Thunking noise when i turn RIGHT -- HELP!

Every once in a while when i turn right i hear a little thunk.. not loud, my boyfriend doesnt hear it when hes in the truck with me. i can just feel it. Its not too big of a thunk and it only does it once in a while when the wheels is barley turned to the right. it does not impair my steering but i was wondering what it could be? any suggestions? They'd be appreciated, thanks!

-Christine

sounds like a torsion bar mount

sounds like a torsion bar mount
whats that?

Take it in to a shop to get the wheel bearings and front suspension checked could be something bent. I've have noises come from right and left sides of a few cars before and went to get it checked out and it was something that connects the wheel to the steering or bearing related.

Take it in to a shop to get the wheel bearings and front suspension checked could be something bent. I've have noises come from right and left sides of a few cars before and went to get it checked out and it was something that connects the wheel to the steering or bearing related. thanks, do you know how much that would set me back to have it checked? and fixed?

I'm not sure where you live, but if you have a place nearby like Les Schwab tires or Big O' Tires make an appointment and ask how much it will cost. I always get free inspections at Les Schwab Tires, they will inspect things and replace things like that.

thanks, so youre saying any tire place can check for that? my neighbor/dads friend works for Firestone tires, hes the manager of a CT store... If i go and get new tires there, can they check it?

thanks for the help.

Firestone didn't charge me for an inspection, probably cause they had the chance to do work on my car and paying them over $400 for the hub and bearing to get replaced. If you know the manager, even better.

Have had exactly the same sound. I bet the 4wd is not engaged when this sound is heard as well. Try checking the inside CV joint on the right side. My bet is that it has come apart and the front axel is being suported by the boot. When turning right the clearance is compromised and the axel is rubbing against the front strut. Causing a clunking noise. The noise may also start at higher speeds. get it checked.

the best thing to do is take it to a shop and have them inspect it. There are soooo many bushing, joints and bearings to go bad in a 4WD it is hard to say the exact problem but a shop can look and show you the problem they usually know what to look for, they put it on a hoist to check it and unless you have a hoist in your garage you probably can't check it as well as someone in a shop.

Thanks guys, i appreciate it. It doesn't do it much, its a thunk of the wheel i dont even think it has anything to do with my steering colum/joints etc.. Im going to get new tires and maybe brakes and if im not mistaken, i think they can check all that too, while theyre at it.

i have a problem kinda like that....say if im backing up outta a parking lot and i turn the wheel 3/4 way either direction and i give it gas a loud thud comes from the front end

check the sway bar links they always break

The Mechanic at my boyfriends work but her up on the lift and well heres the diagnosis:

The Pitman Arm, Idler Arm, and the Drag Links are SHOT! I have so much play in my steering, i can move the wheel left and right A LOT and it doesnt turn.. Everything is moving around under there i guess..

The parts out of the Chevy dealership came to $315 but my boyfriends mom used to work there, so the parts guy gave us an employee discount.. came to $215.. SAVED $110!!! Also, its a $400+ job to do, and the mechanic at my boyfriends work is going to do it at MY HOUSE next weekend for $100 cash.. My boyfriend is the best!! but im sad about my blazer.. it seems as though since i got it, she's cost me so much money.

Retail= $9500 when i got her.. i said $5500... Tranny blew 2x in December.. yes TWO times.. that set me back $1600. Then she needed a Starter and a Thermostat... :( im having bad luck with her so far.. Too bad i love Chevy's sooo much.

heh i have a 94 its been making that clunk for the last 50 thousand miles. ive replaced the lower ball joints 3 times. this last time i event went to a high performance urethane. ive checked all other things that could possibly make the ball joints bad but ive found nothing. so the only thing that i could think of is design flaw. i have a 2wd tho so its has a completely different front suspension but they might have used the same ball joints. worth looking into

the balljoints in these things are junk. gm allows for 1/8" up and down play but no side to side. well pretty much all chevy's are notorious for crappy balljoints. i guess you have to pay for the smooth ride somewhere. it always amazes me how much they rip people for front end work i bet it'll take him .5-1.0 hours to change that stuff. get it alligned after the work is done, that shouldn't be a problem now that you have the hookup!!

I had a similar problem. When I turned the wheel (even standing still) I would hear and feel a clunk, on both sides of the car. It felt like someone hit the floor, right under my foot, with a hammer.
It turned out to be the ball joints. All 4 of them were worn out, with only 50k miles on this car. I also replaced the idler and pitman arms, but the noise in this case, was coming from the ball joints.

I had a similar problem. When I turned the wheel (even standing still) I would hear and feel a clunk, on both sides of the car. It felt like someone hit the floor, right under my foot, with a hammer.
It turned out to be the ball joints. All 4 of them were worn out, with only 50k miles on this car. I also replaced the idler and pitman arms, but the noise in this case, was coming from the ball joints.
how much do new balljoints cost??? maybe ill get some b4 he works onmy truck and have him replace those too..

the actual cost of the parts range from about $30 to $80 each and you have 4. its the labor that kills on this job. i think book time is somewhere around 5 hrs so your looking at about $500 to $600 if a shop does the work.

how much do new balljoints cost??? maybe ill get some b4 he works onmy truck and have him replace those too..
my boyfriend's mechanic @ his work is going to do the idler arms, pitman arms and center drag links for $100 cash. ill throw in extra if he wants to do my balljoints!!

thats the best way to do it!! balljoints are a lot more involved than those other jobs so you might have to throw in a few cases of beer :smokin:

Hre is an easy check before you spend $. These vehicle are famous for the rear sway bar nut coming loose and the bar clanging around in the back. It happened to me - I just found a new nut and washer and fixed it in 2 minutes.
-Shawn

thanks guys - i got bigger problems now though..

I am in the same boat. I have 171k miles on my 96 Blazer and have replaced both upper and lower ball joints 3 times now. The first time was warranted through GM (thank goodness). The second time I paid a mechanic to do it, the third time I did it myself. These ball joints have been terrible. Finally GM recalled them last year (lowers only) and gave me money back for my last ones. They have always told me that the clunking noise was related to the ball joints but even after replacing the joints, the noise remains when making heavy turns. You can tell that you need to replace the ball joints when you can move your tires with your hands from left to right when you are holding the top and bottom of the tire. The idler arm and pittman all have these joints too so it really could be any of them making the noise. I don't think its related to the ball joints themselves but maybe a combination of all the parts together. This suspension setup is a design flaw no matter what GM says, the problem seems to be all over the globe everywhere you look on the web. The car is paid for though so I continue to fix it and drive on. Nothing better than not having a car payment.

I am in the same boat. I have 171k miles on my 96 Blazer and have replaced both upper and lower ball joints 3 times now. The first time was warranted through GM (thank goodness). The second time I paid a mechanic to do it, the third time I did it myself. These ball joints have been terrible. Finally GM recalled them last year (lowers only) and gave me money back for my last ones. They have always told me that the clunking noise was related to the ball joints but even after replacing the joints, the noise remains when making heavy turns. You can tell that you need to replace the ball joints when you can move your tires with your hands from left to right when you are holding the top and bottom of the tire. The idler arm and pittman all have these joints too so it really could be any of them making the noise. I don't think its related to the ball joints themselves but maybe a combination of all the parts together. This suspension setup is a design flaw no matter what GM says, the problem seems to be all over the globe everywhere you look on the web. The car is paid for though so I continue to fix it and drive on. Nothing better than not having a car payment.

wow, thanks. Yeah i paid for my Blazer with cash a few months ago. I got a good deal though.. Retail was $9500 and i paid $5100. :)
Thanks for all the 411/suggestions.. appreciated. Good luck with your blazer, i only have 80K

I'm hoping you have this problem rexolved already, but if you are still fighting with it...

I had this problem and took it to Midas (know the manager and he has an identical vehicle - 2001 ZR2 Balazer) and he said it's the sway bar... you could easily see the bare metal on the frame from where it was hitting. Since it was still under warranty at the time, I took it back and explained this to the service MANAGER - who ended up calling Midas not only once, but twice to get assistance. They replaced the bushings and no more "hammer to the frame" ever since.