legacycentral bbs

For a few months now my car has been making quite a bit of rear end clunking, and while i've managed to fix it substantially it's still there.

Started out of the blue when I was driving with 4 other passengers in my car. When I would accelerate hard the car sounded like I was hitting a pothole, loud and the whole car jerked. I noticed that when I was just by myself it would still happen, but not as often. For the most part it got really bad when I was either going up a hill, or when I had any amount of weight in the car (mainly the rear end, with a passenger in the driver side it was still okay so long as I babied it).

So upon suggestion from mike-tracy, I installed a set of poly rear diff. bushings and also installed some DIY rear subframe bolts. This drastically reduced the clunking, so much to the point where I could actually drive the car around town without it sounding like it was going to blow up. However, when there is still any weight in the car and I try to accelerate hard (or go up a hill fast), it still clunks.

I'm going to just start replacing the rest of the bushings in the rear end starting with the trailing arms and then the mid subframe. I have a set of 2.5rs KYB struts in the back with stock springs, an STI RSB and STI lateral links, so I don't think that those are an issue. Car is also properly aligned (or at least as best as it could be with my setup).

Anyone else had this type of a problem? I know for a fact that my trailing arms are like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klb_iYDAtnE

How are your u-joints in your driveshaft and your rear CVs? Hardly ever a problem on Subarus but hey, you've replaced a lot of other things and still have the problem so it is probably worth investigating.

I vote rear top hats if yours are oem. My white car has some bad clunking, but it always sounds like its above the seats in the car.

One of my friends had a similar clunking noise in his 97 gt, ended up being the exhaust hanger on the midpipe broken loose from the pipe and banging together.

Well that more or less confirms my use of the "keep fixing things till it stops" approach. I'm going to throw in a set of STI springs here before fall hits as well so my struts will get checked out again.

What size wheel & tires are you running?

Could it be that Sti swaybar hitting your spare tire bump? Did you replace the rear diff bushings or the diff outrigger bushings?

Running just stock 15" SS rims with appropriate tires, I replaced just the rear diff bushings so I'll order a set of outrigger bushings as well, and I cut the spare tire bump off with an angle grinder so that shouldnt be an issue

Also for the outrigger bushings, would you suggest getting a set of the inserts? (http://turninconcepts.com/kartboy-rear- ... -race.html) or replacing the entire bushing. I'm usually more inclined to cut out the old bushing and replace the whole thing.

Just get the poly inserts. Whiteline sells a set as well, and that's what I did. Cutting those rubber metal collar bushings out is NO fun!

Ohh yeah, I'm no stranger to cutting out those old bushings.

Going to get a set of these, If I'm gonna do it I'm going to drop the whole t-frame and get it all done right.

http://powerflexusa.com/subaruimprezatu ... 9-118.aspx