I have another thread where I posted my belief that I had some bad ball joints. The van didn't feel stable at speed (slight "wandering" in the lane) and something sounded loose. I took it into the shop (a Firestone near my work) to have them look at it and I specifically asked them to inspect ball joints, bushings, and anything else that could be causing the issue. The only thing they found was the lower bolts anchoring the shock absorbers had worked loose, allowing the lower mounting hole on the shocks to be wallowed out. I had them replace the shocks and associated bushings. They claim they did not find anything else - the ball joints were supposedly tight and they thought the bushings (that appear to be original with 167,000 miles on them) were fine. I'm not sure what to think of their assessment. They were able to perform an alignment. For the tires, I run my 265/70-16 Firestone Destination A/Ts at 35 psi and even though they are getting later into their life, the wear is relatively even so I would not think they are contributing.
Replacing the shocks definitely helped with some of the rattling, but not all of it. The van still feels like it is "wandering" as I track a straight line in my lane at highway speeds. I never felt like this van rode on rails, but it is definitely sloppier than in the past. I feel that impacts with washboard and potholes is just more harsh overall. When I reverse (and sometimes going forward), with the wheels turned fully to the right, there is a significant metallic "thunk", like something is bound up then suddenly releasing. The thunk feels like it is under my feet.
Does this behavior/noises sound familiar to anyone and could give me a direction to head as I try to troubleshoot this? Whatever it is, is not shock absorbers and does not affect a shop's ability to do an alignment. The good news is that I just accepted a new job where I will be working from home, so I can focus on fixing things rather than putting on miles.
Thanks
Replacing the shocks definitely helped with some of the rattling, but not all of it. The van still feels like it is "wandering" as I track a straight line in my lane at highway speeds. I never felt like this van rode on rails, but it is definitely sloppier than in the past. I feel that impacts with washboard and potholes is just more harsh overall. When I reverse (and sometimes going forward), with the wheels turned fully to the right, there is a significant metallic "thunk", like something is bound up then suddenly releasing. The thunk feels like it is under my feet.
Does this behavior/noises sound familiar to anyone and could give me a direction to head as I try to troubleshoot this? Whatever it is, is not shock absorbers and does not affect a shop's ability to do an alignment. The good news is that I just accepted a new job where I will be working from home, so I can focus on fixing things rather than putting on miles.
Thanks
