Clunking noise from front suspension...

[Scott314]

There's a clunking noise coming from the front of my car that has been getting more noticeable recently. It's not necessarily when I'm going over a bump or driving on a rough road. I can just be driving down the highway and hear noises when the windows are down and the heater's off. The noise will go away as soon as I start braking, but there's nothing wrong with the brakes.

I checked them to make sure the pads were in good condition and all the caliper bolts were tight, which they were. Last time I checked the strut mounts, they looked fine as well. The control arms were replaced a year ago. I'm not really sure what to check at this point.

[Jordan]

loose gland nut, loose sway bar endlink balljoint, loose control arm ball joints are the most common cause.

[MrK]

Bear in mind that all it takes to screw a ball-joint on a control arm is one solid CRASH into a hole... regardless of when you changed the control arms. The result: clunking.

[Scott314]

loose gland nut, loose sway bar endlink balljoint, loose control arm ball joints are the most common cause.

Alright, I'll have to check these tonight and see what I find. As always, thanks for the reply.

[Dave]

I had this problem on my cabby and it ws the sway bar end links. Are you getting any signs of bump steer?

[Scott314]

I had this problem on my cabby and it ws the sway bar end links. Are you getting any signs of bump steer?

Actually now that I think about it, yes, I am getting some bump steer. I'm betting that it most likely is a sway bar end link then.

MrK, I'll check again today, but the ball joints were fine the couple times I've checked them since the noise started occuring (also, I don't remember hitting any really big bumps or potholes. Railroad crossings and manhole covers are probably the worst things I've gone over, save for one large suicidal raccoon...) Thanks for the tip though, I'll go over everything listed in this thread, just to make sure.

[Dave]

I had no bump steer with the sway bar link being worn. Gland nut maybe??

[Scott314]

I had no bump steer with the sway bar link being worn. Gland nut maybe??

Hmm...I guess we'll see tonight.