I'm leaning towards it being the torsion bar pads...in a different forum the guys have diagnosed and apparently solved this issue by replacing the pads that sit above the torsion bar....what they and I hear is a metal on metal kind of clunck...google for the other forum and check it out...

later
ds

 

Mine does this and I think it is a shock but not sure.

 

How big of a job is it to change torsion bar pads in a 97 Sport? No 4WD.

 

I had the same clunk noise on my 00 Explorer XLT 5.0 and a the front driveline was a bit louder than normal. I jacked the front end up to look. I found that it was the lower ball joints. It took a long time to find the noise because the balljoints showed no play when they were wiggeled side to side, but if you try lifting the hub up and down you can see that the there is play up and down in the balljoint. Replaced them,(you can press them out, rather than replace the entire lower control arm like the service manual says), and the clunk and hum is gone.

 

I also Have that Issue. Sounds like a Brick hitting the floor-pan under my feet! You can feel a bit of it through the steering wheel too. My 2004 Explorer Sport-Trac has only 75000 Km's on it. Just replaced ball-joints. inner tie rod ends were done too. I have a little bit of a hunch tho, could it be the bushing or arm that holds the front diff from moving side to side to twist inside the front-end?
The noise doesn't go away but it quiets down when in 4x4 that's why I ask. When the truck is in 4 wheel drive the front axle is sort of held in place with the torque of the drive-train, then when its disengaged the front-end could maybe possibly bounce around in there...???? Any help would be nice cuz the noise is annoying and its starting to make me nervous driving it around town or on the highway

 

add me to the list of having this clunk,my clunk sounds like it,s in the front and in the rear,It only does it over small bumps,so far I have replaced all balljoints,no help although they were shot,and all new shocks same thing they were shot but did not cure the clunk,my next step is sway bar bushings and end links.everything else underneath appears to be in good shape.

 

Hey guys I have a 98 mounty and a 99 expl. EB both had the clunk your talking about under very close inspection the sway bar links were either broken inside ( the factory ford ones ) and when I changed them out it went away for a short time or the sleeve on the outside of the bolt was actually smashed allowing a very slight movement of the lower control arm( moog ) which was amplified by the sway bar the cheap aftermarket links will last only a few thousand miles under the right conditions and the factory ford ones are just too expensive. the play is almost not visible unless you get under the vehicle and have your buddies bounce the truck up and down as you look directly at the link where it connects to the lower control arm the play can be felt if you put your finger on the bottom of this bolt under the lower control arm why the vehilce is made to act as it would under a bump type situation so my answer is go for the gold (FORD sway bar links they look different than aftermarket for a reason) Thats what I'm trying next Hope this helps

 

I'll have to check that out next when i did the ball-joints the links looked ok from a visual inspection but having the suspension work while your looking could reveal a lot more. I'm gonna check those mounting points on the actual diff housing. the one mounting point looks to be right under my feet and i can feel the thud clunk there

 

'94 explorer 2WD (rollover edition). Same thing. Just replaced upper/lower balljoints, raduis arm bushings, axle pivot bushings, rotors, bearings, calipers, pads and inner tier rod. Nothing seems to help. Shocks are 6mo old and don't have the extra bounce of being blown or worn. Have NOT done the sway bar bushings or links yet (they do not show play when on or off the ground with bounce assistance) but they will be next on the list... just because I'm tired of this. I also pick up my 3 year old from daycare and would not like him to find out first hand what the issue is. In my opinion, the last thing these trucks need is more slop in the curves. I know this is a somewhat older post, but it seems the issue is never truly resolved. Could be more than one thing to fix the problem, but we all still need to know the fix. That said, when I do the sway bar links and sway bar bushings I'll let you know.

-Brian

 

fixed my clunk it was a combo of front sway bar end links and left front outer tie rod,found the problem by laying under the vehicle and had my son rock it side to side.

 

What about slack in the rack and pinion??? I have that noise in my 04 'Trac and have had it for about 3 years...... I cant figure anything else out.... The only reason I think its that is when Im parked and jerk the steering from one way to another really fast the exact same noise exists......Would that be Tie-Rod Ends (Inner and outer).