Front Axle / Front Suspension: Clunking sound

[plee4139]

I am experiencing a clunking sound from the front left wheel as I turn right on an entrance ramp. Any idea as to what this is?

[BobPalma]

A clunking sound suggests something heavy.

First check the wheel bearings for proper condition, grease, and adjustment.

Then check all the attaching points for the LF suspension: A-Frame bolts and bushings to the upper and lower frame members in particular. BP

[rkapteyn]

Is this a Studebaker or Honda?

What year?

Check the lug bolts for tightness

Lift the wheel with a jack under the "A" frame and grab the wheel top and bottom and check if the front wheel bearing is too loose.

Robert Kapteyn

[jclary]

I once experienced something similar on my '48 business coupe. The noise was mostly noticed when braking and more pronounced in slow turns. I was baffled for weeks while trying to diagnose what was happening. I thought I had covered everything by checking the wheel bearings (removing, cleaning, inspecting, repacking) brake components, and suspension. Nothing seemed to help. Finally, in desperation, I coaxed my wife into assisting (rare occurrence). I had her to apply brake pressure to the car while I had it on jack stands with the wheels off. That was when I found that the front passenger wheel brake drum flange had cracks that "spider-webbed" from the lug holes outward. It was a frightening realization that I was only one hard braking incident from a catastrophic brake failure!

Knowing how marginal and fragile the brakes are for a four lug Champion (under the best conditions), this is one area you don't want to take chances with. The reason the problem was so difficult to find is that the cracks were easy to miss. They were not noticeable to the naked eye. Only when the brakes were applied and the hubs placed under stress did the hubs distort enough to expose the cracks.

That said, your problem might be something entirely different. I would have described the noise from my car as either a "clicking" or "Popping" sound and not a "clunk." I believe if my problem had not been discovered and solved...by the time I heard what I would describe as a "clunk"...it would have been followed by an immediate right front wheel lock-up and a sudden right skid into the roadside ditch!

[gordr]

It would help to state the year and model. If it is a later model, and you have radial tires on stock 4.5" rims, you may have a cracked rim. Take off the wheel cover and carefully inspect the area of the outer perimeter of the mounting plane. If you see any "scratches" here that appear to be oozing rust, they are probably cracks.

[jackb]

If it is a Studebaker car from 1950 on up to 66'.....you may have loose A-arm to frame bolts/nuts. Check them for sure.

[studegary]

Assuming this is a Lark (or other 1951-1966 Studebaker)-
If you get repeated noises as the wheel turns, I would guess a wheel bearing.
If you get one clunk upon turning, I would guess the upper kingpin bearing or possibly some other loose point in the front suspension.
This is something to determine and repair right away, not something to wait and let get worse/catastrophic.
It might also be a cracked wheel/rim ready to let go. Are you running radial tires on stock Studebaker rims/wheels?