Clunking,banging,popping,creaking...and that's just the front end!

[N0DIH]

Something too. There are 11 grease fittings. Are all greased? don't trust a shop to do it, maybe Cadillac, but most shops miss them.

I would also try lifting the front wheels off the ground, then grease the ball joints. Might ensure that grease gets ALL around the joint. The wieght MAY keep grease from getting to some places in the joint.

Take a look at http://www.impalaclub.com/naisso/for...TOPIC_ID=25849

[caddycruiser]

Wow, thanks for the link--very informative and nice (well, not really...) to know that others are having similar problems.

I aksed my father the other day if he had greased all the points recently and he said he did, but I think he may have missed a few...and it's probably been a while, even though he said "I do it twice a year". Oh well, that's what you get with free labor...

[The Ape Man]

If there are balljoints or tierods that are making noises from being dry then it is way too late to fix them with grease.

[N0DIH]

Originally Posted by The Ape Man

If there are balljoints or tierods that are making noises from being dry then it is way too late to fix them with grease.

That is what I was afraid of....

[The Ape Man]

Originally Posted by N0DIH

That is what I was afraid of....

That is something to be afraid of. Ever see a car where the balljoint seperated while driving?

[Hilton]

Don't even wait another day. I had problems vaguely similar to yours in an '83 Concord (I had pops and a jumping corner, but only when turning at high speed (70+kph) - the more I turned, the worse it got). Turned out to be two bad ball joints - both on one side. At the least take it in to a local shop for a checkup and estimate... a wheel and alignment shop would probably be the best place to go.

And it is a sin to drive a Cadillac in conditions and situations where other people can audibly hear (and see) its problems. Cadillacs are supposed to be perfect!

[carguy16]

lol, i have turned the wheel hard infront of a grocery store crosswalk and it popped, people looked.

According to records, the car was doing this at 29,000 miles, Cadillac greased the stop arms and said it was cured.

[The Ape Man]

Originally Posted by carguy16

lol, i have turned the wheel hard infront of a grocery store crosswalk and it popped, people looked.

According to records, the car was doing this at 29,000 miles, Cadillac greased the stop arms and said it was cured.

Not the same thing as our subject.

Paste:

NOW, however, something has really gone bad, because it not only still knocks and bangs at the locks, but pops and clunks really loudly at different times throughout the entire range of the steering. Today, for example, I stopped at a stop sign and upon starting to move and go right, I barely turned the wheel an inch or two right and got a loud pop I both heard and felt. The worst, though, is if, say, I have to manuever through some tight spots in the driveway and have to keep turning the wheel back and forth, during which I basically hear and feel so many bad clunks, bangs, pops, and clangs that it sounds like the damn front end is about to just explode and drop the car.

snip.

[N0DIH]

Honestly, first thing I would do is examine each ball joint (isn't there a pry test on them to measure for movement?), each tie rod (have someone move wheel back and forth and watch join closely for excess movement), each control arm bushing (make sure they are not shot, shell to shaft contact), and then the steering box mounting and then the steering shaft to the box (movement of the shaft with no movement of the linkage).

[caddycruiser]

Honestly, I think I may have exaggerated a bit in my first post or so, but some days it will make a lot of noises and other days none.

Either way, hope to get it checked out soon and will report.

Originally Posted by Hilton

And it is a sin to drive a Cadillac in conditions and situations where other people can audibly hear (and see) its problems. Cadillacs are supposed to be perfect!

I know... ...beautiful car and very embarrassing to drive past people, turn or stop and have them look at me in shame...

[DanTheMan]

I'm sorry that this reply is a little out of place. I was doing my 3,000 mile maintainance yesterday and only counted 9 greaseable fittings. Where the tierods connect to the drag link there was a bolt facing the front of the car and a flat surface facing the rear. I could see a dust cover boot and there was grease around it. I was just wondering what you guys thought about this. Should it be there?

[N0DIH]

There are 11.

2 upper ball joints (facing up)
2 lower ball joints (facing down)
2 inner tie rods (facing down I think)
2 outer tie rods (facing down)
1 idler arm (facing rear)
2 drag link (facing rear I think)

Sometimes the dust cover boots are there, they are a rare find, very few ever surivive, and I am not sure how many cars actually got them installed.

[caddycruiser]

Well, after a pretty quiet 2 weeks, the front end of the Caddy just started going nuts again this morning. Loud creaking/popping from a stop or to a stop and also throughout various points in the steering's range of motion.

So, back to the same old. One question though--if I get pretty loud creaking, popping, etc., with up and down motion caused by acceleration/braking, why is all silent when the suspension is at work over bumps? I drove down a vary lumpy, bumpy road with the windows down and everything off so I could hear, and heard nothing. Then, back on a smooth road, loud as could be again when I slowed to a stop and started again.

Either way, I'll soon be leaving for school again and the car will be parked, so....

[caddycruiser]

Well, the mystery FINALLY seems half solved.

After driving the FW more over my last month at home, I noticed something weird--it would go for 1, 2 weeks at a time not making ANY noise at all from the front end and being insanely smooth. Then, out of the blue, I'd go to make a quick run to the store one day, and there'd be a loud creaking as the front end dipped and rose and continual thudding while even driving across a parking lot, for example. Then, it'd go back to silent and smooth days later.....wEiRd and we just couldn't figure out why it would be fine, bad, fine, etc. and never consistent with the noise, even after inspecting the front end a few times.

To cut a long story short, I've been away at school for almost a month now and got a call from my dad today--using the service manual I bought him off of Ebay ( ...BEST purchase), he started reading about the ball joints and how to know when they're bad, and went outside to follow the inspection instructions. What did he find? While the driver's side seemed fine with the rubber indicator still quite visible, the indicator on the passenger's side was "gone", sunken up inside. Continuing on, jacked the car up, then jacked up the A-frame on that side and wiggled on the wheel, just as it said to check and BINGO--wheel wobbled quite significantly with a couple inches of play.

Yep. Just what you here said, and I've been telling him for several months. Claimed he's "Never had a ball joint go bad on ANY car" and just didn't think it could be that.

As far as getting it fixed, here it goes. Called the full GM (except for Caddy/Hummer/Saturn/Saab) dealer we always go to and who put a new EGR & solenoid in the car in January. They wanted $350 and would only do it in pairs (i.e., both sides, regardless of the other's condition). He said the other one looks perfectly normal and only wants the one replaced, so called around, and got a price from the Chevy-only dealer 20 minutes up the road to replace just the one for $115. Took the vin#, ordering the part, and should be doing it this Friday.

Hope this fixes the problem, ESPECIALLY the loud creaking/popping from that side of the front.

[caddycruiser]

Oh, let me clarify....I know there are more than just 2 ball joints, even though I worded my post that way, I just couldn't remember which specific one it is....upper or lower....