I'm stumped. My ion has the clunking sound when driving on a gravel road or going up and down my driveway and I just noticed today that while driving if I steer the car left and right rapidly I get the sound too. It sounds like it's coming from the front right and I assumed it was a suspension problem but everything checks out. I replaced the strut assemblies on both sides about 2 weeks ago, wheels are aligned, all the bearing and bushings look fine, no play in tied rods or sway bars or lower control arm or wheel bearing. I'm going cross country in a week and want to get the problem solved before I do or at least know that whatever is making the sound isn't a big deal.

I've looked high and low on the Internet and can't find anything with the same symptoms I am having. Any ideas?

 

Check out your sway bar bushings themselves... It seems to be a common issue with the IONs; my Redline has the same clunk when driving over certain surfaces...

If your other bushings/bearings are okay, you should be fine for your road trip...

 

I agree with bonestock. If they're the slightest bit worn, they can clunk. And check the sway bar end links. Just put your hand on one and have someone bounce the front end if they're bad, you'll feel the "clunking" when it bounces. It's hard to tell by just looking.

 

picking up the bushings tomorrow, I took out the old one to get the right size. It's 20mm and the one in there now measures out about 22mm now. Would that cause some noise? And thank you very much for the help

 

Yes. It doesn't take much for them to just slightly move. 2mm may not seem like much, but in relation to suspension, it can and does. Let us know how this works out for you. Are the holes in the old one slightly egg shaped or still round? Make sure to find out what the correct torque spec is for them and torque them properly.

 

They are still round. And I found 37ft lbs for the bushing clamp

 

It was definitely the sway bar bushings. I didn't really know what they were supposed to look or feel like but I replaced them anyway and the noise is gone. Cost me a whole $15 for the set. Thanks very much guys, now all that's left is getting a shim for my rear axle alignment and I'll have a clear conscience while driving.

 

Great to hear that is was a cheap and relatively easy fix. Thanks for letting us know!

 

Indeed --- you'd be surprised how few people take the time to come back and let us know if the suggestions received actually fixed the problem.

You haven't received it yet but will soon -- there is a 10 post min + a signature requirement to become a permanent member of the forum. You sem like someone who'd like to hang around here......

 

Oh yeah definitely. The least I can do is let people know whether something worked or not especially for future people seeing this post. Plus I'd much rather take care of things myself if I can. And like I said earlier I really do appreciate the advice.