clunking in rear end (03XC70)

[river1]

Hi All,

Well I spent a bunch of time cruising the past postings and haven't been able to come to a conclusion.

My 2003 XC70 has a noticeable "clunking" when travelling at lower speeds over gravel roads. I can recreate a noise that I think is related by rocking the car or doing a "bounce test" but the damping seems reasonable. I have been to the dealer and with the extended warranty have had a number of things replaced and serviced recently. These include:

- anti roll bar 2 sides replaced link
- inner tie rods both replaced
- rear brake service
- on previous service had bearings replaced

Now I am told that the shocks (that are apparently not covered by warranty) have some internal "valving" that is causing the noise. As the cost is considerable I would like to know if anyone has other ideas of what to look for. It appears that the technician is having trouble identifying the source of the noise and is replacing things as we go.

appreciate any insight!

Peter.

[thebracko]

It's not uncommon for the struts in these cars to become "clunky".

In fact, struts were the first thing to come to mind when I read the thread heading.

[JRL]

If your car is under the factory warranty, they ARE covered if they are BROKEN, just not for normal wear.
This sounds as if they are broken not worn, insist on new shocks IF that's the problem

[river1]

thanks for the input.

I'll try calling Volvo Canada to see what can be done. Apparently, the rear shocks were last replaced 2-years / 40,000km ago, on warranty. I am not sure but is this a reasonable replacement interval?

Also, I checked the old VADIS copy I have and based on the suspension code (19) for the rear shocks I should have the non-Nivomat shocks but the dealer is trying to convince me that I need Nivomats. The last shocks put in were about $220 for a pair - I can't see that Nivomat shocks would be so cheap and now they are $500 a piece.

On another tack. Any need to replace the rubber spring seat or upper support plate?

thanks,

peter.

[Willy]

I find 40.000Km very soon for schocks to go bad, at least if the car is used in a more or less normal way.
In a recent discussion, JRL mentioned that is not straightforward (to say the least) to replace standard schocks
with Nivomats (and I assume the reverse as well) so it could prove useful to examine this matter further.
Willy

[river1]

Willy - thanks.

It is also my understanding that switching to/from nivomat involves more than just swapping out the shocks. I am concerned that the technician and the service advisor at my local dealer are telling me things that don't add up based on past history or the branding on my actual automobile. Are they trying to take me for a ride or am I missing something? I called another dealer (a but further away) andhe confirmed that based on the plaque on the fender of the car I do not have Nivomats...

So - does anyone know how to check which shocks are actually installed?

thanks again everyone - your help is much appreciated.

cheers,

peter.

[Willy]

I think it should be possible to test for Nivomat by loading the cargo area and going for a ride.
If the rear of the car stays down, no Nivomats. Of course this will be the same if Nivomats are failing,
but then they would both have to fail and you should feel that.
Perhaps it is also possible to decide what schocks you have by looking at them, but I can't decribe them,
at least not now and from here If there are remarkable differences in appearance of the schocks or
the layout of the car in that area, I can always take a look, my car has Nivomats.
But first we need to find what these differences might be.
Willy

[Willy]

I had time to take a look in the parts catalog.
As can be seen from the file "rear schocks drawing", there are 2 different models of schock absorbers,
part numbers can be found in the file "rear schocks part numbers".
In the file ID plate, item 24 (AA) is indicative of the rear suspension system, as can be seen in the file "ID numbers".
Since I don't know the meening of the figures (yet), this info is not decisive as to what kind of schock absorbers your cas is equiped with,
but it may be a step in the right direction. Perhaps that resolving the VIN number could help.

[river1]

I see that we are on the same track. Based on the rear suspension ID code I have "19" in this location and according to my VADIS copy (circa 2004, I think) it gives the product code for the rear shock as 8671713 - which is non-NIVOMAT. I called a dealer and they give me a price of CAD$127.17 and said that "it is hard to be sure if we have the car here but the suspension code is consistent with this shock"

So - Volvo extended warranty does not cover the shock. Is it possible that any other components like the support plate (8646101 - $55.26) or pring seat (8646802 - $21) need to be replaced at the same time? Both of these are available and could easily be replaced when the shock is out of the spring. Recommendation?

thanks again!

peter.