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Has anyone replaced their subframe mount without a press?

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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
I checked and it was fine, I actually disconnected the DP mount entirely to see if anything changed and it was the same. Even with the arms in place the hangers dont get close to the subrame and the aftermarket dp seems to be pretty firm in place.
 
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Jiffyjetta

Ready to race!
BudgetPhoenix said:
Also it ended up not fixing my issue FML. The mounts were pretty old though. Ive had a pop clunk sound coming from subframe or engine bay for over a month when accelerating from a stop or suddenly pressing gas or letting off and coasting, its pretty annoying. I video taped my engine movement when shifting to reverse or driving and moving a bit and noticed a lot of engine movement. I tried replacing the driver mount which was like 2 years old but didnt work. Noticed a lot of slop in the old subframe mount so I just replaced that. My trans side mount is only like 2 years old too. Years ago I used to get subframe clunk but added shims and it went away, it sounds kind of similar though. I can pull out my trans side mount and inspect it I guess next. Its driving me crazy though.

I saw my driver cv axle boot as a small hole and is leaking grease which will need to be replaced soon so that might be another cause, it sounds more like from subframe area though.
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Have you tried tightening the subframe bolts? I have seen them cause popping and clunking numerous times. Usually what happens is they get removed at some point and don't get replaced or tightened enough.
Iirc they're "stretch bolts". This is nothing special about a stretch bolt itself, it refers to the method of tightening. It is tightened to the point where it stretches the metal, when reused they tend to not hold as tight.
 
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tofuD01

Ready to race!
BudgetPhoenix said:
Also it ended up not fixing my issue FML. The mounts were pretty old though. Ive had a pop clunk sound coming from subframe or engine bay for over a month when accelerating from a stop or suddenly pressing gas or letting off and coasting, its pretty annoying. I video taped my engine movement when shifting to reverse or driving and moving a bit and noticed a lot of engine movement. I tried replacing the driver mount which was like 2 years old but didnt work. Noticed a lot of slop in the old subframe mount so I just replaced that. My trans side mount is only like 2 years old too. Years ago I used to get subframe clunk but added shims and it went away, it sounds kind of similar though. I can pull out my trans side mount and inspect it I guess next. Its driving me crazy though.

I saw my driver cv axle boot as a small hole and is leaking grease which will need to be replaced soon so that might be another cause, it sounds more like from subframe area though.
Click to expand...

I am getting this exact same noise too when Accel deccel around 2nd and 3rd gear.. getting it looked at tomorrow when fitting my rear ARB. It could be suspension? It seemed to happen after I went over this pothole at like 80mph..
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
Yes it could be suspension related too. Sway bar end links could be a culprit though I would suspect youd hear the clunk more on bumps and turning too. Mine is typically only low speeds or from stop with sudden decel or accel. It def sounds like its coming from lower subframe area. I bought a driver side axle for like since my boot is bad anyway and ill check my driver side mount today.
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
Jiffyjetta said:
Have you tried tightening the subframe bolts? I have seen them cause popping and clunking numerous times. Usually what happens is they get removed at some point and don't get replaced or tightened enough.
Iirc they're "stretch bolts". This is nothing special about a stretch bolt itself, it refers to the method of tightening. It is tightened to the point where it stretches the metal, when reused they tend to not hold as tight.
Click to expand...

Yes ive tried tightening the bolts, I just reinstalled the entire subframe after installing the new subframe mounts and made sure everything was torqued. Im reusing some of the bolts but I have replaced the large ones with the upgraded audi thick bolts fairly recently. I know they are stretch bolts but ive gotten a a couple uses out of them in the past. Ive also had the ecs subframe spacers for years too. This sounds more like an engine load shift clunk noise though.
 
S

Sspcivic31

Drag Race Newbie
have you checked the spherical bearing in it?
they don't tend to last very long on the street. Probably wouldnt hurt to see if the arm and the transmission case have any wear marks from hitting each other.
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
It's a pretty beefy Aurora spherical bearing. Same one in the APR dogbone. It seems pretty solid still, seems fine when I took it off earlied. Tried disconnecting the exhaust tunnel braces earlier with no change in clunk.
 
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Sspcivic31

Drag Race Newbie
Beefy or not a little bit of grit destroys the bearing quick. I had the APR mount on my car and in about 500 miles it was done. If you still have the stock dogbone it wouldn’t hurt to swap it back in and see if the clunk goes away. I have seen a a couple times where the heli-coils in the transmission case break from corrosion and the bolts lose torque. Might be worth checking at the same time
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
Threads seemed fine on trans, there was no play on the dogbone, I just reinstalled it after removing the subframe and bolts were tight when taking it off and tight again when I put back on.
 
J

Jiffyjetta

Ready to race!
Sounds crazy, but have you checked axle bolts. I've seen axle bolts come loose many times in the past. Also, control arm bushings will cause clunking on and off throttle.
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
I replaced my leaking driver side axle and today. Tried swapping oem dogbone in, retightened all subframe and control arm bolts. Clunk remains. Also it will rattle clunk on decel at certain speeds. I have new s3 control arm bushings for a couple years now. This is driving me nuts.
 
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BudgetPhoenix

Autocross Champion
If anyone cares I finally fixed the clunk that's been the bane of my existence lol. I decided to throw on a couple new front sway bar end links after doing all the mounts, CV axle and changing downpipe. When I removed the front passenger wheel the lug nuts were actually only like barely hand tight it was scary since I had been beating on it like always. Also noticed the proprietary hubcentric ring had become kind of loose in my BBS RG-R wheel and the c-clip kind of popped out. So fixed that and threw on the new end links and finally no more clunk. Not sure if it was the wheel or the links but it's gone now. The old links were kind of looser but not like falling apart or anything. They were a few years old. Cant remember if I ever had the wheel off since the clunk started happening, cant believe I never checked the torque before. Firestone did have it for my lifetime alignment after I put the subframe back on when I did the mount but idk if they messed with the wheel either.
 
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