Originally Posted By: T-Keith
I had a clunking sound when turning, but only at slow speed or when stopped. It turned out the strut mount had rusted through and the strut bearing was breaking through.
Probably not likely to happen unless you live in an area where they use lots of salt on the road.
I saw something similar on 2 cars that were only driven in Florida.
The ball bearings in the strut mount had fallen apart, causing all kinds of terrible noises when turning and also handling problems.
One was a Toyota Corolla and the other was a Pontiac Grand Am.
The ball joint that goes between the steering knuckle and lower control arm is also a common failure point. The boot can tear off and accelerate wear, though usually I see ones that wear out before the boot breaks. Do a normal suspension check. Other times, various suspension components can seize up. If your steering effort increases too much, you probably have some suspension parts that need replacement.
Wheel bearings can make more noise in turns than when going in a straight line. However, they will always make noise when the car is moving. Is the car more noisy all the time?
Swaybar endlinks fail quite often, so check them.
Sometimes an exhaust pipe hanger will fail, causing an exhaust component to rub against something else when the car accelerates, turns, or stops.
Engine mounts can fail and cause all kinds of noise. Open the hood and ask a friend to hold the gas and brake pedal simultaneously while in drive and in reverse. If the engine moves more than 2 inches, an engine mount has failed.
