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clunking sound
Posted: Thu Jul 07, 2005 11:01 pm
by boom314
hey guys my car has been making this clunking sound for a few months. it happened after my mom took my car to get new bushings on the front suspension. she didnt know what the guy was gtelling her and i wasnt there to know either. all i know is that it first started out making a clunking sound at low speed turns like in a parking lot, or turning out of a driveway, now the sound has escalated to minor bends in the road, and at average driving speed. the sound is irritating me and i have no idea what it is. have any of you had similar problems.
Posted: Thu Jul 07, 2005 11:47 pm
by eVilcreations
CV Joints or Hub Bearings.........
That's what it was when I had that noise...
Josh
Posted: Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:28 am
by boom314
how do i fix that, cus its getting worse
Posted: Fri Jul 08, 2005 2:44 am
by Baal
Im 90% sure its a loose bolt. (if they unbolted the knuckle).
The bolt that tightens the ball joint to the knuckle if it isnt really tight the metal rod will pop out in turns and it will make a noise.
Make sure its tight, its a 15mm bolt with a 18mm nut, if not, it may be the Ball joint, the way to test it is:
jack up the car, grab the tire at 12 and 6 and shake it, if it has play its a fried ball joint, to make sure grab the ball joint by the metal thingy below it and move it, if it has play its definitely the ball joint.
If thats not the case start worring because it may be the CV joint.
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2005 10:06 am
by 2k2patriotblueneon
Baal wrote:Im 90% sure its a loose bolt. (if they unbolted the knuckle).
The bolt that tightens the ball joint to the knuckle if it isnt really tight the metal rod will pop out in turns and it will make a noise.
I have had this happen, and believe me if this were the problem then that noise would be the least of his worries....this isnt the problem. CV joint is the likely culprit.
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2005 11:53 am
by BlackRoseRacing
No offense, but your all wrong......
The same thing happens to JA(or stratus)bodies..its the rear bushing on the lower control arm. We replace an average of 2 per day because of that....the part number is:4656012AD list price is $45.95 each.....we stock right now atleast 9 until our stock order comes in....
PT cruisers, stratus's and neon's all use the same rear bushing and they all go bad to cause the noise as stated above...hell my 02 R/T needs them as I speak, not to mention the common door check, wich is also broken....
Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2005 1:01 pm
by boom314
ok since i dont really know what to look for. do you guys think that i can take the car to pepboys and they can look to see whats wrong
Posted: Sat Oct 30, 2010 1:50 pm
by boom314
bringing this back because my mom finally resolved the issue. a local firestone told her that the ball joint was actually coming out of the control arm. also the rear bushing is deteriorating.
Posted: Sat Oct 30, 2010 10:41 pm
by occasional demons
Holy crap, you drove it for 5 years like that?
That LCA was a trooper, holding on to the ball joint like that. Makes me wonder what they did when they put the LCA bushings in.
Posted: Sun Oct 31, 2010 1:04 am
by sidepipe87
occasional demons wrote:Holy crap, you drove it for 5 years like that?
That LCA was a trooper, holding on to the ball joint like that. Makes me wonder what they did when they put the LCA bushings in.
see? preventative maintenance IS a joke. drive the car until it breaks and you figure it out, fix it and keep driving it ftw.
Posted: Sun Oct 31, 2010 6:57 pm
by occasional demons
Only if it doesn't kill you, or that mother of 16 children. There was 20, but your tire took those four out

Posted: Mon Nov 01, 2010 5:30 pm
by boom314
yea i am disappointed in all the people she has had work on her car since i left it. She has had struts replaced and alignments done and no one noticed it. well good news it that the sound is gone and she is very happy
Posted: Mon Nov 01, 2010 8:46 pm
by occasional demons
Wow, that is pretty sad.
Usually they go through it with a fine tooth comb, to find stuff to extract as many dollars as possible out of women. That would have been a near guaranteed payday.
That they would miss it changing struts is really bad. An alignment, I can almost see, as they need not remove the tire, and it may not be noticeable with the weight on it.
Posted: Tue Nov 02, 2010 2:03 am
by boom314
yea luckily now anytime she takes it to get worked on she calls me and has me talk to the Service Consultant to figure out what they are doing. sadly i usually use terms that they themselves dont know but i learned from school lol