Did anyone ever resolve this? I have owned a 2009 MK3 for 18 months and this clunking noise is driving me bonkers. Car has been back to dealers(Bristol Street Motors Redditch) 4 times now and they’ve heard it but cannot replicate it so no fault found. Due to go into Johnsons of Solihull this weekend for further investigation. This is ruining the ownership experience for me.
Paul
MK3 2.0ltr Option
So glad I’ve found this thread as I’ve got the same problem. Mk1 78k. Every pothole and cateye
something else to check , I had this problem in my mk1 and mates with a mk2 and mk3 had the same issue and we all solved the problem in the same way
check the alignment bolts
if they are loose they can cause the clunking
Ignore the manual torque setting they need to be FT
particularly on an old mk1 like mine 
Alignment bolts to what? Did it cause the clunking on all four corners?
make sure the alignment bolts are tight. Mine had loosened off it was causing clunking from the front passenger wheel particularly as that was the loosest
The other wheels were also clunking to varying degress and not all the time, once all the alignment bolts , there are 8 , 2 per corner, had been tightened , no more clunking
might not solve the problem but another to check
I had this on my mk3.5. As mentioned by Nick above it was the bump stop on mine. I had exactly as described by Nick - a split bump stop that was a missing one of its rings. Somehow this was allowing the car to go lower than it should and something was tapping - I still dont know what was tapping/knocking but a new bumpstop (£20 for an OEM part from Mazda) plus a couple of hour stripping the shock absorber and coil assembly sorted it.
See the photos in this post - https://www.mx5oc.co.uk/forum/yaf_postst83119_Mk3-Suspension-Noise-on-Unmade-Road.aspx - almost identical to mine.
We have owned from new. 2011 model, after about a year a clonking over potholes …has been frustrating me for years…this weekend decided to try again at finding the issue…jacked the rear of the car up &Astarted trying move components to find noise , there is a rubber shroud around the top of the coil spring, peel this back & on the top of the shock absorber is a white plastic dust cap, this was a loose fit on top of the shock absorber & sounded like the noise…I cleaned away any dirt & wound round the top of the absorber 2 revolutions of insulation tape & pushed the white dust cap back on so it becomes a friction fit…hey presto , took out for road test, looking for all potholes etc…& noise has disappeared…I hope this resolution for some of you suffering the same issue
On my mk2.5 it was rear brake pads rattling (not really a clunk, but still worrying), but happened over bumps, the retaining clips where missing…
Rear suspension clink/chink SOLVED. It matches the symptoms in a few of the threads here and a letter in STHT June 2017. I had the dreaded clink/chink metallic rattle going over small 1”-2” ridges and shallowly-recessed manhole covers. It came on after about ten miles of driving.
Annoyingly, large deflections of the front and rear suspensions as the car front then rear suspensions went over a rise/drop were heard as a normal “dumb – dumb” of the tyres/suspension. Small deflections and eventually small slow rises and falls over traffic humps resulted in a metallic sounding “chink” on the way up and then on the way down. It would start on the rear offside and then start on the rear nearside – so it would happening together.
I bought my 2011 3.5 Miyako from a dealer, with 17,000 miles and it was under warranty. It drove me and the dealer to despair. Every time I drove to the dealers it came on and I could demonstrate it. After their investigation and fixes it went away. Only to come back on the 20 mile drive home. The dealer eliminated the top cap/boot of the shock absorber, the seating in the top shock absorber recess and the drop links.
After much research and persistence by the dealer, it was thought it could be a sticking valve in the shock absorber. The problem they had was that each time the car was jacked up for work or inspection, the suspension came down, and that action forced the valve to become unstuck and act normally. Replacement of both rear shock absorbers cured the noise.
So, from these forums and STHT, we seem to have four possible causes for the dreaded rear suspension clink/chink noise : top cap/boot split/broken, the top seating worn down (as in STHT June 2017), the drop links and the shock absorbers.
If you have the clink/chink noise then I suggest you do the quick and no-cost investigation first – jack it up on each side to extend the shock absorbers and run it for a while. If it has gone but comes back, then suspect the shock absorbers.
Hi,
Had the same issue, clattering / knocking from rear suspension over broken surfaces. Had the car booked in at the dealers for them to try and resolve. Hoever jacking the car up a couple of days before looked at the rear o/s shock absorber and the white plastic cup that fits onto the top of the shock was loose. Bit of gaffer tape to get a good fit and 1000 miles later not a sound even over the most pot holed roads in the area.
Keith
2 litre Miyako
Hi guys. Had this for the last 18 months and its been driving me crazy, and sorted just last week, though may not be the same in your car!
On the top of the rear shock absorber tube where the piston rod enters, is a plastic seat for the bounce rubber.
That was worn and loose.
To cut a long story short. Jack up the rear so the wheels are hanging and remove the wheels.
Looking at the shock, under the rubber dirt shield you’ll find this plastic seat. about 1.5" long and 1.5" diameter.
Try moving it up the tube, if it is loose, lift it out of the way, clean the tube and wind a length of insulating tape around the tube.
(1 - 1.5 turns should be sufficient but its trial and error)
Now carefully feed the seat over the tube and tape. Should be tight but not so tight that it dislodges the tape.
Would add a photo if I only knew how to.
Good luck
Sorry when I started typing this the previous post was not shown…
Holy thread revival.
This has sorted my clunks, it seems. Fingers 