Was hoping for some diagnostic help and I know this is difficult. I have creaking noises coming from what sounds like, behind the dash. They do not seem to be worse if turning or accelerating or braking.

This weekend, I emptied the trunk (boot) of my computer repair tools and small ladder (maybe 80 lbs of tools total) and my wife (who is not normally in the car with me) and I went to the mall. The creaking got much worse. Not louder, just more frequent, rather than 20 creaks per minute it went to 50 creaks per minute. By the end of the shopping day, we had a small window unit air conditioner and a full cart of shopping in the trunk (boot), I would guess about 200-225 lbs total. The creaking all but stopped. The wife was still riding up front. Empty the trunk and the creaking comes back.

It's amazing how a 2 ton car is so sensitive to weight distribution.

I cannot replicate the creaking by bouncing on the front or rear bumper while stationary nor by rocking the car side to side. My ride seems fine, steering and handling as good as the day I bought the car almost 9 months ago.

Are there any lube points in this car? I would imagine they are all sealed.

Any help would be appreciated (other than turn up your stereo or go on a diet, those were the wife's suggestions, aren't wives lovely?).

 

Correct, there are no greasing points. It might be prudent to examine the front balljoints to see if the boots are damaged. Once a balljoint boot gets split, the joint loses its grease and soon deteriorates. The squeaking could be this, but on the other hand, it could be anything on the front suspension. It could even be totally unconnected with the suspension. You need to examine the car. Be aware that the shocks stiffen up to "Hard" when the car is standing, because the CATS system needs the engine running and the car in motion before it switches them to "Soft". This makes it difficult to move the suspension enough to show anything up.

 

The bushes in the upper wishbones can creak badly.

 

Mine started creaking reallly bad after a mechanic put my car on a lift when he had it for an alignment. I've unfortunately never gotten around to fixing this issue so every time I back into the garage it sounds like an old porch swing creaking

 

My 04 VDP started with a similar creaking a few months ago. It seems to be worse after a rain. It comes and goes, though. I've suspected it's bushings, but haven't checked into it more. I guess I'm waiting for it to get worse, more persistent, etc. so that if I have a mechanic test drive it it will be noticeable.

 

For noises like these 'creaks' and 'groans' we often experience it's impossible for anyone to be of much help from any distance. We all hear things differently with some having more or less acute hearing and others who can locate the area of such noises more effectively than others.


Obviously the weight transfer or addition to the trunk removes the source of pressure that causes whatever two or more surfaces to react relative to each other and based on your other noted symptoms I wouldn't zero in on suspension too quickly as that should make more generally consistent sounds and react more directly in changes of road surface and or cornering speeds, etc.

I'd first rule out any possibility of vehicle damage from an accident that would have lead to a panel, or interior/exterior component being warped or slightly displaced. Instrument panels themselves are notorious places for squeaks, rattles, and other assorted odd sounds as they have so many interlocking pieces and so much stuff crammed behind them.


Get your wife or someone else to concentrate on minimizing the location as best they can and even do so with the window on their side up and down. I've also found it handy to drive down an alley way or other such confined space where an exterior noise can be heard more readily as it bounces off the surrounding walls, etc. That may help you decide if it's inside the car or elsewhere under the car or to the front or the back.


Many moons ago while in College a Mustang that I owned started giving me a really bad rattle that I traced to the backend of the car. I put it on a lift repeatedly in an effort to locate the offending party(s) to no avail. Finally almost as an after thought one day I crawled under the back end and started to just bang everything around and wonder of wonders I discovered that it was a loose leaf spring shackle that when the car was on an underbody life would get tightened up by the very weight of the wheel and tire assembly as it was then fully extended and the spring was fully uncompressed allowing the shackle to get snugged up tight as the leafs basically unwound.

It's like hunt and peck on a typewriter, you just have to try one thing and then another.

 

Check the hood, creaking and it sounds like its coming from the defroster area on the dash.
Also braces under the hood by the firewall, loosen and re-torque them.
Give that a try.
Good luck.