possible to get a small amount of rotation, say around an inch at the surface of the tyre.
HTH.
PS, safety first, use an axle stand to support the car and dont go crawling about under it without one!
Called RAC - they turned up & typically the car performed faultlessly ! So I started driving it home (carefully) - half way home (but now outside the M25 thank g*d !) the noise came back with vengeance. Pulled into the 1st lay-by, jacked up front passenger side - full lock & started turning wheel backwards.... I could actually see the drive shaft moving around inside the inner CV joint ! And then it got stuck & I had to push it a lot harder (at which point it thumped & jumped back into the CV & aligned properly !) RAC called & flat bed arrived 30mins later to take me the rest of the way home.....
Question is : CV or drive shaft ? I reckon CV......
Question is : CV or drive shaft ? I reckon CV......
Drive shaft OR cv?
What goes wrong with the drive shaft? I guess you could round off the splines, but that would mean no drive at all, not nasty banging.
Replace the CV. Usually it's the outer that goes west, although you seem to think it is the inner (which is less common.) A bit of free advice is to buy a tub of CV joint grease and really fill all the airspaces in the boot with the stuff - it does make them last longer. Messy, smelly job but very satisfying when it cures the problem.
Oli.
What goes wrong with the drive shaft? I guess you could round off the splines, but that would mean no drive at all, not nasty banging.
Replace the CV. Usually it's the outer that goes west, although you seem to think it is the inner (which is less common.) A bit of free advice is to buy a tub of CV joint grease and really fill all the airspaces in the boot with the stuff - it does make them last longer. Messy, smelly job but very satisfying when it cures the problem.
Oli.
Good point batman ! 
It's definatelty the inner - as you turn the wheel, you can see the drive shaft moving round in the CV joint ! I'm wondering if one of the balls inside the joint has smashed ?
Already got a tub of grease & am collecting a new CV & boot on my way home tonight.
Guess who is getting covered in grease on Sunday !
Thanks for all the comments/suggestions !
I'll try & remmeber to take pics if it's interesting.....
It's definatelty the inner - as you turn the wheel, you can see the drive shaft moving round in the CV joint ! I'm wondering if one of the balls inside the joint has smashed ?
Already got a tub of grease & am collecting a new CV & boot on my way home tonight.
Guess who is getting covered in grease on Sunday !
Thanks for all the comments/suggestions !
I'll try & remmeber to take pics if it's interesting.....
Ok, CV joint nearly replaced (ran out of time/energy last night to re-fit the drive shaft), but the inner (passenger side) CV was a little worn !
3 or the 6 tracks that the balls slide up/down in on the inner CV joint are very badly pitted ! I've taken some photo's & will upload tonight & post.... Can't beleive the CV lasted as long as it did ! As soon as I took the CV off the car, 2 ball bearings fell out !
3 or the 6 tracks that the balls slide up/down in on the inner CV joint are very badly pitted ! I've taken some photo's & will upload tonight & post.... Can't beleive the CV lasted as long as it did ! As soon as I took the CV off the car, 2 ball bearings fell out !
Just because the balls fall out doesn't mean it's past it.
But pitted balls sounds pretty terminal. Funny, as whenever I have had one go, it's always been the tracks that have suffered most.
It also never ceases to amaze me how much of a racket a slightly pitted track (and presumably ball) can make. I can only assume that an apparently noisy joint could go on driving for quite some time as it won't actually cease to transmit torque. It'll just get more and more musical.
Oli.
But pitted balls sounds pretty terminal. Funny, as whenever I have had one go, it's always been the tracks that have suffered most.
It also never ceases to amaze me how much of a racket a slightly pitted track (and presumably ball) can make. I can only assume that an apparently noisy joint could go on driving for quite some time as it won't actually cease to transmit torque. It'll just get more and more musical.
Oli.
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