So heres what I know, bad clunking in the rear of my '69 Chevelle, mainly when I hit bumps. I am currently looking for a shop to take a look at it but in the meantime I would like to try and figure out what to look for :confused: . I have never dealt with frame damage so i dont know what to look for. The "clunking" is only on the rear right side, does that sound like bent or twisted or more like a crack or brake. Any help on what to look for or past experiences with frame damge would be much appreciated. Thanks, Cliff

Check the shocks.

Shocks have under 20k miles on them, but I will look into it. thanks

Also, check the body mounts as when they deteriorate they will cause a clunking noise like that.

Check to see if the rubber spring isolator is in place. It goes between the top of the spring and the body. Without it there will be metal to metal contact.

My car had this cluncking also when I got it. FOund out the shock bolt holes were worn out larger than the bolt and allowed the shock to move up and down some. I did a "temp" fix by removing the shock, laying a washer with the right size hole in it on top of the shock tower and placed some tack welds to hold it. No more noise, but I'll get a better looks at this problem when I get the frame out from underneath the car this summer for my restoration.

Thanks and I will look into all these. I am really praying that its not the actual frame but if it is, what am I looking at for repairs??? Price, labor, etc,etc.

I have to have welding done to my frame. It was cracked in front of the rear axle arch and a rust hole in front. It cost me $800 to get it done. Alot of the cost factor depends on the shop. I highly recommend the place I went. But, if your not in the Philly area ...

I 2nd the body mounts. Or sometimes the metal the mounts are supposed to be attached to.

Don't get yourself worked up, the noise doesn't have to come from a cracked frame. Check the easy stuff first, like what's mentioned above. Last time I had a noise like that, it was from a broken exhaust pipe hanger, and it cost me $1.50 to fix. Anything that's loose can cause that noise, sometimes it even helps to clean out the trunk. ;)