Front suspension knock on load
 

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...ccc5abcbf4.jpgPlanning on replacing the tires very soon but damn
Time for another game of finding that noise. I'm posting here because what I thought was the solution probably isn't. I've been having a loud knock on front left suspension area when the car is on load, most consistently driving out of my parking garage, when turning right onto a down ramp, there is a loud knock. I can feel it through the pedal but not the wheel, it doesn't seem to affect steering, although recently I think I've noticed a bit of stiffness. I thought it may be a ball joint, but today when i finally got a chance to check it out, it appears that the previous owner replaced them already, and the wheel has no play when i push and pull on it. Tie rods are intact and tight. When driving, my steering wheel is slightly off, as in if I have the wheel straight and center, the car wants to go right. Also found noticeably more wear on the inner part of my left tire. Help me figure this out guys, I'm tired of this knock and now concerned because of the uneven wear.

i had 2 knocks in my 90, one kind of like yours, and one I could do on command with the brake pedal, and I could feel them through the floor.. Both were various worn stock bushings.

How old are the shocks and when was the last time it was aligned?

Shocks are a month old tokico illumina w/fm springs, allignment checked 3 weeks ago

yeah i do want to replace the bushings, but did you have odd tire wear? I also noticed my sway bar was a bit more on the right side, i loosened the mounts and used bfh to get it more centered

I dont put enough miles on it to know, and I usually just track it, so it fuks up tires anyway. If you just installed shocks, I would check that the top nuts and bottom bolt are tight.

I think I may have done something to it before I put the new shocks in. Me and a buddy were fucking around in a parking lot trying to do donuts etc. and I think I remember something not feeling quite right since that, and that was before the shocks. I'm just racking my brain trying to think of what parts do what during the actions that bring the knock about.

I had a similar noise and it was loose bolts on the brace at the back of the subframe. Probably a good idea to check all the bolts.

So today i went through my front left suspension and tightened nuts and bolts, not to overtorque, but snugged them a bit more. Sway bar bolt seemed a bit easier to tighten than others so that may have been it. I also upped my shocks to 5 on all four corners just to see what would happen and redid my tire pressures. No knock coming home and i went up and down in my parking garage a few times, no knock. So at least there's that. I may make another post or I may look a bit further myself, but my steering is still off. With wheel at center, the car wants to pull to the right. Not drastically, but definitely there. Should I get my allignment checked again? Is that what is causing the wear on my tire? The allignment was just checked a few weeks ago, but let me know what yous guys think.

thank

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...21449cf149.jpgHere's a kitten tax if you get bored with my dumb posts

A new looking lower ball joint wouldn't mean much to me. I went through three cheap ones in less than two years.

When they were going bad I was unable to make them pop while pulling on them by hand, I had to use a 6ft wrecking bar to get enough leverage to hear it.

They also seem to add camber and random toe, depending on how bad they are. It eats tires, quick.

Just my .02

Can you describe the pop and what you did to bring them about? Was it similar to what I described? I do have the replacement ball joints from moog, so when I get a day, I can at least replace the left one. That center nut looked like it would be a pain to get to.

Not really, it's just a clunking or popping sound you'll hear when the bad ball joint is cycled from low load to high load. Turning is usually what does it, accelerating hard or cresting a hill just right can do it too though. It will pull and tug on the steering when it gets real bad, as if it were binding. Once they are that gone, the steering alignment will change after every turn you make.

Your tire wear and similar sudden change in alignment is similar to my ball joint failures, yes. The shock has to come out of the control arm to get the ball joint out, it's not all that bad really and I've always been able to bend the control arm down enough to leave the top hat bolted up. I'm pretty freaking quick at it now, the single hardest part is finding a way to hold the spindle steady enough so you can swing a hammer at it hard enough to pop the stud out of the spindle. So much easier when the ball joint is in one piece...

Sucessfully changed out ball joints after some drama with the passenger side one. Wailed on it for 2 hours with a hammer until i ran out of light. Brand new 2 lb hammer got killed when i hit my finger and threw it at the ground. Got a harbor freight balljoint separator and went back at it today, i wish i got the damn thing on video. The ball joint shot out like a bullet, loud as hell, my wrist was right under it and i thought it broken my arm at first, that'd be a good story. Anyway got everything in and torqued and went for a test drive. Steering is immediately more stiff, but not a bad kind of stiff. Got rid of the thunk I'm pretty sure. Have to soften shocks back to 2Front/3Back and make sure.

The bad part, my steering still wants to pull to the right; i center the wheel and the car wants to go right slightly. I'm not sure if it's my steering column or tie rods, I'll check those next, but any ideas would be welcome. I'll try to post a video of the steering column sound I'm getting.

Your caster may be off- that could lead to steering pulling. What's the last time you had an alignment?

In my experience the ball joints go slow so you never really notice your steering going, it acts like a dead zone or slop in the rack don't you think?

Have you replaced the alignment bolts recently? They are considered a wear item around here, seems they can stretch and slip under load. Next time you get an alignment mark your cams, ask the tech to add 10-15ft/lbs or so to the torque spec. I'd order some new cam bolts to bring with you, too.

Either that or you had it lined up with a bad ball joint, now it's sitting different with the slop gone and so requires another alignment. It's consistently off, right? You aren't hearing splines slipping down at the rack at the steering shaft universal?

I have not had the alignment bolts replaced, definitely on the to do list as i don't know that they've ever BEEN replaced. They, along with other parts of the undercarriage, resemble salvaged pieces from the Titanic. I have a shop scheduled for Friday. I took the bolts from my donor car and they're in better condition, I'll ask for them to be replaced. There don't seem to be any splines slipping, but watch this video gor a few days ago and tell me what you think. https://youtu.be/uztjnDeUCtw

I think my NA has always done that, at least as far back as I can remember with a depowered rack. Are you sure you aren't just hearing slack in the steering column? I guess it probably would feel like it's coming from the front left.

Last alignment check was a few weeks ago but going again this Friday. I understand that caster is the angle of the upper control arm in relation to the lower. What can throw off caster? Alignment again? I'm trying to nip this thing in the bud.

Yeah I wasn't sure if it was a bad sound or not.