This front end clunking/knocking is going to (or already has) drive me absolutely, positively insane (more than I already am ).

I get a clunking/knocking from the front suspension when going over bumps. I can feel it from a slow roll--up to about 35-40 MPH on local roads. It's not noticeable on the highway, but that's probably due to the highway having different types of bumps that don't quite evoke the same motions from the suspension.

It's particularly noticeable around town at slow speeds over uneven pavement that causes the vehicle to rock back-and-forth (side-to-side). The first thing I thought was, "ah hah, I've been here before, it's time for new endlinks or swaybar bushings".... nope, not the case. The endlinks and bushings look good, and a tug indicates everything is nice and tight.

Sometimes I think I can feel it knocking under the floorboard and in the steering wheel, but that could just me being a little over-paranoid and a tad crazy.

I had my mechanic look at the car and he kept it for awhile and said everything looks fine. He can hear the noise, but things seem to look good under there. Since he knows the X-Type is my second car and serves as a practical DD/commuter car, he basically left it at, "if it were my car, I'd just drive it and not worry."

A little more info that may or may not help, but here it is: I know handling is not the X-Type's forte (I'm used to driving midsize sedans like 3er, Infiniti G, Audi A4) but my steering/front end feels particularly loose. Perhaps I'm spoiled by my Miata, but the X feels a tad too loose. Also, when I hit a big jolt/ridge in the road while turning the wheel, it feels as if the front of the car wants to hop (understeer) more than most vehicles I'm used to. Again, this could all be in my head--who knows.

What the heck could be going on? The next possible culprits I'm thinking are:

• Control arms/bushings
• Strut mounts/bearings

Is there anything else I should look for? If the control arms/bushings were going, I'd think my mechanic would have seen it? I'm open to any advice to help me track down this maddening noise.

 

Also check sway bar bushings, endlinks, tie-rods.

I had a couple clunks from the front-end. Got underneath and found that: A. The left-side endlink the previous owner put on wasn't tightened down, and B. The right control arm is bad.

Tightening down the endlink properly solved most of the clunking. I'm waiting on a paycheck to fix the control arm (and a bad wheel bearing).

 

RJS I have some knocking at low speed over bumps too - but it's intermittent - less than half the time. I had the dealer look it over last year, but they didn't find anything. My 2003 X-Type has 79k on the clock - so some amount of rattling is to be expected from an 11-year old car. Everything looks Ok to me, and I've been ignoring it, but I should probably ask them to look again because it's annoying.

I see you're in Westchester too - I use White Plains Jaguar for service since they're close by, and Leonard over there is really good and not out to gouge the customers. Who do you use? (always looking for alternatives!)

 

The symptoms of your problem remind me of a 1998 Toyota Camry I had until recently. I bought the car used about 4 years ago, and during the test drive I noticed and occasional knocking or clunking when going over bumps. However, my mechanic checked it out and couldn't find anything wrong. Over the 4 years I owned it I had various mechanics check it out, including Sears, and no one could find anything wrong, even though they also heard the noise. Last spring I took it to the Toyota dealer, and they said it needed new struts and strut mounts. It was over $1000 to fix, but it fixed the problem - it ran great. Then 2 months later the engine self-destructed (123K miles!) and that was the end of that car.

 

I am told that part number 5 in this diagram

2003 Jaguar X-Type Parts - OEM Part Catalog

Can cause said symptoms.

 

I wonder if that is my problem. I have had the front control arms, the end links,
The sway bar bushings alla replaced. The car was quiet for 2
Or 3 weeks. How could you tell??

 

I had similar clunking sounds coming from the front end going over bumps at lower speeds. 90% of them went away when I changed the sway bar linkages to new ones I got from eBay for $40. The new ones are all metal, not plastic though I doubt that makes a difference.

Still working on the remaining 10%

Eric

 

Low-speed braking/accel would always have a slight tap/clunk with each momentum shift.

bottom/lower connector on the endlink was loose and could move with just your hand pulling on it - similar to what it would do if it were 'bad' - but instead it just needed tightening.

When I discovered it, the Jag was on a ramp/drive-on-style lift that kept the pressure on the tires/suspension, rather than a lift that uses jack-points to lift the car on the frame and taking the pressure off the tires/suspension.

It may have just worked loose after awhile, but my guess is that it seemed tight to the previous owner who did it in his garage with his car up on jack-stands, but really wasn't once the Jag got put back on the ground.

 

My '99 XK8 does that incessantly. What's an endlink? Is that like a nave plate or a gudgeon pin or something?