Issue: THUNK!

[johnchabin]

14000 miles, every time I hit a bump now there is a thunk or bump noise. Seems like it’s under the rear seat. I crawled under and checked for loose suspension components but see nothing loose.

Now even a crack in the road makes the noise… seems to be getting worse.

Stock suspension. I do have rock hard sliders, but the bolts seem tight.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

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[johnchabin]

Just heard it again… maybe more of a creaking noise.

 

[Flyin6]

Have you been towing heavy?
It's unlikely, but the frame cracks back there, but not sure it would make a noise. I'd give that a 1% chance.
Springs moving in the isolators is a possibility. Suggest a spray on all isolators, then test drive to see if that is it.
Next, did a control arm mounting bolt loosen? Stock control arms flex only due to the elastomeric qualities of the rubber. Loosening a bolt and allowing the entire bushing might make a sound.
Same thing with the shock mounts. Should be rigid and not loose...
You could loosen all mounting bolts while the thing is static, jump up and down on the bed to flex it, then retorque and test drive to see if that settled it.
Another (remote) possibility is the exhaust system. Is it close to anything?
If none of the above, suggest you call ghostbusters for a consult!
Good luck!

 

[DylanM]

Have you checked under the rear seat?

Another thought would be to check the body mounts at the rear of the cab and front of the bed.

 

[johnchabin]

Have you been towing heavy?

I did tow fairly heavy, but the noise started before that. Well below the limit, though.

Have you checked under the rear seat?

Yes!

The half rack was loose a few weeks ago (my bad), and the noise went away. It's tight now... triple checked, but the noise is back.

I do wonder if the noise is coming from the tonneau... I may remove the tonneau and rack and see if the noise goes away.

It's irritating.

I'll check all the items mentioned above. Thanks!

 

[jav_eee]

Hard top? Time to tighten the bolts holding it to the tub.

 

[Jaxmax]

I was frustrated trying to find a thud , wife and I both heard it , was driving me a little more nuts then usual, checked skids and control arms, but nothing, this went on for two weeks, then I was cleaning the floor and figured let's empty the truck, an area at a time emptied under the seat sound went away, figured out it was a shackle in a plastic bag sliding around ton turns! Whew, I swore it was under the control and almost like something was loose when turning, did it both left and right....Jack

 

[johnchabin]

Hard top? Time to tighten the bolts holding it to the tub.

That was the first thing I did, and they were a bit loose. Noise still there.

 

[Splenda]

I had a can of Coke Zero under my seat that would roll back and forth when I would go around turns. I was so glad that's all my thunk was.

 

[JohnWick]

Just heard it again… maybe more of a creaking noise.

Does it sound like the noise made in the video in this thread?

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/noise-problem.90678/

 

[johnchabin]

Does it sound like the noise made in the video in this thread?

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/noise-problem.90678/

Not so squeaky.

My friend filmed it from outside. He heard it, but the wind noise was too loud to pick it up.

There are lots of good tips in your link for me to check. Thanks!

 

[robinja]

Check your shock bushings. I had one completely disintegrate and when driving I would hear an occasional rattle or thunk. I checked for days looking for the source but it never occurred to me a bushing on the new shocks would completely fall apart leaving nothing around the retaining bolt.

 

[RoboticsRob]

14000 miles, every time I hit a bump now there is a thunk or bump noise. Seems like it’s under the rear seat. I crawled under and checked for loose suspension components but see nothing loose.

Now even a crack in the road makes the noise… seems to be getting worse.

Stock suspension. I do have rock hard sliders, but the bolts seem tight.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

The body mount bolts were my first suspicion too, as I installed Rock Hard sliders recently and retorqued those bolts yesterday. Found two of them had loosened up very slightly, but that was after only about 50 miles of driving, so could have just been something wasn’t seated quite right.

What torque did you reinstall your body mount bolts to? Loctite?

 

[SoK66]

Since new when going over bumps my ‘23 Willys has made a creak sound from my the left rear goes away if ambient temps. I have successfully avoided doing anything about it for going on 18 months now.

 

[agoldxj]

Does the tailgate move when it’s closed? Mine did and made a thunk that drove me nuts. Adjusted the strikes for a tighter fit and the noise is gone.

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