[jiffy6969]

I'm beginning to hear noises coming from my front end. It actually sounds like someting loose in the suspension. I thinkk it is the struts.

Has anyone had to replace theirs? My car has the "auto" suspension, where you can set it to "Soft" "Normal" or "Sport". I want that system to still work. Do I need to go to the dealer? Are they expensive?

I hear the noice when I hit a bump, and sometimes during hard acceleration I'll here a similar noise (coming from the front right), but I don't think it is the CV Joint.

Any ideas? It seems to be getting worse as time goes by.

 

[ak]

First, check all the nuts and bolts on the struts. Take the AAS units off of the top of the struts...they come off easy with couple of screws off. Then if everything was tight, then check the the endlinks of the sway bar on the control arm. Make sure those are not loose.

 

[anarchyx34]

what does the noise sound like? I would suggest you replace the sway-bar endlinks with Addco units, size 012 and 015. That made a lot of bad sounds go away on my friend's mx6.

 

[Turbobink]

OEM Adjustable Struts...

New adjustable structs are about $197.00 each from Mazda. However, Ford will sell you Probe GT struts for $90.00 each. Call them, prices may be different in your area.

 

[Manifest]

When mine go I am going to purchase the Ford ones if they are still available.

 

[hurddawg]

I replaced my front struts (fixed to AAS) because my orig crapped-out. They are easy to replace, but I had to get my alignment done. The camber on the front wheels were way off afterwards.

 

[Manifest]

Not sure how true this is, but I hear that it is best to wait a week or so before you get an alightment done. This is to let them settle some. Any comments?

 

[hurddawg]

I haven't heard that before. If its true I can get my alignment redone for free (for 6,000 miles) anyway.

 

[Wayman]

I got rid of the adjustable suspension - I never used it in anything except for sport, so I lost a couple of pounds. It's really a gimmick! Get some Tokicos w/ Eibachs or Ground Controls. My Intrax w/ KY-B's look good but are too soft (but better than lowered with the stock adjustable struts - they don't do anything with a lowered suspension!) Get rid of it if you're about real performance, it just doesn't do anything for performance.

 

[antiSUV]

I agree with wayman

I never set my AAS to anything other than "sport"; the other settings were way too soft, and honestly "sport" was never really stiff enough. (I think I only put it on "soft" to demonstrate the system to buddies and to haul around my Grandma.) Get Tokicos and Eibach. I'm running KYB and Eibach right now; it's stiffer than the AAS on "sport", but the KYB's don't damp enough so I'm switching to Tokicos when I can afford it. Once you make the switch away from AAS, go to your mazda dealer or junkyard and buy the little coin holder that goes in place of the AAS buttons.

 

[Quy93MX6V6]

Front End Clunking?

Back to the orginal topic, maybe your clunking is the front end stabilizer link. You may need a new one. 2nd Gen Sixes are notorious for that. I though it was a strut at first too, but I took it to a Mazda specialist and researched on the board, and that's what I found out. I just got mine replaced today. It's so nice to get rid of that clunking now!!