Clonk from rear suspension Ambo/Classic

hmm need better pics of the close-up situation at the mount ends. if you were hovering over the car looking straight dow (with x-ray eyes, now that it's installed) the panhard ought to be exactly parallel to the axle centerlines (obviously towards the back of the car, but horizontally, fairly in line with the axles centerlines, as determined by spring height).

Ha!

The odd thing, it was bent forward, not upwards.

Now I nearly straightened it - not exactly - the alignment is pretty much parallel to the axle as viewed from above. Horizontally, the right mount is above the axle when the car is at rest.

I did notice that the tube is twisted a little, which I have no way to rectify.
Also noticed that the inner tubes of the bushes are only a little longer than the bushes themselves, so there is not much clearance between the ends of the rod and the sides of the mount. If possible, might see if I can prise the mount apart a bit and get a thick washer at each end of the tube to give more clearance. We have a 300 mile outing next week, would be nice if it didn't clonk. 300 miles in the UK means a lot of corners.

I had a Silver Shadow a couple of years. Rustbucket. One of the rear shocks punched through the rusted bottom of the spring cup, so effectively no shock that side. We rode 200 miles that way. The back went boing boing over the bumps, and at every dip in the road the spare wheel carrier hit the road with a great crash! and, as we were told, a shower of sparks.
Coil springs, no shocks, a whole new experience.

Ivor

If that doesn't do the trick just make a new one. It think the holes in the ends are 5/8", but might be 3/4". You can get rubber or polyurethane bushed rod ends those sizes, but they might be too thick for the factory mounts. If not you can get a piece of tubing and thread each end, allowing a bit of adjustment, or just thread one end and weld an end on the other.

It might have got bent because some joker just jacked the rear axle backwards rather than disconnect everything to look at the front u-joint. That was an accepted method for Chevys of the 50s with torque tubes -- but they used leaf springs and not coils like the Ramblers. No panhard rod on the Chevys either.

Have you checked the upper shock bushes under the inspection plates? The luggage might be preloading the shock absorber.

Top mount is fine. Vary hard to get at, but fine.
Really scratching my head here.
And since the car was jacked at the rear end for the annual Gubmt test yesterday, the clonk is worse. Perhaps luckily, when the tester drove it down the road, he didn't notice.

Ivor