Thread: Steering Clunk and Wheel Sudder

I had play in the wheel on the drivers side, which turned out to be the bearing. The dealer said the steering clunk was the intermediate shaft. They both were replace under warranty, I replaced the front pads and rotors to cover the shudder. The bearing took care of the wheel play, but the steering shaft didn't take care of the clunk and the brake overhaul didn't take care of the shudder. I re-torqued the cradle bolts and check the front end and everything looks snug. The shudder happens only when making a quick stop from speeds above 40mph, The clunk is more profound when the vehicle is on the ground as opposed to being on jack stands. What other things could cause the clunk and the shudder? I'm thinking they may be related, maybe a bushing or strut mount problem. The car was repaired under warranty and I have an appointment to see the mechanic who worked on the car on Monday. Does anyone have any ideas? I'm hoping to locate and repair the problem myself. If I can't, I'll report what the mechanic comes up with.
Thanks

I had a steering clunk in my last GP that I tracked down to an inner tie rod. Changed it out and problem gone. For the shudder, do you feel it in the steering wheel or the seat. Generally, you feel front brakes in the steering wheel and rear brakes in the seat.

steering wheel

If you only feel the shudder under braking, then I would take it back to whoever did the brakejob and complain about it. New rotors do come through bad sometimes or they were not installed properly.

Originally Posted by Silver GTP

If you only feel the shudder under braking, then I would take it back to whoever did the brakejob and complain about it. New rotors do come through bad sometimes or they were not installed properly.

I think it's the tires, rotated them will see if it solves the problem.

Although I didn't get many responses here, I did from various places I posted this question. They ranged from CV joint to strut mounts, control arm bush, ball joint, tie rod ends, steering rack and rack bushings. I checked these and other suggestions and couldn't find the culprit. I did find that the noise is almost none existent when the car is on jack stands. My car ramps don't raise the vehicle high enough to allow complete access to the undercarriage. The wheels need to be turned with the weight of the vehicle on the tires. I'm going to try to find another way to check it, with the suspension loaded. It would be nice to tell the mechanic what to fix or fix it myself if it's not covered. I also don't want to just throw parts at it and waste money that could have went to mods. I'll post the exact cause when I find it, right now it's more of a nuisance than a problem.

UPDATE: I went to the dealer and spent 45 minutes with the mechanic who worked on the car. We checked everything on the front end and all was good. He said the noise is a common problem and comes from the rack. He said the rack can be changed, but the noise will return. He showed me some other Imps that had the same condition. The noise can only be heard when you rock the steering wheel, most people don't do that and never notice the condition. The mechanic was a really nice guy, took the time to go over everything and answered all my question. I decided since the rack will be change under the warranty and the problem will return I'll wait until the warranty is about to expire to have it done.

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