iTurniCar Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 (edited) - Rattling/clunking sound, sounds as if something is 'loose' and about to fall off. A very repetetive sound when it occurs ie. a constant rattle until you're onto a smooth surface... not just one or two clunks. - Most audible at speeds below 30mph, and on rough roads. - Fades away or completely disappears under braking. -------------------------------- I have all the same symptoms - It almost goes away completely when braking, just the odd noise slips in. 'Play Video with volume up' This is when I'm driving on the pictured road 'nice and bumpy'. When the road is smooth .. no noise unless I hit a pothole or something. Is this the sound of a bad banana arm? - The Garage I took it to has checked the suspension etc and said its all fine, nice solid car and can't see anything loose etc. But I read the banana arm goes undetected. Video Link - https://streamable.com/ibiqnj Picture - Edited March 9, 2021 by iTurniCar More info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutopia Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 Obvs hard to be certain from a vid but this is not dissimilar to the sound mine made for banana bar. Upon inspection with a pry bar, I was also advised everything was ok, but that a pry can’t always simulate the weight and movement of a heavy car on that kind of surface. I changed them because I knew they would need doing eventually and it cured it. If you can budget for them now and the drop links are definitely fine, I’d just do them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davey_83 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 Sorry to hear this, does sound really bad and must have been getting worst and worst. If the noise goes away under braking, I would say yes the banana arm/s have worn, either rubber bush side on the body or ball joint at the hub end. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATTAK Z Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 Definitely the B A N A N A B A R (compression rod ball joint end) - a well known problem that can only be fixed by fitting new ones - a £500 fix for both sides to do it properly. ... for some reason the LHS goes first; and yes, it does your head in until it's fixed 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iTurniCar Posted March 9, 2021 Author Share Posted March 9, 2021 7 hours ago, Stutopia said: Obvs hard to be certain from a vid but this is not dissimilar to the sound mine made for banana bar. Upon inspection with a pry bar, I was also advised everything was ok, but that a pry can’t always simulate the weight and movement of a heavy car on that kind of surface. I changed them because I knew they would need doing eventually and it cured it. If you can budget for them now and the drop links are definitely fine, I’d just do them. 7 hours ago, davey_83 said: Sorry to hear this, does sound really bad and must have been getting worst and worst. If the noise goes away under braking, I would say yes the banana arm/s have worn, either rubber bush side on the body or ball joint at the hub end. 6 hours ago, ATTAK Z said: Definitely the B A N A N A B A R (compression rod ball joint end) - a well known problem that can only be fixed by fitting new ones - a £500 fix for both sides to do it properly. ... for some reason the LHS goes first; and yes, it does your head in until it's fixed LHS is left hand side? I guess you replace both at the same time.. I don't have much money right now as I replaced the cats 'nearside cat was rattling' so we thought it was that, then with the braking.. bought stoptech brake pads with hardware kit and changed the back.. was going to change the front but seems solid so thats why I came digging on the forums to see whats what.https://www.tarmacsportz.co.uk/tarmac-sportz-nissan-350z-03-09-oe-replacement-compression-arm-banana-arms.html Should I just get left and right of these to see if it goes away? and is there anything else I need? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATTAK Z Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 2 hours ago, iTurniCar said: LHS is left hand side? I guess you replace both at the same time.. I don't have much money right now as I replaced the cats 'nearside cat was rattling' so we thought it was that, then with the braking.. bought stoptech brake pads with hardware kit and changed the back.. was going to change the front but seems solid so thats why I came digging on the forums to see whats what.https://www.tarmacsportz.co.uk/tarmac-sportz-nissan-350z-03-09-oe-replacement-compression-arm-banana-arms.html Should I just get left and right of these to see if it goes away? and is there anything else I need? You've just been through the same thoughts and procedures that I went through way back in 2008. It cost me around £2K to learn all about the dreaded Banana Bar knock. You don't have to replace both at the same time so if you can tell which side is knocking then start with that. Nissan used to charge £250 each for these so they've really come down in price since I had mine done. Chris and Bob at Tarmac are good guys so I'm sure the arms they sell are good quality but there were some cheap and nasty Chinese knockoffs around a few years ago so be careful where you buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iTurniCar Posted March 9, 2021 Author Share Posted March 9, 2021 1 hour ago, ATTAK Z said: Yeah it definitely seems like it. I'll order left side as I'm sure the left side is the issue. Change it at the weekend . Fingers crossed that's it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf-Council Posted September 23, 2022 Share Posted September 23, 2022 i'm having the same issue now, did replacing them work? Mine is a real clunking noise on the left side, over cobbled streets, speed bumps or pot holes. Any smooth surface and it disappears completely. I originally thought it could have been ball joint or drop links but its sounds a lot like your issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutopia Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 It’s impossible to be certain just chatting on here, but it is very common and nearly always presents as clunks on rough surfaces, like cobbles, at modest speeds. If, upon inspection of droplinks / bushes / other obvious candidates in the area, they all seem fine, it’s likely to be a banana bar. If you wanna take a punt, without getting it in the air, hop on YouTube and listen to some clunking videos. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 56 minutes ago, Stutopia said: It’s impossible to be certain just chatting on here, but it is very common and nearly always presents as clunks on rough surfaces, like cobbles, at modest speeds. If, upon inspection of droplinks / bushes / other obvious candidates in the area, they all seem fine, it’s likely to be a banana bar. What Stutopia has said ^^^ New Banana Arms are in stock and good to go same/next day if required. Just drop me a PM if I can help further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf-Council Posted September 24, 2022 Share Posted September 24, 2022 Thanks for the help as always guys. 👍🏻 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolf-Council Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 Well guys, you were 100% right... banana arm it was!! Thank you for the support, just thought i would comment back for anyone else having this issue. 👍 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr v6 Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 You'll no doubt need a full wheel alignment after installing it, at least in my experience on the Z. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWoMP Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 Just a note for the future... About 3 months after I had new banana arms some clonking came back. Turned out the nuts needed re-tightening... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HEADPHONES Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 It's at times like this that the OC really comes into its own. A great bunch of members always eager to help 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Payco Posted December 6, 2022 Share Posted December 6, 2022 (edited) As above Edited December 6, 2022 by Payco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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