8th Generation Honda Civic Forum banner
7K views 48 replies 8 participants last post by  Not.omxr 
#1 ·
I bought a 06 honda civic si engine is DOHC 2.0l vtech and i've noticed a hard clunking and side to side sound on driver side on the car while driving and i replaced the driver inner tie rod because it was worn and also put some k-tuned control arms. and new pads and rotors. everything was great before and now i cant tell if its a wheel hub, cv axle, or the whole rack and pinion making that clunking hard noise and it's annoying because i just got my 2 years stickers yesterday. anyone can help because i think it could be the rack and pinion worn out but when i jacked up the front car to turn the wheels side to side to hear any noise but nothing seems fine i guess the noise only happens when i make a left turn and driving small bumpy roads especially through humps. please if anyone has the time to read and help a civic bro out that would be amazing of you like i kid you not and hoping this forum can help for future civic owners :)
 
#2 ·
I would have to guess something suspension wise, since its only happening under load and as well on bumps or humps. Possibly the shock or spring isn't seated correctly on the upper mount? My recommendation would be to jack up the front end to remove the load from the suspension and inspect the bolts where it mounts in the engine bay, compare it to what it looked like under load. If it looks like there is play in the bolts when not jacked and when jacked the bolts are flush with where they mount it may need tightened, could also be the rubber seat underneath the spring that has either gone or isn't seated right causing the spring to make a noise when compressing/decompressing against the lower or upper bracket stop. Other than suspension it might be where your rack and pinion mounts to the subframe that is making the noise? I couldn't imagine it is actually the rack and pinion since it doesn't make the noise without load. To check the wheel hub you could take the wheel off and wiggle the rotor up and down or side to side to see play, then remove the rotor and attempt turning the hub bearing without it on to see if the bearing has gone. Haven't had this issue before but these would be my recommendations
 
#3 ·
SO lol im driving it more to feel and understand what it is and i have to confirm its my rack and pinion because when i make a stop and stop sign and make a left or right turn and when i hear the noise i quickly just turn my steering left and right to wiggle it in a way to see if it is that clunking noise or knocking noise is from the rack and pinion and man when i felt it, i reallly think it is the rack and pinion or could be the endlinks of the swaybar. and it is suspension related for sure. wheel hub is fine and shocks and others ill double check tomorrow morning and let you know but my guess is rack and pinion like 90% percent sure its the rack and pinion. i even changed the inner tie rod on driver side just to pass inspection and should've second thought that maybe need new rack and pinion since i had to replace driver inner tie rod anyway so hope this all makes sense in a way, and im new is possible to upload photos and videos ??
 
#5 ·
underload? whats that because from what i saw this morning under the car its an EPAS (Electronic Power Assist Steering) its pretty much and swap and put it back on right ? because i have no steering pump or steering reservoir at all whatsoever and again im pretty new and new from buying this car and want to fix it up to the best like brand new car so i can drive it daily and also to have fun with her. please help :( and i think it is because i thought its an axle or the endlink of the swaybar because i did put it down when i installed the new control arms from k series. maybe adjust the swaybar with the endlink and maybe the endlink is hitting the control arm idk ? ill post a photos and video hopefully here tomorrow and hope you get the idea or anyone that reads this forum because i am loving this car its amazing and it has a stage 2 clutch in the new motor because the motor has been swapped from 110.00k miles i mean more now since im driving it but still its an amazing car in my opinion
 
#7 ·
ahhh i mean i would have to say yes because i do hear and somewhat feel the rack and pinion when i wiggle left and right when parked but not to crazy like that just left turn and right turn to feel it and it sounds nd feels like the rack and pinion and when i drive it down the road before turning in my neighborhood and did the same and i can hear and feel like its from the rack and pinion where the mechanic just swapped the inner tie rod on the driver side and still hear the clunking noise when driving. especiallly when i make a stop at a stop sign to turn left and right to wiggle a but to hear it and feel it and it feels like its coming from the rack but ill upload a video hopefully and send photos
 
#10 ·
ahhh i mean i would have to say yes because i do hear and somewhat feel the rack and pinion when i wiggle left and right when parked but not to crazy like that just left turn and right turn to feel it and it sounds nd feels like the rack and pinion and when i drive it down the road before turning in my neighborhood and did the same and i can hear and feel like its from the rack and pinion where the mechanic just swapped the inner tie rod on the driver side and still hear the clunking noise when driving
Yes, clunking is a side effect of a steering rack that's going/on its way out, but it can also be other issues that aren't 100 percent steering rack, did the noise come centrally from the car or did it come from a specific side?
driver side :p
 
#8 ·
But hey, these things will last eternities if kept up well, so you are right in wanting to keep it. I would personally bring it to a mechanic or 2 for a diagnostic at least and see their opinions if you have the time/money. That would be the most likely way to get it properly diagnosed, but I can definitely give my two cents on the topic if you get some video of the noise happening/describe where its coming from. A good way to know if it is the steering rack is whether or not you feel any looseness in the steering, any shakiness in the steering wheel (Not shaking from the car or engine), or that the car feels unstable at higher speeds
 
#11 ·
nop

nope not at all when i push it hard just a little to have some little fun until i fix the noise its fine no shaking on the steering but again when going to small or tiny bumpy roads i can hear the "clunk!" noise feeling it on my bottom left foot where the clutch pedal is because the car is a 6 speed manual
 
#14 ·
yea like "click clunk!" at the same time but ill post a video of it and also post photos tomorrow. because i gotta say this car goes lol its a nice car indeed. and new motor racing mounts sooo cool looking with AF dynamics filter and never heard it before this is all new to me its amzing :))
 
#23 ·
Third gear grind, the cmc in our generation car has a fluid damper valve which decreases excess ware on the clutch, essentially slowing the release of the clutch without user input. This damper causes the clutch to not fully disengage sometimes for tighter gears (third gear being the culprit) which means you will notice the shifter go forward like it is trying to get into gear, you'll feel the synchro gear but not be able to smoothly shift into gear. The solution is a ktuned or newer oem CMC and slave cylinder, I prefer the ktuned since I heard it allows for a quicker more natural clutch release, like if you ever drove a wrx or focus st where the clutch actually needs to slowly and steadily be released. Another short term solution which I found works is a combination of some of these: short shift adapter by skunk2 (It has a screw you can tighten so the selection of gears is more specific, doesn't completely rid the problem but manages it well), Synchromesh gear fluid (Tranny fluid change to a synchromesh fluid [AMSOIL is recommended but gm synchromesh also works]), or adjusting the clutch pedal throw (This just fixes the engagement point and disengagement point, meaning you can bring the disengagement point up a little bit so without pedal to floor completely, the clutch is disengaged, helps with third gear grind a slight bit)
 
#28 ·
for sure ill double check tomorrow my friend :) and merry christmas i hope you have a great night and thank thank thank youu for taking your time to help me out and now i got everything figured out i hope its something small and not the rack and pinion and if so oh boy this will be the last thing on this car to fix it completely other than new future parts like a new CMC and master cylinder as you said but thats planned so im very excited for this car to look new again :)
 
#30 ·

I had the same problem as you, tightening the steering rack bolts fixed it.
 
#32 ·
GUYS GUYS!!! i found it i found it OMG its the engine mount on the bottom i can see the rubber mount on it is busted and im pretty ticked because the previous owner just newly installed this new racing motor mount so i checked the rest of the motor mount and every one of them seem A.OK except the motor mount on the bottom where is literally next to the oil pan and man the rubber is tearing up bad so i have finally found the solution of the clunking noise and thought it was my rack and pinion or cv axle or wheel hub but that was never the case at all, the part is so brand new that i would have never thought it would bust this early. Anyone thinking it could be a bad racing mount the previous owner ordered or he just bought those cheap ones to put it on once i bought the car ? all and all the car is superb im glad its not the rack and pinion just the bottom motor mount needs to be replaced and badabeembadaboom i got a niceeee honda civic si :D!! HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!! :)))
 
#33 ·
Heyyy! Congrats on finding the issue, I doubt he got a faulty piece, most likely bought a mount labelled "racing mount" on eBay or something for cheap that seemed professional and strong. If you are looking for recommendations of reliable mounts or mount, I recommend Hasport or K-Tuned if you want a tight, long lasting vibration resistant mount (They are expensive since they are real accredited racing engine mounts). If you aren't going to really worry about what a strong expensive mount will do (or don't know the pros of a solid/expensive mount), buy an oem mount from honda, their oem mounts last a decent time and don't break the bank. I really don't think you are going to push an insane amount of power in your engine to where the torque builds up significantly enough to require a high end mount. It is good news its that part, though, since it seems pretty inexpensive to replace with an oem to at least see if it solves the issue (then decide on whether a higher end one would be worth it by how it feels)
 
#34 ·
Hasport 06-11 Civic Si Billet Rear Mount: 70A: K Series Parts This is where to find the mount that I recommended, it honestly isnt too expensive but you can surf the recommended section on k-series to compare different stiffnesses and prices, the number 70A is the hardness of the material used. Also compare this image it gives to the part to make sure its the correct mount
 
#35 ·
im probably going solid or 94 A because of the stage 2 clutch in the motor and of course to add strength because my roads in the Dc, maryland, virginia areas are bumpy unfortunately :/ but yessir working on getting the parts on K series paarts.com now :)) merry christmas eve everyone and to you tombid !🤶🤶🤶🎄🎄🎄
 
#36 ·
Yeah I straight sheered the main motor mount clean off the one with the two bolts where it mounted to the block in a 07 si sucked broke the mount busted my belt the pulley ground into the mount some it was fucked now the motor is sitting at an angle trying to figure how to get it back where it supposed to be so I can fix it
 
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