Toyota Corolla unknown front noise

30

Asked by lozanoju Jan 11, 2017 at 09:44 PM about the 2015 Toyota Corolla LE

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Hi  I have a 2015 Toyota Corolla with 38,000 miles. It has developed a noise
(clunking) in the front left side when going through small potholes and
uneven surfaces at slow speeds. I have changed the strut mounts, sway bar
links, sway bar bushings and even the sway bar and nothing has changed. i
do not what else to do. I have taken it to three mechanics and no one has
been able to determine the cause of the noise. The three mechanics tell me
they do not think its a suspension noise. Please help.

31 Answers

You replaced the things I would suspect. Your car should be under warranty so why is the dealer not fixing this?

8 people found this helpful.
220

I have the same 2015 Corolla, red, with about the same mileage. Same noise but appears on the right side. Clunking noise sounds worse in the warmer weather and is less in the cold. Checked the same items in above post , plus brake pads, wheel bearings - no change. Changed out right side strut. Even put fibre spacers under the struts to see if that would help - no go. Yes car is under warranty. Took it to the dealer for two days but he said he heard the noise but had no idea what it was and to come back later (presumably when the warentee was over!) Glad to hear I am not the only one with this problem. Any further ideas?

12 people found this helpful.
50

Did u find the problem.?My 2008 corolla have same issue couldn't find

2 people found this helpful.
220

No answer but about 6 months after visit to dealer (Tony Graham in Ottawa Canada) they called back and said bring it in and they will fix the noise. Brought it in for about 4 hours and when returned the noise was gone. So the dealer knows the problem and how to fix it but when I questioned them wouldn't answer! Clunking noise in a Corolla - never! The noise never came back and hunting around under front end couldn't find any changes.

7 people found this helpful.
220

No charge - at first they seemed to be quite interested in fixing the problem but couldn't find it. Then 6 months later they seemed to know what the problem was and thus fixed it. You could call Tony Graham Toyota on 1855 Merivale Road in Ottawa, phone (613) 225-1212 but i guess they will just want you to bring your car in for an examination.

3 people found this helpful.
100

What did they tell you it was? I have a 2015 corolla and have this same issue. My best friend is a long time technical at a Toyota dealership and he tightened the bolts on the strut mount plates and that seemed to help for a little bit but now the noise is back.

2 people found this helpful.
40

I had a 2001 corolla and I guarantee your problem is the same. Its the sway bar end link or bushing. Just tell them to check that and there you go.

4 people found this helpful.
220

I am picking up my 2015 Corolla S from the dealer on my way home from work today. I had the same front suspension noise, mainly from passenger side. The dealership has had my car for the last 4 days. They determined it was the lower control arms and both need to be replaced. So I will see if this actually fixes the problem or not.

6 people found this helpful.
100

@GuruC875S wow!! 4 days!! Can you keep me updated after you replace the control arms. My friend is a technician at a Toyota dealership and he hasn't been able to figure out the problem on my car. Toyota should do a recall since so many people are having the same issue.. But then again they would need to know the exact issue. The noise is just so annoying.

4 people found this helpful.
220

I picked up my car and so far so good on the way home. We will see in the upcoming days. The paperwork states, “54173 bushings causing the sound in the lower control arms replace both lower control arms”. I understand your pain. I was so annoyed too. I hope this helps everyone else having the same problem.

9 people found this helpful.
100

@GuruC875S I showed my good friend who has been a master technician at Toyota what you had said. He said "yup they all do that I had a new guy recommend struts and it made it worse. it's the chassis designed . it's the way it flexes causing that pop." But I'm very interested in knowing how yours is after this fix. Please do keep me updated. Thank you.

4 people found this helpful.
50

What the electrician said to me is that it's a converter of the air conditioner. This is found in many corollas as he mentioned.. I am looking for one to buy and replace it. It's SO annoying especially during summer.

5 people found this helpful.
110

had the same problem with a 2012 corolla s. with 41,000 miles. replaced the struts, same noise, replaced the sway bar bushings and end links, same noise, replaced the inner and outer tie rods, same noise, replaced the lower control arms and ball joints, same noise, replaced the cv half shafts, same noise. [ I remember the same noise in my 1999 Avalon when new and Toyota replaced the upper strut mount and this fixed the noise on that car.] my next step proved to fix the problem. I took the driver strut out and took it apart. it ended up being the upper strut center bolt was loose, tightened it up and the problem was fixed. I did all the work myself, so the cost was just for parts. I do think Toyota knows about the problem but will not say. people bring their car in to be repaired, only to be quoted 1500 or 2000 for repair, they get their car back and the problem is fixed, the dealer made a little money and the customer is happy. I found that you could tighten that nut without removing the strut, just put a socket on the bolt and tighten. its very sad that Toyota is, in the last 15 or 20 years, getting just like American auto builders. all they want is to make more money. its all about profit anymore not customer care.

11 people found this helpful.
50

I have very same noises on my 2015 corolla front wheels. Very frustrating and annoying. It’s started like a year ago when car wasn’t even 4 years old with less than 30,000 miles on it. Japanese cars not as reliable as they say!

5 people found this helpful.
40

I have a 2017 corolla and at 31,000 miles I had a noise coming from front right wheel. It was the control arm bushing they replaced it and all was good. However my daughter got a 2019 corolla and at about 25,000 miles had the exact same problem the same side. Now the my car is at 65,000 miles and my warranty is expired it has happened again. I'm not sure I would ever buy another Toyota again.

4 people found this helpful.
150

Same issue on my 2016 Corolla, 4 mechanics non of them have found the problem. I believe this sound comes from the chassis. I need help too.

150

Hey guys I found a video, this could be the answer to our prays. https://youtu.be/GW3gyJYI9r0

15 people found this helpful.
30

I brought my car into the dealer for the front end noise They had me test drive another corolla ( same model ) Lower miles made the same noise!! Tech said all the corollas make that noise. So I opened up a case with Toyota. call Toyota and tell them your car is doing that they should open up a bulletin on it or something

3 people found this helpful.
220

I too had the same frontend noise and made sure to get it on the recorded before reaching 36,000 miles. I complained about it at every 5,000 routine maintenance appointment. It was documented each time. Around 50,000 miles they diagnosed it to be the lower control arms. I opened up a case with Toyota to pay for it, which they ended up sending a repair voucher to the dealership. I am at 74,000 miles now and still “no frontend noise”. So after all, replacing the lower control arms, both left and right, fixed the noise. I hope this helps all of you out there.

7 people found this helpful.
5

Is it really the control arms? My 2017 corolla makes some nasty grinding noises when going up an entrance to my apartment or even going over bumps at los spreads. When it flexes it makes a horrible grinding noise. Please help :(

30

Mine was diagnosed to be both lower control arms. It fixed my front end noise. It has been about 18 months since they have been replaced.

3 people found this helpful.
50

https://youtu.be/GW3gyJYI9r0 Locruz00 posted the same link. Video guy seems to have nailed the issue. Wouldn't hurt to try since he only suggested to grease a few bolts. If not comfortable you can get a mechanic to do the process for under $50 since the bolts are under your car

5 people found this helpful.
30

I have a 2018 Toyota Corolla XSE (I bought it brand new) and my car had/has the same noise since around 30,000+ miles. The noise is more prominent when I go over a small bump, pothole, tree roots, etc. Mine is more like a squeeking sound (like the older model cars when the shocks would go bad). Unfortunately I did not take mine in until after my warranty ran out. The dealer mechanic informed me it was the lower control arms/sway bars which would cost me approximately $900 (I reminded them it was a brand new car and it should not be making that noise with that few miles on it). I went to get a second opinion at my local mechanic - he put it up on the lift and showed me - nothing wrong - no bad rubber coverings, he bounced the car up and down and nothing). He did oil everything which helped but it did not last more than a week. I now have 93,300 miles on it (I was driving 135+ miles a day to work) and the noise is still there. I am not putting anymore money into this and as long it is not doing any damage... I stated the same thing to my dealer about having a Toyota recall but he said there probably are not enough vehicles with this problem. Thank you all for sharing...

3 people found this helpful.
20

Same problem, when turn right, left clunking. When turn left, right clunking. Never buy Toyota again.

2 people found this helpful.
10

I had the same issue with my 2012 Corolla. Brought to the dealership multiple times. I was told it was the upper shock mounts and they wanted a fortune to fix it. I took it to my local mechanic and he said the mounts were fine. The noise continued, a squeaky clunky noise that only occurs at slow speeds when on uneven pavement or turning into my driveway. I reported it at every 5000 mike service. When my daughter was complaining about it a year later, I demanded the dealership find out what it is. Finally they told me it is the bushings in the lower control arms. I didn’t trust the dealership nor their $1400 repair estimate and brought it to my local body shop. They looked at it and agreed it was the lower control arms. Replaced both with Toyota factory parts for $700. No noise since!

1 people found this helpful.

Mine was a loose and worn passenger side sway bar link. Finally found it by gabbing it and pulling and pushing really hard. Could nearly duplicate the noise.

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