Kavish Bhekharee Posted December 30, 2025 Report Share Posted December 30, 2025 (edited) Hello all, Im having a clinking noise on front drivers side when driving on uneven roads or bumps. I replaced the sway bar link already. They brand new but clunking noise persists. I noticed the cv axle makes a clunking noise when i push and pull on it. Could that be the clunking noise? Anyone else axle makes that type of noise? Ive uploaded a short video on youtube. The link is below: thanks! Edited December 30, 2025 by Kavish Bhekharee Add more info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted December 30, 2025 Report Share Posted December 30, 2025 this is a highly talked about on this forum if you want to use the section for it so many different causes for this but the main fault tends to be the top strut bearings are the main cause of the noise nothing short of replacing both of them which is a lot of trouble and expense as well....sad to say both my 2011 and then its replacement my 2014 both suffer from this as well sometimes I notice it more than other I believe they had a bulletin put out on it but no recall as far as I know of..that said yours might be from that shaft,,, Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 1 Author Report Share Posted January 1 Thanks for the response. Ill swap the whole strut assembly on that side. Ill write back once its done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 2 Report Share Posted January 2 The upper strut mount bearing is more of a rattle. That's a heavier clunking noise. Is the tire starting to wear funny ? Lots of stuff like lower ball joint, tierods, suspension bushings can make noise too. And they will excellerate tire wear noticeably. Is steering shaking or pulling when driving down the road? Still original struts on our two journeys, 209 and 275k kms in them. Lots of ball joints and tierods have been changed. Up on a hoist it's sometimes easier to diagnose clunks. Paying for a diagnosis can be better than guessing. Summer Solstice 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 2 Author Report Share Posted January 2 The ball joint, wheel bearings, inner & outer tie rods have been changed in May 2025. Changed both link kits in december. No shaking in the steering wheel. No uneven tire wear. No pulling when driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 2 Report Share Posted January 2 (edited) Lots of wear items changed, which is good. A good mechanic should be able to identify noise source. Can’t really trouble shoot remotely on internet. Control arm or subframe bushings or maybe strut. Struts are a wear item. Sway bar bushings can rattle, even if end links are new. Nice utube clip by the way. Edited January 2 by John/Horace Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 2 Author Report Share Posted January 2 Ok. Changed the strut assembly on driver side. Clunking noise still there. Ill get the lower control arm checked next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryl Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 Subframe bushings can cause clunking changed mine out noise gone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 (edited) when did your journey start making the sound mine has mostly been after it was a couple yrs old I have a 2014 and it makes a clunk when going over a speed bump or mild bump in the parking lot I don't notice it driving down the road,I have sprayed the bushings down with silicone spray and that seems to help for... I cant find no you tube videos on a dodge journey mostly nissans a while but then it comes back... any more info you can supply would be a big help for other owners...thanks like did you do the repair,how hard ,cost of the bushings and any other info on if you can tell the bushings are bad before tearing into it...like my journey I live in Al and no salt the under side looks great no rust but have 178k on it but it almost always been making the clunk but was told it was the strut upper bearing but dealership no help to say that is what it is Edited January 3 by 2late4u Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 6 Author Report Share Posted January 6 Found the issue. Intermediate shaft bearing is done. Thats what’s causing the clunking noise. Idk why it felt like it was coming from driver side Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 was that the CV shaft you were shaking,so its on the passenger side? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 7 Author Report Share Posted January 7 No it is not the driver side CV shaft. It is the passenger side intermediate shaft. The bearing is shot 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 I just watched some videos on your repair I assume in your vid you had the front end lifted and the passenger side wheel off by was the drivers side lifted off the ground as well ? or just the passenger side ? I was wanting to check mine to see if I have the same problem.. thanks for the info of course my noise has been there from almost the whole life of the journey... Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 Great news, hard to trouble shoot. My brothers kia van had the same item fail, took a while to figure it out. Until it’s really bad when it becomes more obvious. Dealer kept saying motor mounts. More of a high milage thing, although not always. Not crazy expensive part or labor really. Mechanics may want to change passenger cv shaft because it’s removed to do this repair. Factory shafts are very good quality and going back to change wheel bearing hub; might make more sense at that time. Unless boot damage and 300k on original c/v. Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 7 Author Report Share Posted January 7 yes i had both front end of the vehicle lifted. Planning to change the CV shaft as well. Already ordered the part. Thats the part that went bad that John posted btw. 233 CAD tax and shipping included for the CV and intermediate shaft. Planning to DIY the job. 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 I had 2 replace a couple of CV axles on my daughter's mail caravan ( when she had to use her own veh ,,,,thank god her office went to supplying them for them now) this really help and also a dab of thick or sticky grease on the clip to help keep it centered when reinstalling the shaft...good luck and thanks for replying for others to learn what might be their problem as well............. Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 7 Author Report Share Posted January 7 Thanks for the response guys! When removing the intermediate shaft from the transaxle, transmission fluid will come out. Is there a filler hole to refill the transmission somewhere? Cannot find anything on the web. Mine is the 2.4L with the 4 speed trans Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 8 Report Share Posted January 8 1 hour ago, Kavish Bhekharee said: Thanks for the response guys! When removing the intermediate shaft from the transaxle, transmission fluid will come out. Is there a filler hole to refill the transmission somewhere? Cannot find anything on the web. Mine is the 2.4L with the 4 speed trans you should have a transmission dip stick on the 4 cyl , I have the 3.6 and it has the dip stick tube but it has a cap on it,maybe someone will chime in soon that has a 2.4 eng Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 8 Report Share Posted January 8 https://youtube.com/shorts/hxTxg6bUCpY?si=3_MsRIpJcpTZkEPD Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 8 Report Share Posted January 8 Yes 2.4 has dipstick, use funnel to add through that, ATF+4 only. My dealer sells by the quart, reasonable price. Shaft pops out from transmission with a pry bar fairly easily. Count on losing about one quart (0.95 of a litre) or less. Always put a film of tranny oil on shaft surface that slides through seal into transmission. If dry it can rip the seal. If it already has a drip, knocking in a new seal is a good idea. Around $20 for a new oem seal. Torque wrench for the cv axle nut is a good idea; it is considered a one time use nut. New shaft will probably have new nut. Three of my four cv shafts have reused nuts on them. Retorqued them a few times afterwards to check, but no issues. New nut is also around $20, your call...technically safer option if shaft reused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavish Bhekharee Posted January 13 Author Report Share Posted January 13 Job done! Jacked up passenger side front and rear high off the ground. Not a single drop of gear oil leaked when taking the intermediate shaft out of transaxle. The bearing of the oil intermediate shaft was completely gone. No more clunking when going over bumps or uneven road now. Summer Solstice, John/Horace and 2late4u 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 13 Report Share Posted January 13 4 hours ago, Kavish Bhekharee said: Job done! Jacked up passenger side front and rear high off the ground. Not a single drop of gear oil leaked when taking the intermediate shaft out of transaxle. The bearing of the oil intermediate shaft was completely gone. No more clunking when going over bumps or uneven road now. Great news, just had my journey in for valve cover gasket leaks at the dealership covered under my lifetime warranty of course minus 100 ded..LOL now the passenger side blend door is staying hot all the time even with the ac on,has been sticking here lately so I'll wait a bit and if it doesn't fix itself I'll take it into the dealership again and let them replace the actuator which is in the hardest place to get to for an old fat guy and I'll have them take a look at the CV intermediate shaft to see if that is my problem or see what they come up with,,, mine has been doing this from mostly when new and I have just got used to it I guess,,I kind of think my CV axle seal going into the trans might be leaking as well so get it all done under one ded ..... 178 k on mine that actuator looks like it list for $138 at the dealership.......BUT great news you found your problem Kavish Bhekharee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 14 Report Share Posted January 14 If you drop down the glove box door and pull the HVAC filter out, you can actually see what the actuator is doing. If it's stuck poking it will sometimes free it up again for a few more months. The plastic internal gears get worn and sticky, replacement is only long term fix, like you know. Super awkward to change, one of the journey design flaws. They wear out because it's used to vent car when parked, constantly cycles every drive cycle. I think subframe bushings are more likely your constant clunk 2lage4u; will be interesting to see what it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 14 Report Share Posted January 14 well the pass side actuator broke loose today ( it is the bottom one of the two on the left side of the air filter box)it does this every few yrs, I had seen on a YouTube video NOT to leave both sides in the top hot temp section as they were saying when it all heats up sometimes they stick in that position due to the top part has some sticky stuff that can make it stick,,,I always try to leave it around 74 when shutting it off,,, no worries during the summertime with the ac,,,don't know if this is true but it is what I have been doing,I just forgot this last time when i shut it off,,,as far as the subframe bushings those are what i spray down with some dry silicon spray and it really helps but the dull sounding bumps is still there,,,,, as far as I can tell they look good but who knows so since the blend door is working again no dealership for me..whoo hoo John/Horace 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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