Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting another clunk thunk

Hi. I know there were many threads on this on the old forum, but I can't remember what they all said. I've also read some of the new threads but can't figure out exactly where I fit in. Any help would be appreciated as I don't know a whole lot about cars.
My contour SE has about 65K miles. I think the problem is in the driver front tire/steering. It doesn't make a noise all the time, which I guess means it's not the wheel bearings(?). It's most noticeable when I make a left turn into a driveway. Sometimes I hear a thunk underfoot as well when starting from a stop.
I hope it's not the bushings as that sounds expensive to replace. I remember some old postings that said it could be some joint covers being loose or something like that?
I'm taking my car in, but I don't know any good mechanics. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Could be lower ball joint, control arm (A-arm) bushings or the most common the stabilizer (sway) bar bushings. The latter most common going slowly over speed bumps. Your symptom of hearing clunk when starting from stop is unusual so it could be something else.
Wheel bearing noise commonly referred to as groan/howl and would general change when car is going around curves.

Thanks for the tips. I took it to Midas and asked them to take a look. They said it was the strut mounts and wouldn't recommend replacing them until I was ready to also replace the struts. (total of $600) Is this common at 65K? The roads in Pittsburgh are pretty bad, and I live on a brick street.
Also, can anyone think of anything that would account for the creak/clunk that I hear mostly when going from a complete stop? Sometimes it can be heard when the car is coming to a stop also, but less frequently.

thanks again.

Originally posted by tnt:

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Also, can anyone think of anything that would account for the creak/clunk that I hear mostly when going from a complete stop? Sometimes it can be heard when the car is coming to a stop also, but less frequently.

thanks again.

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Strut mounts? I don't think so.

You don't mention if the creak/clunk comes from front or rear...

Mystery creak/clunk?

Check your sway bars. There should be a collar on the bar outboard of the sway bar bushing. These are prone to break off. You can buy a new sway bar for $50 or you can get creative with a Dremel tool, big 'ole washer, some heater hose, and a stainless steel circle clamp. The Dremel is for the WASHER, don't EVER modify any part of a sway bar!

Spray some silicone lube up onto the spring seats and under the strut bushings (in the engine bay). Older Contours are known for having noise from these areas.

On my '96, some dipwad at a tire change place used one of the subframe bolts as a jack point while fixing a flat. Inside the chassis are a set of captive nuts, tack welded into place. He broke the right rear subframe mount nut loose! This resulted in a creak/groan/thunk/pop sensation (sometimes all at once!). It could be felt in the steering wheel. It was really only noticeable when accelerating from a complete stop.

To check and see if this is your problem, put a 21MM socket and a breaker bar on the bolts holding the subframe in place and try to tighten them. If they don't move, you're OK there. If they (or one of them) spin, read on.

There is *no* way to get to that nut from outside the car! It was never really intended that it be serviced outside a body shop, I guess. You have to pull up the carpet and cutout the service panel. It's not really a panel, it's a rectangular area that has a fiberboard panel glued over it. The fiberboard is covering a set of vertical strips in the sheetmetal that can be cut out with snips or twisted apart with a set of pliers (snips recommended). To get started you just punch through the fiberboard.

Then you need a 21MM wrench (a socket cannot be made to fit!) and a buddy to hold it while you tighten the bolt under the car. Do not use a 1/4" drive, this is 1/2" drive socket territory. Snug that bolt down good and tight.

Next you need to primer/paint the edges of the sheetmetal and cover it all back up somehow. I used some aluminum flashing and some sealing putty with a couple of stainless sheetmetal screws to hold it all down.

I hope your noise is nothing this serious, though.