Dr Mat,
You have written quite a lot relating to rear shock absorber issues but you have never fitted Bilsteins as far as I know or changed to another make of shock absorbers. The issue has nothing to do with rubber bushings or "damping" of the top mount bolt. The issue is with the piston rod play within the barrel. I have demonstrated this previously and I have proved beyond all doubt that the Sachs shock absorbers were at fault due to poor design or manufacturing.
Marca may genuinely have noise again from the Bilsteins or it may be something else. If the Bilsteins are producing the same irritating noise as the original parts I would be very surprised indeed. If they do then in my view he has been very unlucky. Myself and many others around the world have used the Bilsteins an have eliminated the rattle with immediate effect and for good. In my case 16K on the Bilstein B4 and no noise from the shock absorber.s
With regard to shock absorber noise - the action of a shock absorber should not be heard within a vehicle as general road noise would probably eliminate any movement sound anyway. With all due respect if you write so much on an issue, which largely appears to be resolved as far as I can see, then making suggestions, other than changing the make of the shock absorber is not that helpful as items such as top mounts on the MK7 have no bearing on the problem.
Over the past 3-years since I proved that the Sachs shock absorbers were the root cause of the rear suspension rattle I have received scores of enquiries via email from all parts of the world and those who have followed my advice have always been satisfied after fitting Bilstein B4 parts.
If you have the rattle then simply jack-up the car and give the shock absorber a good thump or grab it and see if there appears to be movement in respect to the piston rod and barrel. If either or both is the case then fit another make of shock absorber. Its a simple and quick fix and worth doing. While it maybe good practise to change the bolts you dont have to. 16K since changing mine and I used the same bolts and we are still in one piece despite travel through Spain, Portugal and the UK over a huge variety of road surfaces.
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