My experience so far.

[MSimpson]

I bought my 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix about a month ago, and since then I have had 4 different mechanics look at it, and have taken it back to dealer to have it checked for front end clunk, bounciness (front end) and pop feeling in steering.

First mechanic was a guy suggested to me by my uncle that works out of a home garage. His response to the problems was and I quote "Welcome to front wheel drive cars." I thought no way this can be normal. He charged me 25 dollars, ran about a quarter tank of gas out of my car, and had it for 2 days.

Second mechanic just graduated from NADC in Nashville and is a friend of mine that just happened to be in town for a while, and was nice enough to take a look at my car. He determined that the CV joint was bad. We changed the left and right joints which cost about $120 dollars, plus I gave him $50 dollars for helping me. I thought that fixed the clunk noise, but it is just not as loud anymore.

Third mechanic (dealership) drove the car and said he could not recreate the problem that I was describing. I found that funny because you can definitely feel the pop feeling in the steering while accelerating through turns. They didn't charge me anything to look at my car just the gas to drive it and they had my car for 2 days.

Fourth mechanic was a local guy that proclaims to have 25 year experience with GM products, and he said what I was describing sounded like the intermediate steering shaft. So I left my car with him for 2 days, and when I got it back I had a $110 dollar bill for re-greasing the shaft. That did fix the pop feeling in the steering. He told me that the clunk noise I am hearing is normal because when the cars RPM's gets below 1000 and I fit the gas I will hear the clunk noise from the wheel begins to move. He also discovered that my car has 3 different types of wheels on it. They are all the same size but made by 3 different companies. The two tires are the back are different and the two tires on the front are different from the two in the rear. He told me that right rear tire was not balanceable (something about not being round).

So now I still have a slight clunk when I accelerate while the car is cruising at about 40 MPH and I hit the gas, which may or may not be normal and the front end is still bouncy.

Any suggestions?

I do plan on getting a new set of 4 tires ASAP.

[richtazz]

First things first, get new tires. I would be worried that this car was in an accident before you got it, and they scrounged the salvage yards for matching rims, not paying attention to the brand of tires on them. I would run a carfax report on it to see. Since you've already bought it, your options are limited, but at least you'll know.

In addition to what you've already replaced, check the control arm bushings, stabilizer bar/end links, and the struts and mounts. They are common clunk issues.

[MSimpson]

The last mechanic that looked at my car told me that he thought it had been wrecked. I did get a CarFax report when I bought the car, and it didn't show anything about being wrecked. I would assume that all those things you listed to check have been looked over time and again by the 4 other people that looked at my car. I don't really know exactly what all those things are to do it myself. But I am going to get new tires.

[tblake]

Do all the VIN numbers match throughout the car? windshield/underhood/drivers door/trunk.....

[MSimpson]

Hood, windshield, and driver door matched.. But the trunk if I was looking in for correct spot was different. I looked up underneath the truck near the actually lock mechanism. That number did not match.

I did get new tires and it still seems extremely bumpy in the front end. It's not a bouncy type of bump it's really stiff.

[tblake]

if the vin number in the trunk is different than the rest, the trunk is a used one off another car. Meaning yours was in an accident. (hate to tell you)

BTW, new tires are stiff and require some break in. The harsher ride is normal.

[MSimpson]

So how long should I wait before I decide to try something else? I would presume that with only 40,000 miles, that shocks and struts are not needed as of yet. Correct?

[tblake]

maybe the strut bearings are shot..... Just a thought.

If you replace them, make sure you get AC Delco's. I made the mistake of getting monroe's, and they make noise when I turn the wheels. I ordered a set of delco's from rock auto for just under 40 bucks shipped (thats just the strut bearings)

You can order new bearings, remove the front struts yourself, then take it to an auto repair shot and have them take the struts apart and install the new bearings. Then bring the struts home and install them back in the car and drive it straight to the alignment shop for an alignment. Thats what I'm going to do when have time....

[tblake]

Nevermind, strut bearings might cause a pop in the steering wheel, but wont cause bounciness in the front end. Sorry, I gotta read the whole thing before I post.

[MSimpson]

Pulling out of Wendy’s today and heard a new knock sound. When I was pulling out of the parking lot which is about 3-5 inches raised higher than the road I was pulling on to I heard something in my wheel area knock. I was making a right turn and heard it in my driver side wheel area.

[bombergp]

Hey M.S. those carfax reports don't always reflect the true condition of the car. I also got a car that showed no frame damage on carfax but when I tried to get rust warr. repair the dealer spotted substandard bodywork done and disqualified the car from warranty! He said many cars get work done with no report to data bases, by smaller shops.

[doctorhrdware]

Doesn't carfax offer a warranty, that if you discover evidence that your car was in an accident. Carfax will buy the car back from you at the price you paid.

[tblake]

Originally Posted by MSimpson

Pulling out of Wendy’s today and heard a new knock sound. When I was pulling out of the parking lot which is about 3-5 inches raised higher than the road I was pulling on to I heard something in my wheel area knock. I was making a right turn and heard it in my driver side wheel area.

Was it a big loud POP towards one of the front wheels that happened as you were turning the steering wheel? If so, I'd bet its a bad ball joint.