Metal on metal 'clacking' not balljoints
 

hello, another day, another problem :p

anyway i was just reading a post from 2007 thats identical to my problem, a little old, so i started a new thread.

https://blazerforum.com/forum/showth...spension+clunk

that is his thread.

anyway, on to the story, ill try be short n sweet. 98 2 door jimmy 30" m/t's with some uneven tread(not too terrible)

both hubs less than a year old
upper and lower balljoints just installed
wheel alignment a week ago.

and my problem is the same as he states, a metal on metal clacking coming from the drivers side tire or beneath my feet. and it will only make the sound going over bumps, even if its just a little patch on the street. also it will do it at slow and normal driving speeds.


So before i got my 'bad' balljoints replaced, this metal on metal sound was not there, brought it in for the repair, and maybe a day or 2 later i noticed the sound. but its inconsistent, some days it does it more often than others. I brought it in to get an alignment, they heard the sound(test drive), but said all my front end parts were good.

also the alignment dosent seem right, or i have excessive wear in a steering component. because i need to take all the play out of the steering wheel to my left to make it go straight(about the 11 oclock spot) sure this maybe from my tires i understand, but i rotated the front tires and its still the same.

in the post i have a link to up top, he mentions its possibly a torsion bar bushing, and also my landlord said chevys are bad for a ublot or something loosening on the steering shaft and rattling around....but i dont feel any shocks in the steering wheel.......

now in conclusion, i was at the shop that did the alignment and he did the thing where he jacked up the control arm and put a 2x4 under the tire and and pressed up against the tire, and it made NO NOISE.

anyway to diagnose this? ive probably layed underneath for a total of 3 hours now shaking and jerking stuff, but its all tight so far....... help is always appreciated.

This might sound stupid. But on our 97 Blazer 4x4 I got this rattling or banging noise on the passengers side. For a year I looked for it. When a heater core was installed I asked the mechanic to look for anything loose under the dash. I checked the front end. It only did it on rough roads or off road. Finally one day this winter I stumbled on the problem. You will never guess what it was. It was the hinge bolt on the hood was loose & the hood was making the noise. It was a loud metal rattle or bang as stated above. I tightened the bolt & nut & that ended a year search.

Check your shocks...

Check your sway bar end links and mounts. On my 95, one of the bushings "disappeared" and it caused a metal-on-metal sound. On my '01, the frame mount busted so the bar would smack the frame on every bump I hit.

when you changed your wheel bearings and ball joints when you put your brakes back on did you remember to put the anti rattle clips back on the pads? I did... and mine makes that sound when I go over bumps

ok, thanks for the idea's guys. here's my findings. when i did my brake pads, i did infact put the little silver clips back on, but the pad has the slightest amount of play in it still, say 1/8" im going to assume thats normal.

next was the hood, which when twisted and shaken, seemed all normal.

grabbed the engine, gave it a side to side shake, and it was solid, or at least i couldnt move it.

but on to something i thought might be it. theres a black bar that goes through the lower control arm, im assuming this is the torsion bar. anyway, where it goes through the lower control arm, is there supposed to be a bushing here around the black bar?

I have what seems to be a yellow/orange putty type stuff, very soft, like play-doh but only on the bottom half of the circle. if i try shake the bar there is no movement. so is there supposed to be a full bushing here?

might as well throw in a pic for you guys :p

https://i135.photobucket.com/albums/...d/DSC00984.jpg

sounds like there should be a bushing there. I'd have to look at mine to be sure... nice truck btw

ok, so after a little more driving, i think the suspension may not be where my noise is.

reason being, it made the noise going down a smooth road and i just hit the brakes and it made the sound, so now im leaning toward a tranny mount, or some other type.....and mounts underneath that i should check out?

deleting all my posts

My rig is doing the same thing. I just replaced a number of things including the rims, cv half axle, hub assembly, shocks, pitman arm, and idler arm.

I notice it now that I've done the work and never before. Additionally, it is deifinitely coming from the front passenger side wheel, which is the one that got the new cv and hub.

At first I thought the suspension bolts...and one was a bit loose (oops), but after tightening it the noise continues.

Now I think it may be the cv half axle and here is why. If the wheel is turned all the way, i can grab the axle in between the inner and outer boots and shake it and it moves a little bit. If I grab the inner boot, I can pull that whole upper assembly in and out of the splined female housing about 4mm. Since that thing changes it's angle every time the wheel moves in relation to the frame, I'll bet that thing slides in and clangs every time the wheel jerks.

Is there a way to lock that thing in there and see if it stops the noise? Otherwise I may just put some rubber compound in there and see what happens - maybe it will deaden the noise.

Check and see if yours is loose or if you can pull the thing in and out slightly...