bandit98

I have been a member of this board for some time, and have probably read thousands upon thousands of posts, but made few. Now I have issues.

I have a 98 camaro m6 that has about 107000 miles on it. In the past three weeks, I have noticed an number of increasingly loud creaks and groaning sounds coming from my rear as I turn in and out of my sloped driveway. It looks like my rear bumper and trunk lid don't match up very well at their edges, also.

In addition to that, I have been starting to hear a thumping sound when I turn the wheel as I drive, as in a single thump sound when I turn the wheel either direction and when I turn it back to center. When I drive over bumps, my front suspension makes a loud popping sound, almost like a strong rattle. These problems did not exist more than a few weeks ago. And I did not run into anything or do anything out of the ordinary. The car is a daily driver.

I ask if these things are symptoms of a greater issue than just a worn out car. I thank you in advance for any and all help received.

hpjunky98

iTrader: (3)

Check your LCA and PHB bushings. Might have degraded to the point they need replacing. Can't say my stock ride was that bad at 107K. No ideas on the single thump sound though. Time to upgrade

35th SS

iTrader: (2)

with some aftermarket suspension stuff.

JD_AMG

Sound like an old bed with creeks? Bushings, probably the sway bar bushings. Buy some new ones from autozone along with some grease, install and grease them and see if that solves it.
As far as the bumper and trunk lid, you can align the tail lights with little plastic screws on the inside trunk. Pull back the hard carpet stuff and look for big black screws, you tighten them by hand.

Im pretty sure Ive heard of this before, something simple. Search the "general maintenance" forum.

EvilBLK02TA

iTrader: (28)

Now its an excuse to MOD the hell out of the car

JWS6

Could be the strut mounts or ball joints

kail

iTrader: (2)

strut mounts x2 my 98 camaro had the same issue at 130k

bandit98

Thanks a bunch guys. It really is cool to post a problem and in one day have several responses. I just had the ball joints replaced a week ago, without any change in driveability. I'll try everything ya'll have mentioned. Hopefully I can convince my parents that its time to replace the whole suspension setup (which will be extended to wheels, intake, new headers, etc.)

Black02SLPSS

iTrader: (5)

Good call on that. Also try and to sneak a cam in there too. lol

Greggy

Yeah, most rubber bushings and boots are pretty rotted by now. You may need some or all of the following parts. Steering rack, tie-rod ends, Front and Rear lower control arms bushings. F + R Sway Bar U-bushings and endlinks, shocks, PHB bushings.

bandit98

I was confused by the sudden onset of suspension issues when it started about three weeks ago, but I realize now thats when it got real cold here in Houston. So probably all the rubber got brittle and worthless. I was thinking about having all that replaced. Thanks.

Foxxtron

iTrader: (1)

Yes, most definitely. You mentioned that at 107K that the car DID NOT have these issues (or at least not as noticeable), Now at 170K they DO.

Many of these issues on your car, as well as many vehicles with high mileage, hard driving, and/or age will develop these issues. Add insult to injury, the climate you live in isn't friendly to those rubber parts. Not to forget, Ball joints and other parts similar to them have a lot of duty performed on them as well.

My finding would be you're on the right track if you plan of having them replaced. With that said, the parts may be "reasonably" priced, however the labour may be quite high, dependent on where you have the services performed, so I say shop around for the best price for quality service.

waldershrek

iTrader: (1)

Energy Suspension makes a complete f-body bushing kit I'd look into to if I was you.

Foxxtron

iTrader: (1)

I know it may sound contrary to popular consensus, but from experience, I'd look else where with the polyurethane kits.

If you perform a search about poly around here, you'll find that poly is recommended for some areas, and highly not recommended for others.

For most daily driving, Rubber is best for:

rear lower control arms (solid replacement only) and front upper and lower control arms. These areas should be free from the excessive bind that their poly counterparts usually cause, plus there's the creep (otherwise known as cold-flow), which will result in a need to replace in a short amount of time.

Poly is okay for motor mounts, torque arm mounts, and maybe a poly/rod combo panhard bar, and also replacement bushings for swaybars and swaybar endlinks.

bandit98

The car has 107K on it, not 170K. I'm waiting for about two weeks to do anything, because thats when my college scholarships become official. I think I will have a better bargaining position to rebuild my suspension as I go to college with $85K in scholarships backing me up. What better way to spend extra money than on my car? lol

bandit98

And I won't ask, "Whats the best handling/driveability suspension setup?" I can use a search button. lol

SOMbitch

iTrader: (8)

I'll make it easy for you. STRANO