Clutch clonk (after gear selection) ... 6C

[SRGTD]

Again, I can only hear this with windows down in an echoy area. Sounds awful bit seems to be a 'characteristic' noise. I wonder if this is exclusive to just small-engined VAG cars??

Not just VAG cars; there’s been lots of discussion over on fiestastoc.com forum in the past with owners experiencing a similar ‘clunk’ noise between changing gears, so seems to be a ‘characteristic’ of the ST model of the Ford Fiesta.

[madjam6rc]

Mine's due a service in a couple of months so will get it checked out then. Slower gear changes does minimise the clunk. I still feel it is 'normal' but it shouldn't sound like that.

[RUM4MO]

My wife's August 2015 Polo 1.2TSI 110PS 6MT has had a clonking noise now for about 9 months, it appears mostly after the car has warmed up and when the engine load reduces and then increases again and also when crossing raised areas and other rough surfaces on fixed throttle settings. I have had the front of the car up on ramps, and what I've found is:- the LHS (lower) TCA rear bush has split, so that will need to be replaced under warranty as I'd expect a proper MOT would pick that up (car has its year 3 service and MOT - both already paid for to come soon), other things I noticed were that the LHS ARB drop link is easier to "rotate" than the RHS one - though that in itself is not a problem but might point to another noise source now or in the near future, this I'll sort out myself with Meyle HD drop links, also I'm still convinced that the gear shift cables are also contributing to these noises/clunks - this might be why the noises seems worse after the car has heated up as these cables, which have a heavily ribbed grommet(s) round them as they pass under the exhaust heat shield on their way back to the gear lever/stick, I'll mention that in case some improvement has been made in that area.

[veteran]

Rum4Mo, for those of us less familiar with the Polo than yourself, precisely which is the bush you've referred to as the "TCA rear bush"? What does 'TCA' stand for?

[RUM4MO]

TCA = Track Control Arm, sometimes called a wishbone, the part that controls where each front wheel is located while letting these wheels pivot and the suspension move up and down.

The car is now booked in for next Monday 10:00 so I will see how much they change things, hopefully they will just pivot the TCA out a bit and press out the old metalastic bush mount, then press a new one in. It seems across the VW Group world there is only one version of that bush and it is 1J0 407 181, earlier cars used 6R0 407 181B, but that one seemed to get dropped!

I would think that a pothole finished off that bush, though normally you do find potholes in many of the markets areas where Polo is sold! My daughter's late 2009 Ibiza with its 17" wheels has had ended up with that issue - yet, and it will be getting driven with less care and attention than my wife or I do I think!

[andrew_nkomo]

Guy I have had this problem for the past 2 years vw says it my driving style nothing wrong with the car ,changed shock, gearbox bearing etc and sound still there but car drives fine ,only on gear 1 to 2.. now used to it but is annoying

[andrew_nkomo]

Guy I have had this problem for the past 2 years vw says it my driving style nothing wrong with the car ,changed shock, gearbox bearing etc and sound still there but car drives fine ,only on gear 1 to 2.. now used to it but is annoying

[andrew_nkomo]

TCA = Track Control Arm, sometimes called a wishbone, the part that controls where each front wheel is located while letting these wheels pivot and the suspension move up and down.

The car is now booked in for next Monday 10:00 so I will see how much they change things, hopefully they will just pivot the TCA out a bit and press out the old metalastic bush mount, then press a new one in. It seems across the VW Group world there is only one version of that bush and it is 1J0 407 181, earlier cars used 6R0 407 181B, but that one seemed to get dropped!

I would think that a pothole finished off that bush, though normally you do find potholes in many of the markets areas where Polo is sold! My daughter's late 2009 Ibiza with its 17" wheels has had ended up with that issue - yet, and it will be getting driven with less care and attention than my wife or I do I think!

what did the garage say?

[RUM4MO]

At the first visit, they replaced the torn TCA rear mounting bush and maybe the strut top mounting, though I don't think they had touched anything on the strut, the other thing that did was to remove the gearbox mounting, slap Copper Slip grease all over it and using a full set of new bolts, refitted that gearbox mounting.

Now that fixed all my problems, but only for a few days so I booked it back in again and left a printed out copy of a word document depicting my thoughts, what had already been done, what I had heard VW recommends they do next and a request that they treat this issue seriously and completely resolve it at this second visit or I would require a full reason why my time was being wasted.

So, that time they replaced the gearbox mounting for the probably stiffer TDI engined Polo equivalent, which was what I had heard that VW advise they do and had outlined that in that word document I left in the car, the result was that that problem has been completely resolved!

[RUM4MO]

what did the garage say?

Remember there are two or more possibilities for this clonking, the first one, as in my case, was clonking noises coming from the gearbox+engine moving about, and the second one, which will be down to something internal in the gearbox+clutch assembly.

[andrew_nkomo]

Please help I have changed the water pump, fan belt, and fan belt rollers, and the car drives fine even for long distances with no noise at all. Here in Southafrica with traffic jams and sometimes no lights, the congestion is unbearable. Every time I drive short distances where I have to constantly stop and change gears, I hear this sound when the car is moving or when I stop However when I switch off the engine the sound goes away after I start the car after maybe like 20mins,Have had this issue for more than 3 years now. Have no clue what it is all is fine, aircon is fine...please help it's annoying me. The sound sounds like a worn out fan belt especially in summer now it quickly comes on when I stop and go a lot on the road.