Chasing a clunk in the front end

Truck details:

2008 Tundra 4x4, 92k miles, 275/70R18 tires, Eibach Pro Lift set at highest perch w/ Eibach Springs, Icon Expansion pack on rear leafs

When I turn the wheel left I get a single clank type sound from the driver's side wheel well. It's not a deep pop, kind of more a metallic clank of medium tone if that makes sense. It does it in both 2wd and 4wd.

My initial thought was sway bar end links.

Last night I:

Removed skid plate, still did it
Removed sway bar completely, still did it
Reinstalled sway bar and torqued to spec
Torqued bottom shock bolts
Torqued LCA bolts
Torqued UCA bolts
Torqued diff mount bolts
Torqued steering rack bolts
Removed left front tire and rotor, cleaned all mating surfaces and retorqued everything
Adjusted the rubber hood stops
Checked ball joints for play

Of course, while my wife was driving it so I could listen from the outside, we couldn't replicate it. It doesn't do it when turning back and forth hard. It only does it when turning left and there is a change in elevation of the wheel. It seems to do it more on the downward travel.

What else am I missing?

 

I don’t know how much the lift gives you, but do you have a diff drop kit? When you get up around 3” is when I think you need it. Do you have stock uca? I had icon billet ucas a few years back and they were popping.

Check wheel bearings and cv axles.

 

About 2.5-3" of lift. No diff drop kit, Wheeler's Off Road said don't bother with it. Yes, stock UCA.

No funny tire wear, steering feels tight, no popping just by turning tight circles.

 

Since you said it happens when turning left, I’d think it had to be something in the suspension. Check the cv axle for any play or looseness.

Are you sure it’s the driver side wheel well? I’ve chased noises that were from somewhere else on the truck. Find a place where it always does it and bring the wife back.

 

Well, I'm not positive, but I noticed it on a hunting trip while driving over water bars in the roadway. It wouldn't do it if I hit it head on, but if I was turning left it would do it rather consistently. There does seem to be some play in the driver's CV axle at the differential, but from what I read some play is normal? I can feel it by pushing up and down and side to side on the CV.

 

Have your wife turn the wheel left and right while you visually inspect the tie rod ends for play.

This is how I found my problem. Worn passenger side tie rod end.

It would make a "clunk" noise when turning right into a parking lot. The sound was amplified by the plastic fender cowling.

 

Looking for any play at all in the end joint?

 

Yes. No play is the desired outcome.

I replaced mine with ProComp tie rod ends from Summit. @ 96k miles.

 

Okay. I'll check those tonight.

 

Went home for lunch. No play on the tie rod ends, but my steering rack is moving side to side. There should be no play in this, correct? Bushing replacement is in order?

 

Yeah. Search for the threads on rack replacement. 07-10s or somewhere around there had issues. My 10 broke and had to be replaced.

 

Did you replace the entire rack, or just bushings?

 

Here is the thread about it.

https://www.tundras.com/threads/the-definitive-steering-rack-thread-with-solutions.33539/

Mine was clearly going out. If I turned the wheel all the way to one side, the ps pump would smoke and rattle. It finally went out when I hit a curb and all the ps fluid came out.

I think there was another thread about just replacing just the bushings. Didn’t seem like an easy job to me though.

This might not be your issue. Just something to look in to. I think cb or dirty deeds sells bushings. -edit, just looked and you can order them front a lot of places like Amazon and wheelers.

 

Roger. My rack appears to be fine, no noise or leaking. Lots of lateral movement though. My shop quoted five hours of labor to replace bushings, so about $600 plus for the job. For that much, I might take on the challenge. We'll see.

 

Okay, got bushings on order, pickle forks, and I preemptively ordered tie rod dust boots as well.

Read and re-read the thread on replacing these, and I’ll just plan on tackling it one night after work (2 nights if necessary). Chukar season is now open and I can’t fathom burning days off to do this job. Plus, $600 is a lot of hunting gas.

 

Good luck. I might have tried it years ago but I’m getting too old to spend hours under the truck now. But I also hate paying labor, so hopefully it’ll save you the $600.

 

Well shit. New rack bushings in, steers really nice but my front end noise is still there. I’m getting new tire installed in a few weeks. I’ll have the shop take a look when they do the alignment.

I’m stumped. Am I not thinking outside the box here?

 

The shop just called. They trued the steering wheel for me after I did the steering rack bushings. They checked out the entire front end, ball joints, control arms, CV axles, etc. all check out just fine. They can't replicate or find it (they are a very good shop), so I guess I'll just drive the sumbitch. As a last ditch effort my mechanic said he'd spray the hell out of the spring perches with silicon spray.

 

Use a mechanics scope on anything with a joint while the wife swings the wheel from side to side. I've had bad ball joints that felt tight. Shock can also bind and make noise like this.

 

My 13 has rock warrior this. I changed everything in my 03 4runner v8 chasing this same clunk, even cv axels, and greasable everything that i could find, never fixed it. I

 

I’m starting to wonder if it’s a bumper attachment.

 

Cautiously optimistic I may have found the source. I was putting amber fog light bulbs in this morning, and was pulling on everything in the grille area. Lo and behold, what I believe is the transmission cooler (in front of the radiator, passenger side) was missing a mount bolt where it attaches to the body. There was missing paint behind it. I put a new one in, tightened it up, and haven't been able to replicate it since.

Fingers crossed.....

 

Update on this. I pulled my front shocks and re-indexed the coil springs and also lowered the perch to take the overall lift from 2.75ish to 2ish. Noise is gone. That would indicate it was either spring orientation and/or some binding/contact at the higher lift height. Rides great, better cornering.