LHS Front End Clunk - SOLVED - FYI

you might find this amusing:

I posted some weeks ago about the continuing front-end clunk on my '95
LHS.....LOUD clunk and twang when turning sharp to the left going
forward, or to the right backing up.

I have had the car for 6 years....the previous owner told me about it -
that he had tried to have it fixed, but no one could figure it out. And
for 6 years I've been going to various mechanics (I know nothing) who
have thrown money at it.....ball joints replaced, sway bar bushings,
steering box bushings, etc., etc. replaced....no improvement. 2 Chysler
dealers took it in a came up with 2 different opinions: replace the
struts ($1200 or so) or, replace the entire steering gear ($2400+).

A couple of you were kind enough to make suggestions, among them engine
mounts, mount brackets, transmission mounts, lower A arm or tension
strut bushings. Took it to my mechanic who checked all and found
OK.....noise persisted.

2 weeks ago, I dropped a screwdriver in the garage and it rolled under
the Chrysler and I'm doing the lowcrawl with my flashlight and looked
up: noticed that on the 2 headpipes that come back to join the inlets
on the converter, there were the "U"s of muffler clamps.....but not the
rest of the clamps.....just the "U"s hangling loosly on top of the
pipes. Nothing bent or scraped....everything uniformly rusted
suggesting that the clamps had never been completely installed. And
it's the original exhaust system.

My mechanic charged me $7.50 to put 2 new clamps on.......and the clunk
is gone.

So, that gives me several things to think about:

was that the way the car left the factory?

nice to have all those new parts, that cost several hundred bucks, on
there that weren't needed.

glad I didn't spend $1000 to $2500 more on an old car.....that
wouldn't have helped the problem.

and......think about how many times.....in 110,000 miles... that car
was on a lift getting oil changes and other repairs, and not one "Master
Certified Techician" ever noticed that the exhuast system wasn't clamped
together.

Makes you start thinking more about a Honda or Toyota.

Thanks to those who reponded to my first post!

 

I am having the same problem on a 99 300M. Up to recently the car was under
an extended warranty and every bushing, front struts, and steering rack was
replaced under the service agreement. But clunk persisted and the last trip
was on my dollar ($600 approximately) and they decided that maybe the
original new left strut was bad. Also replaced the mount bearing and bottom
half of steering column. Car was declared fixed. It remained fixed for
about 10 miles when it clunked again and I just left it for them again. My
wife was in the passenger seat and she felt it under her feet.

 

By the way we did switch to a Honda but the 300M was a totally satisfactory
car and we are giving it to my inlaws once we can get rid of the clunk. The
300M did not drive us to Honda. The Honda minivan is just plain outstanding
and very reasonably priced even taking Chryslers rebates into account. The
other car we had was a Toyota Avalon and it sucked compared to the 300M. We
traded it for an Accord because the Chrysler 300 windows are just plain too
small.

 

Art - Under precisely what conditions does it "clunk"?

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')

 

Yup your right, the Honda/Toyota techs would have found it

 

If I knew precisely under what conditions it would clunk I could duplicate
it at will and so could the dealer and we would have know it wasn't fixed
without a 10 mile drive to do an errand during which I was sure it was fixed
until the very end when it clunked again. I would say that usually a turn of
the wheel is involved but you might turn the steering wheel 20 times each
direction without it doing anything.

 

Actually the previous generation Toyota Camry was famous for developing a
horrible clunk that the dealers found impossible to diagnose until after
your warranty was over. Then it would turn out to be the front strut
mounts.

 

Hi Art...

I'm pretty sure I'm barking up the wrong tree, but if you'll
keep my lack of qualification in mind...

I once had a GM product that did similar to what you describe...
I believe it was an 85 Olds 98. Drove me crazy for a long time.

Turned out to be the dirt shield? Splash shield? Heat shield?
(I warned you on the inside of one of the front wheels,
covers the pads or brake cylinder from the motor area. (see,
I warned you

Anyway, it's flimsy metal, and it would on occasion thunk like
if you pressed the top of a tin can, or one of those kids toys that
they click.

Cure was a simple as bending it a bit with a pair of vise grips.

Take care.

Ken

 

been there - done that: my Jeep Wrangler developed a clunk everytime
the front wheels hit a sharp bump.....a very ominous sound like
something major was going to fall off.

Over a period of a year and a half, the dealer came-up with a series of
diagoses and replaced: shocks, sway bar bushings, all spring bushings,
all suspension & steering bushings, front wheel CV joints, front wheel
bearings, ball joints.......

turned-out to be a loose hood hinge pin.

they're in the business of making money, not happy owners.

 

I doubt it. Its possible, but I doubt it. Probably some previous owner
decided to hollow-out the catalyst for "more power" or because it
started buzzing.

That doesn't surprise me a bit.
..

For heaven's sake WHY?

 

Interesting because for a while I was thinking that it could be something
hitting the inner fender.

 

I think we should start a pool on when the clunk comes back.

We could have diagnosed better if you'd brought this "twang" up before...
that's the first time I've heard of that!

 

Clunk continues.

I left the car at the dealer and they had the technician take a ride. He
drove around for quite a while with no clunk and was about to declare me
crazy and made a left into the dealership and got the big clunk exactly as I
did. They don't have a clue. The bottom half of the steering column had
been replaced. Also the steering rack. The front struts had been replaced
and the strut bearing on the driver side was replaced. Some pads were
replaced. Technician said when parts were out all of the bushings were
declared in good shape and reinstalled. They are going to drive it for a
while and see if they can figure out anything else. I invited myself there
to look at the car on the lift to see if I could find something stupid they
missed. The exhaust system was completely tight. Everything looked good as
new underneath.

 

sway bar links which can be checked by pushing the car up and down while placing
a hand on the link and feeling for the klunk then i would inspect the sway bar
bushing's to make sure they not wallowed out and the bar is not bouncing inside
of them then i would recheck the struts to make sure the nuts are good and
tight also outer tierods are a big issue

 

If it were sway bar related (end links or bushings), then it would clunk
everytime the front wheels went over uneven pavement (going across a dip
at an angle, small pot holes, etc.). Swat bar clunking ony happens when
one wheel is going up and/or down in opposite directions from the other
wheel (on the same axle). I don't get the impression that Art is
hearing the clunk every day, which he would if it were the case. That's
kind of why I asked a description of exact conditions under which it
happens.

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')