I have a fairly hard clunk noise upon hard acceleration from a dead stop, and if I brake decently hard after this happens I will get the clunk again. Mine is a 2006 HHR2LT, and I have replaced both lower control arms, struts (full loaded kit), CV axles, end links, tie rod ends, wheel bearings, tires, and brake rotors in the past year due to them all wearing out or needing replacement. I also had it aligned on Thursday and now I just have that clunk. It comes from the passenger side, but doesn't do it with lighter acceleration. Any ideas for me to look at?

 

Front sway bar bushings, also double check the torque on the LCA rear bolts and the axle gland nuts, I've seen the end link bolts loose after the owner got them replaced. An impact gun doesn't cut the mustard when tightening suspension bolts!

 

I double checked the torque on all of it and they are all tight. I used Moog parts too.

 

And the swaybar bushings?

 

Lately I've had bad luck with new front end parts. Inspect the LCA bushings and ball joints. While you are at it inspect the motor and trans mounts.

 

The sway bar bushings are in excellent shape visually.

The LCA bushings and ball joints are new, but I have not inspected the transmission or motor mounts. Perhaps I should do that.

 

To test the sway bar bushings: use a lever and try prying the bar up and down/back forth - if any slop is there it should be visible. Another test is to approach a small speedbump on an angle, letting one wheel ride over the bump first which puts a twist on the sway bar - I used that to isolate a bad SB bushing on the passengers side.

Don't we hate those suspension noises.

 

Yes we do , now another noise source is the loose front bumper cover!

 

Sway bar bushings on Greg LOOKED fine, but when I changed them out last week they were cracked, brittle, and broken. My clunk progress from just over bump to clunking if I ran over an ant in the road. The end links helped but didn't fully resolve the noise. Replacing the Sway bar bushings completely resolved the noise for me. If they are original they need to replaced just think of that. They can be had for as little as 4 dollars a piece and if you are mechanically inclined can be replaced easily. I just had the shop do it because I am lazy.

 

How much did the shop charge you labor for the job?