When I press down on the passenger side strut tower with a little force, I can hear a dull but clearly audible thud or pop which sounds like its coming from the upper strut area but could be lower in the strut. So now I can replicate the noise, which is causing the horrendous popping and groaning I get when in reverse at slow speeds (really when I load the strut area in one particular way). When the car is straightened out on the street, no problems.
Does this sound like the strut itself? Could it be something in the c/c plates (they are Hotchkis and have about 2k miles on them). Also, I can turn the top nut on the strut tower probably 2 or 3 more turns with a 13/16 wrench.
Can somebody help me and point me in the right direction with some suggestions? My Ford tech (Roush tech) suspects the strut is bad but he did not actually get under there and check. He's going by the noise in the tower. Obviously I'd like to NOT spend $400 for front struts then $150 for the install. What's more likely, the strut or a bearing in the plates?? The valving in the strut? Please help all opinions and suggestions are welcome!! My Bilsteins have 51k on them with only 2k on the H&R's.
Does this sound like the strut itself? Could it be something in the c/c plates (they are Hotchkis and have about 2k miles on them). Also, I can turn the top nut on the strut tower probably 2 or 3 more turns with a 13/16 wrench.
Can somebody help me and point me in the right direction with some suggestions? My Ford tech (Roush tech) suspects the strut is bad but he did not actually get under there and check. He's going by the noise in the tower. Obviously I'd like to NOT spend $400 for front struts then $150 for the install. What's more likely, the strut or a bearing in the plates?? The valving in the strut? Please help all opinions and suggestions are welcome!! My Bilsteins have 51k on them with only 2k on the H&R's.