Help: Need Advice

I have been driving my parent's 1996 SLE (123,000m) for the past 10 years because of an odd situation.

http://thumb0.webshots.net/t/55/55/3/8/39/2395308390096810600QPZuiR_th.jpg (http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2395308390096810600QPZuiR) http://thumb0.webshots.net/t/59/159/0/64/3/2443064030096810600CzrYfO_th.jpg (http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2443064030096810600CzrYfO)

1. What is the part in the pic? How much are they to replace and are they relatively easy to replace? Also, My left stablizer bar is disconnected from the control arm. How much and can I do it myself?

2. There is a clunking sound coming from the left front tire and I can feel a little virbration in my left foot while driving. This only seems to happen when I drive over a small bump on the left side of the jimmy, when the left wheel dips or elevates compared to the right wheel. (This is not the wiper grille banging on the car... The clunking started happening before the stablizer arm disconnected. I'm wondering if the clunking has to do with the rubber boots or the torsion bar mounts??? Any ideas?)

3. My parents feel the need to install a remote starter system on the car as a christmas present. A remote starter would be nice; however, I don't want them investing more money into this piece of crap. This Jimmy has never left me sitting by the roadside, but it's nickel and diming me into the poor house. Do you think I should let them do it or spend the money on other things?

#1 It's a "bumper" for the front/lower control arm.
It doesn't look very difficult to replace...bolts in.

#2 You have a washer, 2 bushings and a self locking nut missing.
I bought a front sway bar urethane bushing kit w/hardware at a chain type auto parts store and installed it on my '79 Malibu. It really tightened up the front suspension and made it handle better, you should really consider it to repair your Jimmy. If you have a set of hand tools and can change tires, you should be able to handle this. Just give yourself an afternoon so you won't be rushed and can enjoy the experience.

Missing front end parts can make noise, cause vibrations and not be very safe or fun to drive.

#3 I don't have any non-stock wiring on my late model vehicles, the stock wiring is unsafe/unreliable enough as it is. That really-really-really goes for remote starting IMO.

Here's what you need to fix your sway bar, (outer arm rubber bushings for sway bar) NAPA part #265-1317, price for kit to do both sides, about 12 bucks, takes a couple 14 mm wrenches to replace them and a small floor jack to get the arm back up far enough to get the bolts in - just do one side at a time as there is tenson on the arm;

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1178639/swaybarbushings.jpg

I just did mine. The bolts rust off, both sides in my case. (Photo is for just one side) Be careful driving at interstate speeds until you get it fixed, as it is an anti-sway bar and could put you in the ditch if making a high speed maneuver.

The item in your photo is a "Rubber Bumper Stop" or "Rubber Absorber" for the lower A-Frame Suspension Arm. When the suspension bottoms out it takes the impact. I doubt this is the noise you hear, as when they go bad it causes a loud bang when the suspension bottoms out. Fix the sway bar and see if you still hear the noise. The noise could also be caused by the hood hinge - check the FAQ for a fix on that.

I wouldn't waste money on a remote start. When these things get 10-years old it seems like everything starts to go on them. In fact, experiencing what I have experienced, if I was you I would get rid of the thing while the getting is still good. (I see a lot of rust on the undercarriage in the photo)

When you tighten the bolt with the bushings connecting the sway bar to the control arm, don't overtighten it. I usually squeeze the bushings until they are the same diameter as the washers above and below the bushing.

Others may know of a better way. Just don't tighten it until it won't go any more.

James

Here's how the rubber bushings go on:

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1178639/SwayStablizerBarHowToo.jpg

Here's how the rubber bushings go on:

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1178639/SwayStablizerBarHowToo.jpg


Good description & pics!:smokin:

............ Do you think I should let them do it or spend the money on other things?
That's up to you. You do have some minor front end problems so why don't you have your parents pay to have the vehicle have an overall checkup and repair what needs to be repaired. Yes, your Jimmy may be costing you some money at the moment but any 4x4 with miles like that will need some sort of repair. Take good care of it, do the required maintenance, and fix what needs to be fixed when it breaks and you should be good for many more miles.

On the remote starter, do you think you'd use it alot? If so, go for it? Personally I'd make sure your vehicle is road worthy and safe before installing something that isn't totally needed. Those items that you shown in the pictures aren't a life and death problem but could get you in trouble say if you had to swerve quickly. That bar is what keeps your vehicle from tipping from side to side. Now, on cars that are drag raced, those bars are usually removed. Cars that are road raced usually have a bigger bar installed to help control body roll in cornering.

Just something to check or have checked while you're under there, while replacing the lower control arm bushings in my blazer, I noticed during disassembly that the right torshion bar had almost no torque adjusted in it. I had noticed that the right lower control arm bumper had been destroyed well before that but didn't think to check the torshion settings. Now the truck seems to ride more even since I adjusted the torque.