Hey, I got myself an 89 Firebird Formula with a wierd problem. Everytime i hit a bump or what would lift the front right tire off the ground or squish it down, i hear like a "Thud!" noise (on second thought its like a thud, then like a quick "sheew" back into position), its not too loud but loud enough to hear over the engine. it goes right away and i dont have any wabbling but would like to fix it or know how or atleast what it is. Anyway, thanks in advance !

 

Have you cut the springs? it could be the spring unseating then when you land on it it pushes it back into place. You should just take off that wheel and give everything a once over.

 

I havent done anything to it (not cut anything) but thats a good idea ill take off the wheel and see how everything looks. Is this something i should be very concerned about or just a "Fix it when you can" kina thing?

 

loose idler arm to chassis bolts? Really messed up strut mount? Ball joint dead?

You can check the mount by removing the cover and jouncing the car and seeing is the strut or mount has play outside of the bushing. To check the idler arm jack up the from and see if it moves in the slotted grooves and tighten the bolts anyway to just to be sure. For the balljoint jack up the front and put the stands under the spring perches and see if you can lift up the spindle/tire assembly as a whole or pull it down. Fractions of an inches, like 1/8'' to 1/4'' is too much play. Pull on the idler too for the hell of it, if you can feel a little bit of movement in the bushing where it pivots then replace it for the hell of it and you'll get a much better steering response.

 

Sounds to me like it's a loose bolt. With age the bolts get loose from rust. I had a clunking that was the same and it turned out to be an rear LCA bolt.

 

Ill check it out guys, thanks for the tips!

 

What is a sheew sound? My guess is strut. Does the front end bounce a few times when you hit a bump?

 

I cant really tell if its acting funny 'cause its been that way since i bought it hah go figure, as far as bouncing it doesnt seem to bounce so much as shudder at having to move