I just cant figure it out..

I replaced the Track bar bushings, I replaced the Track bar end links,(old one's had torn boots) I checked the ball joints by placing a 2X4 under the tires and raising, no movment of the ball joints, I check the tightness of the shocks, and I still get a hard bang in the front end when I make a turn into a road that might have damaged pavement or when the tire falls into missing pavement and not very deep..... either left or right turn...

and its only in a turn,, I can hit bumps all day long driving straight, no sounds..

Can the shocks still have an issue even if they're tight at both ends..

75k on the stock shocks..

 

The stock shocks are junk. It wouldn't hurt to throw some Bilstein 5100's in there anyway. The improvement in control will amaze you,though it may not cure the thump.

 

have you tried re-tightening the track bar?

 

My shocks were shot at 40,000 miles......

might be something internally in your stock shocks that is making the noise?

 

There have been a couple of threads about taking the steering shaft out, cleaning and regreasing the splines, and reinstall to cure a clunk that can sometimes be felt in the pedals as well as the wheel...

Apparenlty the gunk put in there by the factory can gum up the splines and/or make them bind...

It would fit with the noise happening while turning and hitting a pavement imperfection.

Somewhere there was a how-to tread with photos. No parts required, so it would only cost a few minutes to try.

 

Its really pissing me off, I would do the steering shaft T/S but there's no binding at all in the steering.. I even took it to the Walmart lot late one night and just went crazy in the parking lot turning and twisting, not one problem.. as soon as I went into a turn near the house that had a bump in it...noise... more like something would sound like if you hit the frame with a non metal object. I believe I will try some shocks next.. Maybe they're bottoming out on the bumps ( when one tire falls and the other doesnt)...

I guess I could turn the music up louder...

 

And yes I check the track bar again everything is tight.. Since these heavy duty springs are there, if a shock were bad, could you even tell?

 

Im going out on a limb here since I'm running a 2002, but is your MRBP Exhaust, over size? Your down tube may be hitting the under body or have clearence problems?

 

Thats good info about the shaft!! I feel it in my pedals every now and again but dont worry bout it. Might try that trick.

 

Kurt,

This started a good year after I put the exhaust on, but heck, I'll check anyways.

 

I had a problem with a "popping" in my front end that was driving me insane. I bought a Lazarsmith 'SSSSS' which tightened up the steering. But the popping continued. I also got the zero deflection track bar bushings which helped. But over time, the popping came back and eventually got worse than ever.

So after a little more research and discussion with Mike (XLR8R here on DTR) I tried his "Ultimate Track Bar Hardware". I noticed he just added it to his website here.... http://www.lazarsmith.com/SSSSS.html

That kit........with the upgraded bolts and star wheel washers SOLVED THE PROBLEM!!! The bolts he sourced are slightly larger and fit very tightly into the track bar mounts and the star wheel washers dig in and won't allow any free play. My driver side TB mount had been popping under certain conditions........slow turning, slow moving situations or situations involving uneven terrain. And, it was noticeably worse when it was rainy outside.

But since the install of this new hardware..........my front end has never been tighter.....no popping of any type under any conditions. Tight as Tight can be. IT really inspires confidence and I don't try to "drive around" the "popping" any more.

I don't know if what I was experiencing was the same as your "thumping"...but it would be my guess. Hope that helps.

..

 

i had the same problem when i leveled my truck and did the same things TexasCTD did and still had the popping and finally figured it was my bushings comming loose so i changed the bolts out and washers and threw on some loctite ultra and it hasnt come back since

 

There are hundreds of pounds of lateral force transmitted through the track bar between the frame & axle during slow-speed turns; when the sideload is transient, any play in the link will manifest with unwanted movement - such as "lurching" - and/or it's associated noise, usually described as "clunking" or "popping" (not "pooping" - SpellCheck is your friend! )

Zero-deflection bushings retrofitted to the track bar remove the compliance from the lateral link for improved steering and DW prevention, but the OEM bolts still allow movement within the thin (.170") frame & axle brackets.
We (and dealers in the know) used to weld 1/4" thick tabs onto the factory brackets to help prevent the metric bolts from wearing out the holes, but that's a costly & difficult repair beyond the scope of most driveway mechanics... wallet mechanics don't worry about this sort of thing.

Additionally, the OEM metric bolts have a very short shoulder which allows the coarse threads to cut into the back side of each bracket, which ovalizes the holes pretty well. Since the coarse thread makes it difficult to generate the spec'd amount of clamping torque (153ft-lbs. IIRC) - especially on the axle end where the tie-rod is absolutely in the way unless it's removed - it's hard to create enough "stiction" to positively locate the bolt/bracket joint when side-loaded.

IMO, the best permanent bolt-on solution is oversized track bar hardware with extreme clamping torque capability.

budaawg, it's easy to check for unwanted movement in the track bar - just have someone turn the steering wheel rapidly back & forth (engine on, of course) while watching each end of the track bar... you'll see the track bar moving in relation to the frame or axle, and you can see the bolt heads moving back & forth against the brackets.

 

Ok I replaced the front shocks this weekend, really easy, anyway, the old ones didt seem to respond very well when the rod was push in, one didnt even start to extend for a second or two. The ride is much smoother, but I didnt hit any rough roads yet in a turn, I'll report back tomorrow..

 

My 2004.5 3500 started making clicking/clunking sounds when turning. I could only hear it a low speeds...like less than 25mph. I took it to the Dodge dealer last night and they said that both my front axle u-joints are bad. They also said I have a small seal leak in the power steering. (I have just over 70K miles on the truck.)...so, you might check those.