Hey all, I drive a 05 Neon (up here in Canada they call it a SX 2.0, but its the same difference). SE edition I believe, w/ automatic transmission (if it matters). I'd like to pick your brains if you dont mind... a few weeks ago I was driving through a rough part of town with tons of potholes - these roads are so rough you cant go faster then 20KPH! Anyways, I hit one really deep hole hard, going faster then I shoulda been going, and I heard a clunk (for lack of a better term, its kinda a scraping sound, but its a dull kinda sound). Since then, anytime I hit a mediocre to super deep hole, I hear this clunk and I can feel a slight scraping near my feet (this noise is coming from the front left wheel-well region) as I'm driving.

My current solution is to avoid potholes (which I should anyways I guess). As far as I can tell, it doesn't affect me while driving at all, it only seems to be happening when my shocks hit their limit. Rocking and pushing on the car wont cause it, the only reproduction seems to be actually going through a pothole. I was hoping some of you guys here might have an idea what could be damaged and/or broken, and I'd be grateful if you could toss some ideas my way!

 

Things to check first IMO just to make sure some important things are not indeed damaged: lower control arm bushings, ball joints, tie rod ends, sway bar end links and bushings.

 

Thanks for the answer darthroush! I pulled her up on the ramps and had a good look, and even though I don't know much about vehicles, I am (somewhat) mechanically minded, and I cant see anything that looks bad. I checked everything you mentioned, and nothing looks broken or cracked or lopsided or anything like that. The only curious thing is there appears to be a ground wire attached to what I think is the brake pads or the strut assembly, then to the wheelwell. It was snapped in half on both front tires. Should I be worried about that and reattach it? Maybe add a bit of length in case it was pulled apart?

Anyways, back on topic - should I be worried about that noise? Or do you guys think since the main components seem fine, I should be alright?

 

those ground wires always break off, not to worry about them

as for the noise Id get it sorted myself, nothing usually fixes itself, and if it does you should be worried on how long it will last
take it into an alignment shop they'll tell you what it needs

 

Always worry about a noise, but if it doesn't get worse, don't worry too much. Also, search for posts about motor mounts here. Mine went out, and it started like you describe, as a bottoming-out clunk over bumps. It slowly turned into a constant grinding noise on acceleration. I thought it was the suspension at first, too.