williamsb Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 Hi everyone, I've been reading through this forum and others to try to figure out a strange noise coming from my 2011 Ford Fusion SE with no luck. I only notice the noise when it is hot outside, like more than 70F. It doesn't matter how long I have been driving. It's a creaking/knocking noise that seems like it's coming from the front of the vehicle. I hear it when I turn the steering wheel and also whenever the entire body of the car moves up and down (like when a person gets in and out of the driver's or passenger's seat. I took it to the Ford dealership about two weeks because I thought it might be the power steering since I hear the noise when turning the steering whee.l It was cold and rainy that day and the dealership didn't hear anything so they didn't fix anything. I have uploaded a video of the sound I keep hearing. You can hear it inside and outside the vehicle. This was the sound at its worst when it was about 85F outside. In the video, the steering wheel is being turned left and right. https://youtu.be/6AoGCK4fMRU Any help the forum can provide would be greatly appreciated. I can never seem to make it to a mechanic on a day when it's making the sound and I'm worried because I have a long road trip coming up soon. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 Possibly a strut/strut mount binding? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamsb Posted June 8, 2017 Author Share Posted June 8, 2017 Possibly a strut/strut mount binding? Thanks! I have no idea if it is the strut but I'm trying to get a list of things to at least ask a mechanic to inspect. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyross Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 I wonder if it's a bushing that is 'sticky' and creaking, or a bearing that has dried out. Can you tell if it seems to be coming from the left or right side? Can you get two people? One to push the car up and down, and maybe one to get down on the ground to try and narrow it down. Maybe even try to put fingers on some parts (making sure to keep room so they doesn't get squished) to see if they can feel it vibrating. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drolds1 Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 A dealer or shop equipped with "chassis ears" should be able to pinpoint that. BTW, that sounds more like a creak than a knock to my ear. What''s your mileage? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamsb Posted June 8, 2017 Author Share Posted June 8, 2017 (edited) I wonder if it's a bushing that is 'sticky' and creaking, or a bearing that has dried out. Can you tell if it seems to be coming from the left or right side? Can you get two people? One to push the car up and down, and maybe one to get down on the ground to try and narrow it down. Maybe even try to put fingers on some parts (making sure to keep room so they doesn't get squished) to see if they can feel it vibrating. I haven't had a chance to try feeling around with my fingers today but it seems to be coming more from the passenger side of the vehicle. A dealer or shop equipped with "chassis ears" should be able to pinpoint that. BTW, that sounds more like a creak than a knock to my ear. What''s your mileage? Cool, I've never heard of chassis ears before. I'll definitely look into finding a shop with a pair of those. I agree that it sounds more like a creak. A friend of mine called it a knocking sound and since he knows more about cars than me, I stuck with that terminology. I'm at 123k miles. Update 06/10/2017: I was finally able to get my fusion to a mechanic while it was making the noise. He said that the problem is caused by two of the control arms on the left side of the vehicle. I even went under the vehicle with the mechanic and felt the control arms vibrating. He is going to order the parts and hopefully I'll have it fixed by next week. Edited June 10, 2017 by williamsb 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luka Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 I have a similar issue, creaking suspension noise, although I can't duplicate it like your video. Noise comes only when it is hot outside, it does make the noise when turning the wheels stationary (not so much driving around a corner); bumps and uneven pavement cause the noise, braking doesn't effect it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted June 15, 2017 Share Posted June 15, 2017 Fixed? Update 06/10/2017: I was finally able to get my fusion to a mechanic while it was making the noise. He said that the problem is caused by two of the control arms on the left side of the vehicle. I even went under the vehicle with the mechanic and felt the control arms vibrating. He is going to order the parts and hopefully I'll have it fixed by next week. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indifferent Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 I had this same issue mine was front lower control arm.. Bushings were shot. My driver side is now doing it. It was a giant pain in the ass for me to do with basic tools and a jack. I'm going to let it Creek. I replaced all the control arms. The two that were fine went smooth the front lower was a nightmare to get it to separate for me. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whit6419 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Hello everyone, New to the site and having the same issue with my daughters 06. The car just started making the sound and my buddy who is a mechanic thought it was the right strut. We changed the entire assembly and it didn't help. There are a lot of people with the same issue when you do a search, and you would think you would find a common fix, but I can't seem to. I've asked my friend to look at the control arms and see if it's a possibility. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indifferent Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Specifically the bushings 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whit6419 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Specifically the bushings Got it. I hope he finds something. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamsb Posted June 18, 2017 Author Share Posted June 18, 2017 Fixed? Sorry for the delayed response. My mechanic ordered the parts from Ford but they delivered rear suspension parts so I had to wait for them to be returned and the proper front control arms delivered. I had the parts put in this morning and everything is nice and quiet now. They said something about the bushings/bearings(?) being bad. Specifically the bushings I think that is the part of the control arm that my mechanic said went bad in two of my front control warms. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 Thanks for the followup 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indifferent Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 Good fix. I'm not sure if I would do this again. Shit took forever with only hand told and Jack stands. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charslo Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 hey, is this the noises it was making? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1ZfBtQ8wLU. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamsb Posted August 23, 2017 Author Share Posted August 23, 2017 hey, is this the noises it was making? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1ZfBtQ8wLU. That sounds pretty similar to mine. I would try to check the control arms. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charslo Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 That sounds pretty similar to mine. I would try to check the control arms. sorry, is that what you did for the fix? i saw another post on here that went through a few things and eventually replaced the upper? control arms. right now the dealership is fighting with ford to cover the cost of the strut bearings (which have been replaced like 3 times), but after finding these posts... i'm going to get them to do the control arms. they did want to replace the steering gear assembly? but they weren't sure if they could get that covered or not. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamsb Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 sorry, is that what you did for the fix? i saw another post on here that went through a few things and eventually replaced the upper? control arms. right now the dealership is fighting with ford to cover the cost of the strut bearings (which have been replaced like 3 times), but after finding these posts... i'm going to get them to do the control arms. they did want to replace the steering gear assembly? but they weren't sure if they could get that covered or not. Yes, that is what fixed it for me. I had one of the front control arms replaced and that stopped the noise. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charslo Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 Yes, that is what fixed it for me. I had one of the front control arms replaced and that stopped the noise. fantastic! once we get the strut bearings sorted, i'll see what convincing i can do with ford to get them replaced. thank you! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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