Car Suspension Noise When Starting

Hello everyone.

My Golf 3 (with a now laughable 34,000 km on the odometer) makes a noticeable "clunk" sound almost every morning when I reverse it out of the garage and onto the street. Sometimes, you can even feel it as a slight bump in the bodywork.

It only makes a clicking sound when the front axle rolls diagonally from the slightly sloping driveway onto the road, which slightly twists the suspension.
Whether I gently slow it down or let it roll freely for a moment (always with the clutch disengaged, otherwise it would be too fast) doesn't matter.

And the strangest thing: When it made the noise, if you tried it again, moving it forward 1 meter into the driveway, then backward, then forward again, and then backward again, you couldn't reproduce the sound a second time within a few seconds. It only happened if the car had been standing for a while (about 15 minutes or more).

It doesn't ring every day, but "mostly" it does.

"Does anyone have any ideas about what might be causing this – especially why it doesn't happen constantly? (For example, if something were loose in the stabilizer area, it should be noticeable all the time, especially on a slightly uneven road surface)."

I'm not sure if this is the same issue that's been discussed in other threads... but maybe we can find a solution together?

Hi Ulf,

Do you engage the handbrake in the garage? If so, the noise could be coming from slightly stuck brake pads that are "settling" into the correct position.

I've observed a similar phenomenon... about 20 to 30 meters after starting, there's a distinct clunk sound coming from under the car, which isn't reproducible unless the car has been stationary for a while. However, it doesn't always happen, but I get the impression that it doesn't occur when the car is parked without the handbrake engaged (which I generally avoid doing on the street in the city).

Does your car have drum brakes or disc brakes in the rear? Mine have disc brakes, which are otherwise completely fine; they don't squeal, and they don't get hot while driving.

Best regards,

Jan.

Hi Jan,

I only park with the handbrake engaged in absolute emergencies, and never in the garage.

My brakes are also standard (disc brakes all around).
Especially the handbrake, because since I started using it regularly on descents (instead of downshifting and using the engine brake), I have at least been able to stop the further rusting of the rear brake discs .
(Achieving a total fuel consumption of around 4.2 liters is only possible with a significant safety margin and by letting the car coast frequently, which means minimizing braking.)

Hi Ulf,

Then, the brakes on your car are probably not the issue, or the noise you're hearing is different from the noise we're talking about.

Otherwise, you really have it good in terms of environmental conditions... something like that (4.2 l) is unfortunately not achievable in city traffic in a large city . My record was once after 20 km on the city highway at almost 100 km/h with 4.3, but there was also no other traffic interfering.

"The advantage is that the rear brakes also don't suffer from rust, but remain nice and clean..."

Could you imagine that the brakes sticking could be the cause of such a noise? If they are sticking, they are only doing so in a way that isn't noticeable when starting the car...

Best regards,

Jan.

Jan6K wrote:

Could you imagine that, in my case, sticking brake pads could be the cause of such a noise? They are - if they are sticking - only sticking in a way that you don't notice it when starting the car...

Hi Jan,

Actually, not really. I can tell when my brakes are sticking (after driving through water or in the rain) by:
1. The car remains motionless until...
2. If you push or hit it forcefully, you'll hear a bright, metallic sound when the brakes release and the discs "ring."

But that, of course, happens the moment the car starts moving - and not after 20 or 30 meters like in your case.
I can't really explain why the brakes should be making that noise after this journey.

As I said, if mine ticks, it does so even when I let it roll gently onto the street.

Hi Ulf,

You're probably right; they're certainly not rusted on that tightly. The question is whether they could get stuck in a way that prevents them from rubbing, but without being in the correct position... probably not.

I'll try to analyze the noise more closely when it happens again – maybe it's not related to the brakes.

Best regards,

Jan.

'I had the same issue with my A6.'
It started exactly the same way as it did for you.
Later, I was able to reproduce the clicking sound by braking hard and then quickly accelerating.
For me, it was the left axle shaft. It's been gone since I replaced it.

John.

Johannes wrote:

Did you experience this with the A6 as well? It started exactly the same way as it did for you. Later, I was able to reproduce the clicking sound by braking hard and then quickly accelerating. In my case, it was the left axle shaft. Since I replaced it, the problem is gone.

Hi Johannes,

Thank you for the tip.
However, the lower control arm is a rigid component that doesn't allow for any movement internally, and therefore shouldn't rattle.
Unless it cracks partially, and the colliding fracture surfaces or similar areas make a rattling noise during load changes.

Otherwise, I can only imagine that something else in the axle housing is making a noise, such as, for example, the ball joint bearing for the control arm.
Do you know any more details about that?

It is also interesting that I can avoid the rattling if I press down firmly on the front of the car before starting, allowing it to bounce slightly in the suspension .

Did Audi not have problems with the ball joints at some point?

Maybe they rejected me after all.

Perhaps the spring is positioned a few millimeters differently; I had a similar issue with my old toolbox.

CU Gremlin.

Hi Ulf!

I'm not sure if this will help you, but I had a similar dull clicking sound (which could be felt in the steering wheel) in my Passat TD from 1985, especially when the steering was turned. In my opinion, it was a slight shift in the wheel bearing within the shock absorber (which didn't occur again after I replaced it).

Best regards, Christian.

My additional experience with 'click' sounds:

1. Tighten the aggregate carrier screws (4 screws at the rear, 4 screws at the front).
2. Tighten the drive shafts on the gear side. I once had a case where the internal splined screws had come loose.

Maybe this will help.

Best regards,