Hi guys

1994 XJ6 3.2 auto. 123,000 miles (ex UK car now in Spain). Whenever I run over a bump in the road I get a rattling noise from the back of the car. I first suspected worn shocks. I replaced these and indeed the bushing at the bottom on both was completely shot and the foam rubber things at the top had pretty much disintegrated so I am happy to have changed those. However the rattling persists. The strange thing is that if I touch the brakes lightly going over bumps I get no rattle. I checked again for anything loose with calipers but nothing. Little bit of play in one sides wheel bearing and a bit of a click when I rotated the wheels back and forth coming from the drive shaft inner joints where they connect to diff but I can't see this would cause rattling when driving over bumpy road surfaces.

Any suggestions?

I have only had the car 2 months but have run up 2,000 miles in it already, changed front pads, shocks, oil, filters so far. Lots more little jobs to do. Love driving it!

Thanks
Sam.

 

JagRepair.com - Jaguar Repair Information Resource

see the rattle TSBs near the end of list

Check the rearmost muffler mount for the rubber bushing

Check the fuel filter mounting strap
,

 

Check the tension on the handbrake cable.
The actuators and shoes in the brake disc/drum can rattle. The cable needs the provide a little tension to keep the parts from being too loose.

bob

 

Hello Sam,

Welcome to the Jaguar Forums! It's great to have you with us.

Another possible source of knocks that can seem to emanate from the rear end is the rear engine/transmission mount, part 5 in this diagram:




Please visit the New Member Area - Intro a MUST and post an introduction so we can learn something about you and your Jaguar and give you a proper welcome.

Cheers,

Don

 

Welcome to the forums Sam,

From your IP Address, if I was parked in this same place today, I could walk over and have a listen to the rattle.



Once away from the AP7, the local Spanish roads certainly give the suspension and brakes a good workout.

There's plenty of possible sources of rattles and trying to pinpoint one whilst driving is always extremely difficult. With the rear of the vehicle supported on stands and wheels off, it's easy to work round all the rear suspension bushes and exhaust mountings checking for damage or wear. Another regular that hasn't been mentioned above is the A Frame bushes on the suspension subframe. In worst cases, these can completely separate effectively leaving the front of the cradle unattached.

When you get a minute, please follow this link New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum to the New Member Area - Intro a MUST forum and post some information about yourself and your vehicle for all members to see. In return you'll get a proper welcome and some useful advice about posting to the forum.

Graham

 

The chrome ashtray covers in the rear doors can come off, slide back into the door panel unseen, and rattle. So may want to check that your rear doors show shiny ash bin covers.

 

Thanks thats really useful. I'll be changing the rear discs and pads in a week so I'll have another look at this then.

 

Thanks Don thats a really nice message. I will check into the new members area as you suggest. in terms of trans mount bushes I would have expected that to be more of a knock than a rattle. The best way I could descirbe the rattle is if you got a ruler and held it to a desk and then pulled the end down then let go and let it rattle up and down. Each hit on the road causes this short rattle. I hada similar noise years ago on an Audi A6 estate and it was the pistons on the worn out shocks rattling around which is why I went to shocks first (glad I did as described!). Anyway I will follow up this suggestion. Thanks again. Sam.

 

Hi Graham yes thats a familiar sight in that photo!! I have lived in or around Gibraltar for 14 years now. I have a place there and also a Spanish property in Venta Melchor about kms away. You know it?

You might even have seen the car I have. Its on a Gib plate, RHD, grey with "IN RUST WE TRUST" sticker in back window!! Lots of bark off the bonnet, roof and boot lid but I love it. I buy and sell cars here as a sideline and this one came to be super cheap with MOT until mid next year so I thought why not and ended up loving it. My Range Rover Sport is now parked up gathering dust. I use it to commute up to our office in La Cala de Mijas so I am racking up the miles. 815 this week alone! Its developing a bit of an oil leak as well from front of engine so thats on the to do list as well now.

I'll check into the new members area as per suggestion!

Thanks again
Sam.

 

Thanks Bob thats an interesting suggestion actually. The handbrake is very stiff. When releasing it you have to physically push the lever down. I don't really use it to be honest as its pretty flat where I live so I just leave it in park. So if I pull it on a bit and drive up bumps the rattle could disappear if its that? I'll definitely try that easy test in the morning

 

Thought I should close this thread off as I know how frustrating it is reading open ended threads!

The rattle has now completely gone. It disappeared after I changed the rear discs and pads (fronts too but not relevant).

Not very sure how this fixed the issue to be completely honest. One strange thing I noticed was when I moved the rear wheel back and forth whilst jacked up it made a very similar click-click to the general rattling I was experiencing. With the road wheel off and grabbing the disc itself it seems to have play around the holes where the studs pass through as though they had over time become enlarged. You could see the hub not move whilst turning back and forth the disc which just moved enough to make a noise. All the bolts for the brakes were very tight so nothing moving about. Much strangeness!!

Anyway its gone and my Jag no longer sounds like a bag of broken bits driving over uneven roads!!