Volvo V70 P2 rear suspension noise

[Roverageous]

Hi chaps, I know there’s a few Volvo people on here, so thought I’d ask if anyone could help shed some light on this for me...

 

It’s a MY52 Volvo V70 petrol.

 

Had it for about 4000 miles and ever since I’ve got it it’s been a bit rattly from the rear end over rough surfaces - based on googling I put it down to worn shock mounts. I was driving home from Milton Keynes last week and caught the rear near side on what can only be described as a fucking massive pothole. The car drove alright afterwards (no pulling or wandering) but that corner of the suspension has been very very crash ever since.

 

Took it into the garage opposite work who quickly diagnosed a broken rear spring on that side, but they weren’t able to do the job for a week. I rang a local Volvo / Saab specialist who were very accommodating and managed to get it to them the same afternoon.

 

They got it up on a ramp before I left and found no broken spring - they were more than happy to show / demonstrate this for me. Everything under there was tight, and no issues found. They took it out for a drive and decided that it sounded like the shock mounts, and an investigation under the boot carpet found the mount to be split on that side and the other side fairly worn. I instructed them to go ahead with this work, and that if the shocks were worn, they might as well replace them while they’re under there.

 

They phoned to tell me the car was ready, and that it didn’t need shocks, just the mounts. Got there, paid, and his parting words were “there’s still a bit of noise form the back, but it’s just down to the age of the vehicle”.

 

Guess what? It’s just as bad as before. Been to another garage who had a poke around and also couldn’t find anything. “Could it be the shocks?” I asked... They became a bit offish with me and suggested it was just due to the age of the vehicle.

 

Bouncing the rear at home doesn’t show any bounciness, but that near side shock makes a sound like sucking air when it rebounds.

 

I think the pothole has knackered the shock. Am I barking up the wrong tree with this? Why have 2 garages been so reluctant to look at the shock absorbers?

[Broadsword]

Sounds like a right old goose chase. We've had these before and they are notorious for rear antiroll bar bushes and drop links wearing out. At that age they are nearly guaranteed to be a problem. Unless from a visual inspection it looks like the drop links and bushes have been done, I would have them as a prime candidate for the knocking noises. The bolts get very rusty under there are people usually shy away from doing the job. Parts are cheap, but the seemingly straight forward job could take hours. Springs rust at the bottom and a bit of the end can snap off.