Popping from front suspension

ANYTHING TO DO WITH STEERING, FROM STOCK TO RACK AND PINION UPGRADES
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dross93ranger
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Popping from front suspension

Post by dross93ranger »

I have a 2000 RWD Astro. I have been noticing a popping that is very frequent when I am turning into a parking place or turning at all at slow speeds. I changed my wheel bearings today hoping that would fix it and after they were installed I grabbed each wheel and tried to move them. Also my friend is a diesel mechanic and said that he thinks the ball joints are good.

What could be causing this? Is it safe to drive? Also while I was under there looking at the balljoints I noticed that they were greasable and I have owned the van close to two years and never greased them. I plan on doing so tomorrow, but could that cause the sound I am hearing?
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by MountainManJoe »

My front passenger corner has been popping for some time under certain conditions: wheels turned sharp right, uneven surface, especially when raining. I've had it looked at many times and there's nothing wrong down there. I figure it's either control arm or sway bar bushings creaking. It doesn't seem to get worse so I'm not bothered. Maybe squirt some silicone lube in there and see if it stops?

Hitting those grease points every other oil change will keep things moving smoothly and prolong their life (should be at least a dozen for you). I did mine today.
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by doyoulikeithere »

I had a similar sound when turning sharp into a parking spot or other sharp uneven terrain etc.
It was loud and embarrasing, so I would find a good place to force it to happen. I stopped several times when it happened so I could find it , as it was driving me bonkers.
It looked like the clamps on the tie rods could collide with other objects, so I turned themto what I thought would be safe.
Also I found that the sway bar lower links were badly worn, loose, and were able to pop in and out partially, of the hole they sit in.
That made big noises, and wore the link pins down to spaghetti. Changed those, no more prob.

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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by MountainManJoe »

It's more of a "crack" than "pop" for me, but it's not embarrassing enough for action yet. :P
I changed my swaybar links recently, so I know it isn't that.

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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by LiftedAWDAstro »

dross93ranger wrote: Also while I was under there looking at the balljoints I noticed that they were greasable and I have owned the van close to two years and never greased them. I plan on doing so tomorrow, but could that cause the sound I am hearing?
Yes. Grease all the steering and suspension joints. There are 10 - 12 fittings to grease on your van. They should get 1/2 - 1 pump every oil change! Since it has been 2 years, you may be swapping them out eventually.
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dross93ranger
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by dross93ranger »

My van is RWD, not AWD. I am heading to lowes to buy a grease gun after lunch. Is there more to grease than just the 4 balljoints?

Also I never got a straight answer, could that cause the popping? I haven't been driving the van and I don't want to until it is fixed so I'm going to try everything. I think the balljoints are good because there is absolutely no play in the wheel when the vehicle is jacked up.
1993 Ford Ranger - Bagged on Matte Black 18" KMC Rockstar wheels
1972 Datsun PL 521 - Bagged and Body Dropped
2000 Chevrolet Astro - The Tow Pig

LiftedAWDAstro
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by LiftedAWDAstro »

There are grease fitting on all the steering joints as well. And YES lack of grease will cause noise.
Current rides:
2013 Toyota Tundra DC 4x4
2008 Dodge Nitro 4x4
2005 Nissan Sentra 1.8S Special Edition

Mileage spreadsheet

Vans owned:
1986 Safari 2.5L 4 speed manual - scrapped
1995 Astro 2WD conversion 4.11 posi, shift kit, DHC rock rails - sold to Skippy
1998 Astro 4x4 D44, D60, NP231, full hydraulic system with 9k# Milemarker winch and snow plow - sold to Lockdoc
2003 Astro AWD all stock - traded for a 3/4 ton truck
2005 AWD, 4.10's - sold to skippy

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dross93ranger
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by dross93ranger »

Got it in the garage today and greased everything and the problem still persists. I did find that my tie rod end's rubber boot are dry rotted and won't even hold grease anymore, it just seeps out the cracks. I am going to order new ones this week on payday and see if that fixes the pop, I hope so. What else should I check while it is downstairs to fix this?
1993 Ford Ranger - Bagged on Matte Black 18" KMC Rockstar wheels
1972 Datsun PL 521 - Bagged and Body Dropped
2000 Chevrolet Astro - The Tow Pig
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by doyoulikeithere »

Mine was definatly coming from the place where the sway bar lower link attaches to the a arm. Its like a big washer thingy.
and when you install the tie rods, run them across and back and forth a few times to look where ther clamps are riding cuz they can colide if they are in the wrong places.
it could slide out of its mounting hole slightly (cuz it was a bit loose) and it would POP when it went back in.
Tie rod ends are pretty cheap. if they are worn badly, look at the centre link as well. Replace it all together if it looks iffy.
Sway bar links are cheep too, and I'm sure youve heard to look at the idler arms on these as well?
Last edited by doyoulikeithere on Mon Jan 16, 2012 6:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by MountainManJoe »

Check for loose bolts too. Control arms can rattle. Once, I thought my door was rattling but it turned out to be rear shocks (which like to come loose on mine).

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Re: Popping from front suspension

Post by risteff »

Check everything! I had the same thing & got in my van to go to work Monday morning...all was fine except it wouldn't turn left. Broke an idler arm right outside of the driveway. Glad I wasn't hauling *$$! I just looked at the front end the week before and noticed nothing abnormal. Check carefully!
Past vans: 1990 2WD SLE Safari, 1990 AWD SLE Safari, and 2000 AWD Safari SLE. Current, 2004 Astro AWD LS.
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