I have just bought myself a Chevrolet S-10 Blazer. It has 4WD and its 4 door. The Blazer has 170k miles on it and I only paid a little over a grand for it. I have just replaced the spark plugs, plug wires, and fuel filter. I have also just done an oil change on it. Everything seems in very good condition except for some minor problems which I am about to tell you about.

I have come to some minor problems and I was wondering if anybody could help me.

While driving the vehicle..I have noticed there is a slight pull to the right. I have to keep the steering wheel turned to the left a little bit in order for the vehicle to go straight. This isn't a major deal but I was wondering what could fix it.

Another thing I have noticed is when I am turning sharply (like in a parking lot) I hear a loud popping noise that sounds like its coming from the front somewhere on the passenger side.

If anybody has any suggestions on what I could to to eliminate these problems, I would be extremely appreciative.

 

sounds like your front end needs aligned.... that will fix the pulling problem..... as for the popping noise... I havent been in a blazer 4x4 that doesnt do that... mine does it too.... there have been several posts on the problem but im not quite sure if anyone has found a solution yet...

 

I'm sorry if this sounds stupid but this is my first vehicle and I don't know much about them.

How do I go about aligning my front end.

 

You need to take it to a shop that can do alignments. As for your front end popping there is a good chance it is your balljoints. My blazer use to pop when making sharp turns. Got my balljoints changed and now there is no popping what so ever. When you take it to a shop to get an alignment tell them you have a pop when you make sharp turns and they will check out the front end for you.

 

I do agree on having the front end at least diagnosed by a shop. You don't have to let them do the work and most shops will give free inspections. If you want to go that route, take it to at least 2 different shops and compare what they come up with.

I will say that it is quite possible that a bad balljoint is causing both of the problems. If you jack up the front of the truck and grab the tire at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock and push in on the top while pulling out at the bottom and feel play, then it is going to be a problem... With the truck still up in the air, grab the tire at 3 and 9. If you feel play in this direction, it could point to worn tierod ends or pitman/idler arm problems.

Also, don't rule out a rattling hood, which GM has issued a TSB about. This noise sounds VERY similar to a ball joint pop, only higher... Their fix consists of some cone-shaped washers that are placed on either side of the hood hinge bolts.

 

also check for in out play (meaning wheel bearing) 12 an 6 on the tire and wiggle. If you feel the wheel knocking then good chance your wheel bearings are going.

Its not a cheap bearing either (easy to change out three hex bolts, but spendy part most are $120)

My buddy had a total rebuild done, they had the popping noise too.

We started with tie rods (nope), then did ball joints (don't know for sure due to bearing) and when we took the one side apart, the bearing fell to the ground. So we did both sides.

We believe that the wheel bearing was the cause, due to the rest of the parts were not all that bad. They all needed the changes, but they were not that bad like the wheel bearings were.