Today I took my max it to have them diagnose the clunking noise from the front end. It took them a while, but the said it "could" be the top strut mount. They saw no visual evidence it was bad and they used a crown bar to move the wheel up and down but they couldn't get any noise out of it, however they did say they did hear the clunking noise when driving the car.

The car is a 97 SE max with 129K miles and the suspension is OEM. So if I need to replace the strut mount should I replace the entire strut and should I buy OEM or aftermarket struts? Do I need new springs as well?

I don't want to lower the car any or very little if I can help it. (I'm running the OEM 16" SE rims) Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

At 129K miles your OE suspension is done.
Replace the struts and check the mounts while it's apart.
You do not need to replace the springs.
You do not have to purchase Nissan struts, they are very expensive.
Tokico Blues will give you a nice smooth ride.
KYB GR2's will give you a nice firm ride.
Monroe's work well also, being slightly on the firm side.

 

I like the firmer feel of the SE suspension. I guess I'll go ahead and replace all 4 struts and the strut mounts.

 

My car did this some time ago. You can even see the nut on the top move when you open the hood and kick the wheel.

 

I just got the problem fixed. It ended up being 2 broken sway bar mounts. The tech said the struts and mounts are in great condition and I don't need to replace them. Tie rods, control arms, ball joint are all in good condition still. I'm surprised given the age/mileage of the car but I'm not going to replace that stuff until it's necessary. I guess OEM nissan parts hold up well.

 

Glad you found the problem, I was away a few days and when I saw the title, I knew from my Max what was wrong. But, njmax is probably right about the suspension, even if your tech says otherwise. Try to find someone who has a similar year Max and newer suspension to compare the ride. I replaced mine around 125k and the difference was amazing. A lot depends on how much the car was driven in snowy weather and how well it was maintained and cleaned. You might be lucky. The weather here is similar to GR, I'm originally from Bowling Green OH. The Max shouldn't ride like a boat, it's a sport car, sorta.

 

I find it hard to believe that the struts are in good condition. My 97 has 118K and the rears are totally worn out. The fronts are better but still are in need of replacement. Got my KYBs last week, now just have to put them on.

 

The struts feel very solid. Not much body roll when cornering. I'm sure they are not as stiff as when they were new, but they still feel sporty. Replacing the sway bar end links made a huge difference in the feel. The car is much tighter now.

 

Glad you got it worked out. My strut bearing is bad, which makes the car bang badly when I hit a bump on the left side. In this case, it's visibly broken. The strut shaft is not centered at all in the mount.

Just something quick to check next time you all are under the hood.

 

What size are the strut mounting bolts?

 

So what was the problem? I have the same thing happening with mine. I called the dealer and they told me there's an isloator and a bearing. What am I looking at?

 

I also have a 97 maxima which makes a clunking (metal on metal) sound when going over bumps.

When I went under the car, I noticed that the exhaust seemed to have some wiggle to it. There is also a metal sleeve (aluminum??) that goes around part of the pipe that I can just slide around/back n forth.

How much play should there be in the exhaust? Are there mounts that I should look at replacing? Car has 189K and it is the original exhaust.

Thanks for any help!!!!

 

^ i have the same noise, pretty sure its the exhaust hitting something

 

I can't picture in my head the piece that you say is loose and slides around, but there are no parts that should be loose like that. Evidently some bracket has rusted away to let that happen. The exhaust system does wiggle in general as it is supended/hangs from rubber pieces. Its easy to see one in the back by the muffler, but there shouldn't be a lot of wiggle unless some of the rubber mounts have rotted out also.

 

i think he means on the stock B pipe there is a heat shield that goes around part of it, or maybe he means the y-pipe.

189k was when my exhaust dropped. almost to a 189000

my new exhaust has some wiggle to it, i think that "excessive wiggle" might be perception.

if your rubber mounts have rotted, youll know, it will look some some terrible Buick with its exhaust hanging down.

 

Here are some pics from under my Maxima (97 SE). There is a crossbar that goes under the muffler. When I go over bumps the mufflers hits and rattles on the crossbar. You can see where it is rubbing away at the rusting exhaust. The car is not loud at all.

What should I do to firm up the exhaust and stop the clanging?

Thanks.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/gVxwoAydCXGJLWlwBxV_UQ?feat=directlink

 

I moved the photos to flickr, maybe they will show up now!!!

Thanks for any help.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24417864@N06/4152937085/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24417864@N06/4152938253/