Sunnyorlando Posted March 28, 2023 Report Share Posted March 28, 2023 (edited) I have been trying to figure what is going with my rear suspension. As I travel in a straight line of around wide turns, when my rear suspension hits a small series of bumps of imperfections on the road, the rear 'dances', 'hops' or 'chatters' (thats the best desc I can think of) to the right no matter what direction the curve is. It's not noticeable when you hit just one solid bump, but when hit a series of small ones in a row, like ripples, that's you really notice it. There is no noise anywhere otherwise, the suspension sounds solid and the car runs smooth on local roads or highway speeds otherwise. Its just when hitting a series of ripples or bumps. Logic said to check shocks, so I did and I noticed the factory shocks (~70k mi) were seeping. I figured that was it... So I replaced both rear shocks. The issue did not change, it continues hopping. Any experiences with this? Thoughts...? Thanks Edited March 29, 2023 by Sunnyorlando Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted March 28, 2023 Report Share Posted March 28, 2023 Just thoughts here, how are the tires wearing? Alignment checked? Try interchanging the rear wheels/tires and see if it makes an affect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunnyorlando Posted March 28, 2023 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2023 Tires look good, aligned and tracking perfect . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bofus Posted March 29, 2023 Report Share Posted March 29, 2023 (edited) Did you replace the shocks yourself? Are they OEM? I assume you moved all the parts (rubber bump stops and such) from the old onto the new? The new ones don't come with all the bits or new dust shields and such. I had a blown shock that eventually seized up and would not move any longer. Hitting any small imperfection in the road would transfer right to my spine. I replaced with Ford OEM parts on both sides. Assuming that is all correct, it SOUNDS like something in the rear suspension must be binding and not freely moving through the suspension travel. I assume all the bushings are ok and the sway bar mount points are solid? Maybe you got bad shocks when you replaced them? It certainly sounds like the typical "worn shocks" behavior as something in the rear isn't being controlled/dampened. Edited March 30, 2023 by bofus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunnyorlando Posted March 29, 2023 Author Report Share Posted March 29, 2023 Thanks Bofus.. Both shocks replaced by me - its a simple job as you may know, and I am quite experienced in mechanics. They are not OEM, but they are Monroe (37378) spec'd to OEM (probably makes the ford OEM as the look almost identical) for the sport model. I didn't got with FoMoCo/Motorcraft because well, at 70k mi they were done and had been for a while from what I can tell. So I thought Id try something else. Although is possible that the new shocks could be bad, having the exact same issue on the same side probably rules out the shocks. The parts reused from the old shocks are the boot and the stopper rubber at the top which looked in perfect condition. I did a visual inspection of the bushings, sway bar mounts and related wearable parts - all looked good an nothing out of place. As to a restriction/binding, yep, thats possible right? But I did not have a way to test that movement. I may have to take it in to a shop for a full inspection. I was looking to see if this was a familiar issue with this model. And I agree, it does fell like a bad shock - but what are the chances of the same issue on the same side with new ones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perblue Posted March 29, 2023 Report Share Posted March 29, 2023 Try rotating the tires and see if it still does it with the back on the front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma-2 Posted May 7, 2023 Report Share Posted May 7, 2023 (edited) Couple of thoughts (although I've never experienced this myself). 1. Check the condition of the control arm bushings. You could have a bad bushing or something broken. 2. Check the condition of the front struts. Bad struts can make the nose dip in a tight turn which unloads the rear suspension causing the car to hop. 3. Wheel alignment is bad. Does the car track straight (or did someone misalign the rear to the front)? Edited May 7, 2023 by enigma-2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted May 7, 2023 Report Share Posted May 7, 2023 (edited) On 3/29/2023 at 10:05 AM, Sunnyorlando said: Thanks Bofus.. Both shocks replaced by me - its a simple job as you may know, and I am quite experienced in mechanics. They are not OEM, but they are Monroe (37378) spec'd to OEM (probably makes the ford OEM as the look almost identical) for the sport model. I didn't got with FoMoCo/Motorcraft because well, at 70k mi they were done and had been for a while from what I can tell. So I thought Id try something else. Although is possible that the new shocks could be bad, having the exact same issue on the same side probably rules out the shocks. The parts reused from the old shocks are the boot and the stopper rubber at the top which looked in perfect condition. I did a visual inspection of the bushings, sway bar mounts and related wearable parts - all looked good an nothing out of place. As to a restriction/binding, yep, thats possible right? But I did not have a way to test that movement. I may have to take it in to a shop for a full inspection. I was looking to see if this was a familiar issue with this model. And I agree, it does fell like a bad shock - but what are the chances of the same issue on the same side with new ones? definitely sounds like a bad shock.. but I agree that the likelihood of a bad shock out of the box is fairly low. did you compress the shock and release it before install? There used to be a recommended procedure to compress, invert and release new shocks to properly purge the charging gas from the valving I never fully understood it nor know if it is actually necessary, but I remember doing it a few times and feeling a significant difference in damping on the second compression. Who knows, shot in the dark here.. and apparently it is still a thing: https://www.onallcylinders.com/2015/07/02/tech-101-the-hows-and-whys-of-priming-your-shocks/ also look at rear sway bar end link condition. I replaced mine at ~50k due to corrosion eating them pretty badly, to avoid a failure. If not, i'd be looking at every single suspension component on that corner from the wheel bearing to control arm mount bushings and everything in between Edited May 7, 2023 by Cerberus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabu Posted July 9, 2023 Report Share Posted July 9, 2023 Was anything found to fix the issue ? I have the same on my ford edge 2018. It also "hops sideway to the right". It's quite noticeable on a highway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma-2 Posted July 10, 2023 Report Share Posted July 10, 2023 Things that come to mind that could cause this, 1. Wheel alignment (look at tires for uneven tire wear) 2. Bad shock or strut (visually look for traces of oil leaking down shock/strut) 3. Loose steering leakage (car will need to be raised to check) 4. Bad ball joint(s). 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.