97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps

CJB wrote:

> It could well be the broken spring that someone mentioned, but I thought
> that problem was Taurus specific. The thing that bothers me is the rubbing

When I bought this car (about two years ago?) I posted in here asking
about things to check. Oh, and I posted asking about the darn rough
idle, too If you search back here you should find whoever it was
that advised checking the springs.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

CJB wrote:

> The rough idle is only evident on the AT's the MT's were fine. I think if
> Ford had tweaked up the idle a bit, you'd be fine.

Could well be - mine is auto - however after various tweaking and
fiddling as described, I did eventually iron the problem out to my
satisfaction (and no I didn't just mess with the throttle cable to fake
out a faster idle .

I think it's an issue with some sensor aging, or a tolerance for (say)
vacuum leakage getting worse with time, that puts slop in the feedback
loops and renders the ECM unable to sustain whatever the programmed
idle speed is. In my case, any and all of these factors made the noisy
idle worse:

- high drain electrical accessories being on (headlamps, rear window
defroster)
- being in gear
- a/c being on
- car being warmed up.

Sometimes when the A/C compressor would kick in, the car would sound
like it was ALMOST going to stall.


Actually, all my efforts were well worth it because I improved the gas
mileage by somewhere between 2 and 3mpg altogether. It's a good little
car.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

wrote in message

> Hi All,
>
> For over a year, I have had a clunking noise when I hit a bump. It
> doesn't appear to have gotten much worse. I have checked the tie rod
> ends and ball joints. There is no play when I do the top to bottom and
> back to front check for play in the joints and ends when the car is
> jacked up.
>
> Although it hasn't gotten any worse, I am out of my skill league, so I
> am asking if there are any last things I can check before I take it
> into the pro. Also, between 40 and 45mph (only), I hear a rubbing
> noise in the driver side front end. Once again, it hasn't gotten any
> worse.
>
> Any insight?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Steve
>

It could well be the broken spring that someone mentioned, but I thought
that problem was Taurus specific. The thing that bothers me is the rubbing
sound you hear. I had a front coil spring break on a 2000 Taurus Wagon, and
even though I was aware of the potential for that, and the recall, I didn't
notice the broken spring until I was changing brake pads. The springs can
pop loose and puncture a tire. Again, I thought the problem was only with
the Taurus, but maybe there's a potential that it's also a problem on an
older Escort.

If you've checked the ball joints and tie rod ends, I'd look three other
places. First, check the motor mounts. It's possible that one's bad and
the drivetrain's moving around on bumps. Second, look at the struts. The
bushings can get bad and allow movement. Third, look to see if the rack and
pinion unit is leaking. It may be that the unit itself has bad bushings and
is clunking around.

CJB
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

wrote in message

>
> CJB wrote:
>
>> It could well be the broken spring that someone mentioned, but I thought
>> that problem was Taurus specific. The thing that bothers me is the
>> rubbing
>
> When I bought this car (about two years ago?) I posted in here asking
> about things to check. Oh, and I posted asking about the darn rough
> idle, too If you search back here you should find whoever it was
> that advised checking the springs.
>

The rough idle is only evident on the AT's the MT's were fine. I think if
Ford had tweaked up the idle a bit, you'd be fine.

And, like I said, you may well be right about the springs.

CJB
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

wrote in message

>
> CJB wrote:
>
>> The rough idle is only evident on the AT's the MT's were fine. I think
>> if
>> Ford had tweaked up the idle a bit, you'd be fine.
>
> Could well be - mine is auto - however after various tweaking and
> fiddling as described, I did eventually iron the problem out to my
> satisfaction (and no I didn't just mess with the throttle cable to fake
> out a faster idle .
>
> I think it's an issue with some sensor aging, or a tolerance for (say)
> vacuum leakage getting worse with time, that puts slop in the feedback
> loops and renders the ECM unable to sustain whatever the programmed
> idle speed is. In my case, any and all of these factors made the noisy
> idle worse:
>
> - high drain electrical accessories being on (headlamps, rear window
> defroster)
> - being in gear
> - a/c being on
> - car being warmed up.
>
> Sometimes when the A/C compressor would kick in, the car would sound
> like it was ALMOST going to stall.
>
>
> Actually, all my efforts were well worth it because I improved the gas
> mileage by somewhere between 2 and 3mpg altogether. It's a good little
> car.
>

You're absolutely right that the problem is due to drags on the engine at
idle speed. That's why the AT, with the torque converter drag it ads, makes
a difference. I'm glad you got yours idling smoothly.

And, as to the 97 Escort, I bought one new, drove the wheels off of it, and
wish I'd never sold it. It was by far the most trouble free car I've ever
owned.

CJB
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

"CJB" wrote in message


> It could well be the broken spring that someone mentioned, but I thought
> that problem was Taurus specific. The thing that bothers me is the
> rubbing sound you hear. I had a front coil spring break on a 2000 Taurus
> Wagon, and even though I was aware of the potential for that, and the
> recall, I didn't notice the broken spring until I was changing brake pads.
> The springs can pop loose and puncture a tire. Again, I thought the
> problem was only with the Taurus, but maybe there's a potential that it's
> also a problem on an older Escort.

The problem is common on Escorts as well (especially the rear springs).
Both of mine were broken on the bottom loop. You likely won't spot it
unless you look for it and feel the spring itself as the break is usually
under a plastic sheath
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

On 17 Jun 2006 16:41:12 -0700, wrote:

>Hi All,
>
>For over a year, I have had a clunking noise when I hit a bump. It
>doesn't appear to have gotten much worse. I have checked the tie rod
>ends and ball joints. There is no play when I do the top to bottom and
>back to front check for play in the joints and ends when the car is
>jacked up.
>
>Although it hasn't gotten any worse, I am out of my skill league, so I
>am asking if there are any last things I can check before I take it
>into the pro. Also, between 40 and 45mph (only), I hear a rubbing
>noise in the driver side front end. Once again, it hasn't gotten any
>worse.
>
>Any insight?
>
>Thanks!
>
>Steve

I don't know if this was suggested but check the upper control arm
bushings.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

Stephan Mynarkiewicz wrote:
> "CJB" wrote in message
>
>
>
>>It could well be the broken spring that someone mentioned, but I thought
>>that problem was Taurus specific. The thing that bothers me is the
>>rubbing sound you hear. I had a front coil spring break on a 2000 Taurus
>>Wagon, and even though I was aware of the potential for that, and the
>>recall, I didn't notice the broken spring until I was changing brake pads.
>>The springs can pop loose and puncture a tire. Again, I thought the
>>problem was only with the Taurus, but maybe there's a potential that it's
>>also a problem on an older Escort.
>
>
> The problem is common on Escorts as well (especially the rear springs).
> Both of mine were broken on the bottom loop. You likely won't spot it
> unless you look for it and feel the spring itself as the break is usually
> under a plastic sheath

I've seen it happen on a 94' and 95' Escort wagon. The rear springs on
both sides were broken on the bottom. You wouldn't know it from the way
the car handled. The rubber tube on the bottom of the coil acts as a
noise isolator to quiet the spring where it sits in the metal mount.
When the coil breaks the new end drops into the mount. Then the spring
can make a noise because the rubber tube is no longer connected to the
remaining (functioning) part of the coil. Since both of these cars were
wagons it makes be wonder if the extra weight in the rear is what breaks
the springs on Escorts.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

"CJB" wrote in message

>
> wrote in message
>
>>
>> CJB wrote:
>>
>>> The rough idle is only evident on the AT's the MT's were fine. I think
>>> if
>>> Ford had tweaked up the idle a bit, you'd be fine.
>>
>> Could well be - mine is auto - however after various tweaking and
>> fiddling as described, I did eventually iron the problem out to my
>> satisfaction (and no I didn't just mess with the throttle cable to fake
>> out a faster idle .
>>
>> I think it's an issue with some sensor aging, or a tolerance for (say)
>> vacuum leakage getting worse with time, that puts slop in the feedback
>> loops and renders the ECM unable to sustain whatever the programmed
>> idle speed is. In my case, any and all of these factors made the noisy
>> idle worse:
>>
>> - high drain electrical accessories being on (headlamps, rear window
>> defroster)
>> - being in gear
>> - a/c being on
>> - car being warmed up.
>>
>> Sometimes when the A/C compressor would kick in, the car would sound
>> like it was ALMOST going to stall.
>>
>>
>> Actually, all my efforts were well worth it because I improved the gas
>> mileage by somewhere between 2 and 3mpg altogether. It's a good little
>> car.
>>
>
> You're absolutely right that the problem is due to drags on the engine at
> idle speed. That's why the AT, with the torque converter drag it ads,
> makes a difference. I'm glad you got yours idling smoothly.
>
> And, as to the 97 Escort, I bought one new, drove the wheels off of it,
> and wish I'd never sold it. It was by far the most trouble free car I've
> ever owned.
>
> CJB
I've got a 97 Wagon, 5 spd I bought new. I've replaced the counterbalancer,
and the transmission (juck yard) anf I have about 135000 on it. It's still
going strong, hoiwever the back coil springs are both broke. I'll be worlik
on those this summer.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

"E.Borowicz" wrote in message

>
> "CJB" wrote in message
>
>>
>> wrote in message
>>
>>>
>>> CJB wrote:
>>>
>>>> The rough idle is only evident on the AT's the MT's were fine. I think
>>>> if
>>>> Ford had tweaked up the idle a bit, you'd be fine.
>>>
>>> Could well be - mine is auto - however after various tweaking and
>>> fiddling as described, I did eventually iron the problem out to my
>>> satisfaction (and no I didn't just mess with the throttle cable to fake
>>> out a faster idle .
>>>
>>> I think it's an issue with some sensor aging, or a tolerance for (say)
>>> vacuum leakage getting worse with time, that puts slop in the feedback
>>> loops and renders the ECM unable to sustain whatever the programmed
>>> idle speed is. In my case, any and all of these factors made the noisy
>>> idle worse:
>>>
>>> - high drain electrical accessories being on (headlamps, rear window
>>> defroster)
>>> - being in gear
>>> - a/c being on
>>> - car being warmed up.
>>>
>>> Sometimes when the A/C compressor would kick in, the car would sound
>>> like it was ALMOST going to stall.
>>>
>>>
>>> Actually, all my efforts were well worth it because I improved the gas
>>> mileage by somewhere between 2 and 3mpg altogether. It's a good little
>>> car.
>>>
>>
>> You're absolutely right that the problem is due to drags on the engine at
>> idle speed. That's why the AT, with the torque converter drag it ads,
>> makes a difference. I'm glad you got yours idling smoothly.
>>
>> And, as to the 97 Escort, I bought one new, drove the wheels off of it,
>> and wish I'd never sold it. It was by far the most trouble free car I've
>> ever owned.
>>
>> CJB
> I've got a 97 Wagon, 5 spd I bought new. I've replaced the
> counterbalancer, and the transmission (juck yard) anf I have about 135000
> on it. It's still going strong, hoiwever the back coil springs are both
> broke. I'll be worlik on those this summer.
>
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps 

We've had the same thing on "Mom's Baby" '91 Escort with only 33K miles
on it. I read of an old service bulletin from '93 about some bushing
changes.....now the clunking at every little bump has been replaced
with groaning when the wheels are turned. When the car jacked up there
is no noise. However there looks like there is a leak of some sort
coming to what might be the Rack & P bushing on the drivers' side.
More investigation is needed.

"E"


wrote:
> wrote:
>
> > For over a year, I have had a clunking noise when I hit a bump. It
>
> I'm told that the springs - rear in particular - are prone to having
> the bottom of the coil break off and this symptom is then apparent. The
> problem is slightly hard to spot.
 >> Stay informed about: 97 Ford Escort clunking noise when hit bumps