Tiny Clunk when Turning...

[Alice]

Hmmm, so I have a diesel mech for the 6.5 engine stuff. He's got the suburban running like a dream, my job is to check all the gauges every 30 seconds and listen for unusual noises. Then I have this other parts of the suburban mechanic. I took the suburban to him because of two things, a squeak squeak which turned out to be a little weird wear on my driver's front break (which was nothing and is gone now) and this TINY CLUNK WHEN I AM TURNING. The guy said its this steering wheel rod, showed me under the hood and said it's just wearing out, there is a bit of play but not dangerous cuz it'll never let go. I was fine for a few days and tried to forget about it, but now it's bugging me again. Is there anything that can go wrong or be dangerous here? Could this be something else? I'm not even sure he's got it pegged, worried it's something else. Just dont want to end up upside down in the river with my 3 kids in the back. So I'm just dropping by to see what you guys think. Note its a diesel 6.5, 3/4 ton, 4X4.

[MT-2500]

Originally Posted by Alice

Hmmm, so I have a diesel mech for the 6.5 engine stuff. He's got the suburban running like a dream, my job is to check all the gauges every 30 seconds and listen for unusual noises. Then I have this other parts of the suburban mechanic. I took the suburban to him because of two things, a squeak squeak which turned out to be a little weird wear on my driver's front break (which was nothing and is gone now) and this TINY CLUNK WHEN I AM TURNING. The guy said its this steering wheel rod, showed me under the hood and said it's just wearing out, there is a bit of play but not dangerous cuz it'll never let go. I was fine for a few days and tried to forget about it, but now it's bugging me again. Is there anything that can go wrong or be dangerous here? Could this be something else? I'm not even sure he's got it pegged, worried it's something else. Just dont want to end up upside down in the river with my 3 kids in the back. So I'm just dropping by to see what you guys think. Note its a diesel 6.5, 3/4 ton, 4X4.

If it is broke or worn out let him fix it.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by Alice

Hmmm, so I have a diesel mech for the 6.5 engine stuff. He's got the suburban running like a dream, my job is to check all the gauges every 30 seconds and listen for unusual noises. Then I have this other parts of the suburban mechanic. I took the suburban to him because of two things, a squeak squeak which turned out to be a little weird wear on my driver's front break (which was nothing and is gone now) and this TINY CLUNK WHEN I AM TURNING. The guy said its this steering wheel rod, showed me under the hood and said it's just wearing out, there is a bit of play but not dangerous cuz it'll never let go. I was fine for a few days and tried to forget about it, but now it's bugging me again. Is there anything that can go wrong or be dangerous here? Could this be something else? I'm not even sure he's got it pegged, worried it's something else. Just dont want to end up upside down in the river with my 3 kids in the back. So I'm just dropping by to see what you guys think. Note its a diesel 6.5, 3/4 ton, 4X4.

the squeek squeek that is now gone in most cases is the brake pad wear indicator. this is now broken off if this was the noise generator. remove wheel and inspect the front brake pads for excessive wear.

any clunking in the steering must be checked. this can also be the contol arm upper/lower bushings worn out.

[Alice]

Control arm as in the rod under the hood conected to my steering wheel? Well thats the thing he said had some play in it and not to worry. Hope that sounds right. The one other thing he couldnt check was the front wheel things that you need to check while truck is lifted up. Mmmm, ball joints? And the breaks are good, he said I must have wore a groove some how, and like you said seems to have healed it self. Glad it wasnt related to the chunk. Which is a small clunk, no one seems to be able to detect it but me, probably because I've driven it all it's life. But it's there.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by Alice

Control arm as in the rod under the hood conected to my steering wheel? Well thats the thing he said had some play in it and not to worry. Hope that sounds right. The one other thing he couldnt check was the front wheel things that you need to check while truck is lifted up. Mmmm, ball joints? And the breaks are good, he said I must have wore a groove some how, and like you said seems to have healed it self. Glad it wasnt related to the chunk. Which is a small clunk, no one seems to be able to detect it but me, probably because I've driven it all it's life. But it's there.

you have 4 control arms 2 upper 2 lower. these connect to the upper and lower ball joints. when the bushings that connect to the control arm vehicle body area wear out these arms will make a clunk noise.

over all the years I have found these to get damaged from fluids like brake/washer fluid leaking on these rubbers to make them get damaged. in time these will affect steering as the metal will start getting worn.

what I have done to keep these bushings in good shape is to spray with silicone to help prevent dry rot and external contamination fron corrosives/damaging fluids.

[777stickman]

The "rod" you refer to is most likely the "intermediate steering shaft". There are lube kits with instructions available.

I think you would be a big hit on the AAMCO TV commercials.

[DeltaP]

Are ya happy with the guy whose been servicing yer truck? If yer in doubt or worried sick about it then get a second or even third opinion before deciding on who will and what needs to be fixed.

[Alice]

So it is ball joints, the things you check when lifted up. Figures... the one thing he couldnt check. So in what way can steering be affected?? How immediate is this fix? Hope also that there is usually play in the "intermediate steering shaft" of a 15 year old truck stickman. And I wonder what this is gonna cost, I think I'm getting pretty close to having $100 000 into that truck...

And about the guys who fix it. The diesel guy Toni, older dude, he works a a well known Diesel shop near here and fixes all the engine stuff. Everything was fixed by the dealership up until 4-5 years ago when my thermostate stuck and over heated the engine. I found a garage quickly and they added coolant. As I drove away I left a river which was the worst news possible. $4000 later... fixed. And this diesel shop has looked after it since. This shop used to have a few of these 6.5s of their own and guess who was always fixing them? He said there used to be alot of these 6.5s around then slowly they died off. Well he keeps it running like a dream, been a year since I saw him last. And he trys to save me money, like if a blind monkey can do it but its gonna cost big in shop hours... he'll tell me what he wants half price guy to do and tells me to bring it back to do the important stuff before I take it on the road.

Half price guy is a friend of friends. I get him to do not engine stuff. He used to work at a Chev dealership. Now works in the oil sands and fixes stuff at home when he's home. His wife drives the same exact 95 3/4 ton suburban, cept it's not got leather seats and missing half the things that are in mine and for that reason I think it looks really old. And I think she's wrecking it, could be a great doner for mine since autowreckers never have these things. So I think he's alright, likes to fix things after they break though... diesel guy likes to fix things the day I notice it.

[mishalah]

If your steering wheel/column feels a little loose or you can feel it move slightly when you hear the clunk it's most likely that intermediate shaft like your tech said. The shat can be bought for about $75 on fleabay, and it only takes an hour at most to replace it.

But you should have all the other suspension stuff checked anyway. Just take it to any alignment shop and they will tell you everything that could possibly be not quite perfect. If they say they can't align youor wheels then they are more likely telling the truth about some of the items. If they still want to do the alignmemnt and charge you the $100 or so, then they were just trying to upsell you more expensive services. Of course, thay all do that anyway.

I didn't see how many miles you have on it, or if you have ever had front suspension parts replaced before. I can't imagine your pitman arm and the rest of the steering parts lasting this long, but ball joints usually give oyu more symptoms than just a clunk while turning....like wheels wobbling a bit after hitting small bumps or wear on the tires. Since you have 4WD you might also have a cv joint going bad, but you wouldn't feel that in the steering wheel, and the noise would start as a clicking sound.

I'd still bet on the IM shaft -- the cheapest and fastest repair of the bunch.

Oh...BTW: if an alignment shop hands you an estimate for hundreds or thousands of dollars to do repairs, say "thank you" and take it to your guy for verification before you do anything else. Don't get talked into the big-bucks-do-everything job.

[j cAT]

[quote=Alice;6946313]So it is ball joints, the things you check when lifted up. Figures... the one thing he couldnt check. So in what way can steering be affected?? How immediate is this fix? Hope also that there is usually play in the "intermediate steering shaft" of a 15 year old truck stickman. And I wonder what this is gonna cost, I think I'm getting pretty close to having $100 000 into that truck...


[quote]

where I live the ball joints are checked at the yearly state inspection.

when you get your oil changed the front end needs lubing . when this is done these items should be looked at. unless the person doing the looking don't have any training on this.

front end needs lubing if used only on paved roads at least every year. if off roading much more often.

[Alice]

Okay, so I'm not gonna die in the river when something lets loose. That intermediate shaft was pointed out... sounding super cheap and fast at 1/2 price guy. Fix that I figure and see if thats it. Alignment shop eh? Not a tire shop? I'll check, see what we got. Christmas shopping so driving it more, I noticed in a tight turn there is a click feeling/sound when I crank the stirring, yet steering feels tight and responsive. Happens only once but no more no matter which way I turn. And it's been so windy, I couldnt tell ya if there is any looseness in the steering on the open highway. Oh and you guys have yearly state inspections? We have a safety check needed by a certified mechanic to insure anything over 10 years old. Just the once.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by Alice

Okay, so I'm not gonna die in the river when something lets loose. That intermediate shaft was pointed out... sounding super cheap and fast at 1/2 price guy. Fix that I figure and see if thats it. Alignment shop eh? Not a tire shop? I'll check, see what we got. Christmas shopping so driving it more, I noticed in a tight turn there is a click feeling/sound when I crank the stirring, yet steering feels tight and responsive. Happens only once but no more no matter which way I turn. And it's been so windy, I couldnt tell ya if there is any looseness in the steering on the open highway. Oh and you guys have yearly state inspections? We have a safety check needed by a certified mechanic to insure anything over 10 years old. Just the once.

the ball joint being bad over time will fail. when this occurs the wheel will loose connection to the frame at the pivot point then the vehicle will drop down to the pavement.

when I was a very young operator my friend was driving his 1957 chevy down a small street. drove over a small sewer cover. the vehicle fell to the ground. after that incident I was checking/lubing these on a regular basis.

[Alice]

Dropping her off at the diesel shop tomorrow... got a little list started. Ball joints need to be checked, heat guage swings high and low looks to me like it sticks open and closed. Alternator guage hangs in the red. Need batteries and alternator tested. As well as the pully and belt system both of these things are drivin by since the mech that gave me a boost thought the belt seemed really tight. The only two other problems is my muffler which is screwed and viberates which is getting done by a muffler shop and there is a front shock that is rattling... these things I'm letting go for now. So wish me luck, I'll let you know what he finds.

[j cAT]

Originally Posted by Alice

Dropping her off at the diesel shop tomorrow... got a little list started. Ball joints need to be checked, heat guage swings high and low looks to me like it sticks open and closed. Alternator guage hangs in the red. Need batteries and alternator tested. As well as the pully and belt system both of these things are drivin by since the mech that gave me a boost thought the belt seemed really tight. The only two other problems is my muffler which is screwed and viberates which is getting done by a muffler shop and there is a front shock that is rattling... these things I'm letting go for now. So wish me luck, I'll let you know what he finds.

it is very common to have installed the wrong sized belt . the tensioner has marks that will indicate if the belt is the correct size. if the belt is too small . the bearings of all the belt driven devices will get damaged. the belt should deflect some and the tensioner should move when belt is moved by hand.

the dash indicators may be defective if the testing shows normal alternator and engine coolant system function.

[Alice]

Oh no cracked head! think I'll start a new thread....