Sorry ahead of time if this is not the right spot in the forums to post but I wasn't sure where it belongs.

I think my e-brake is lose at the wheel and making a loud clank noise when I go over even the smallest bump. I asked some people I know and from what I told them, that's what they think it is.

I've had this annoying and loud clank noise whenever I go over a bump, no matter the size. It used to come and go but now its here for good and I am worried. The e-brake that sits inside the rotor on the rear right wheel is what I am referring to, think that being lose can cause a loud clank noise?

I had my girlfriend drive my car and I watched and listened in and its for sure coming from the wheel and not the upper part there the strut is. So I am wondering is it safe to remove that e-brake from inside the rotor for good? I honestly never use it and don't think I'll miss it, but I wanted to ask you all first, thanks!

 

There are a lot of suspension parts that have bushings, if a bushing goes bad you will hear clunking. You will need to check all the parts

 

oh god maybe I should just take it in to a mechanic then, hopefully it won't cost a ton of money if I do that though

 

Based on your description, I'd look at the front/rear sway bars (the fronts have been known to break) and look at the connector linkages. I had a '93 Grand Am that broke the sway bar end links (connects to the control arm) and when it broke, you heard a clunk going over bumps.

 

Like maniac said check the sway bar. Mine was broken on my old car and it clanged around until i put a new end link on it. Here's a pic of the rear suspension parts. and a link to the parts list. http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssem...earchString=sw

 

awesome link man, i thank you for that, do you know if it hard or not for the average joe with some mechanical and car experience to replace or fix this on his own?

 

I've replaced the end links on cars (including my Monte). Not too bad, but if the nut/bolt to the end link is seized (common issue on any car), you might need something like a good hack saw, sawzall or grinder to cut through the center and get it out.

Here's a link showing stuff I did with my Monte and front end links and sway bar bushings:
http://crzyz28.sytes.net/mycars/2004..._Bushings.html

I have not chanced a sway bar before, but it looks straight forward (remove the holding bushings and end links, slide it out). BTW - if you do anything with the rear sway or endlinks, I believe you need to make sure there is a load on the suspension. I know when I took a rear sway bushing off and went to put it back on it was a PAIN! I figured out the trick, which was to raise the car up and then lower the car so the wheels say on something solid, but still allowed the car to be high enough for me to work (allowing the wheels to now dangle and the rear suspension now had a load on it).

Hope that makes sense.

Any luck spotting the problem? A busted front end link/sway is easy to spot just turn the wheel extreme one way, look behind the wheels at those parts, then turn it the other way and look at the same parts again (you should be able to see it through that clearance).

 

its the rear right wheel so I can't turn the wheel to see but I will report back to you all with some pics in about 2 hours of the situation, ive looked up a lot of information about sway bars and feel confident enough now to check it out in person

edit: Maniac - I don't see that link anywhere =(

 

Hmm, odd the link was messed up when I editted that post, but it's there now.

Since the noise is in the rear, you might be able to see it laying on the ground. If not you might have to jack the car up and get under it. Hopefully we can help you isolate the problem.

 

Okay, took the back tire off and checked some things out, here are some pics I took with my cell phone and the video I took is linked below. Everything looks fine though, no cracks at all and it all feels quite strong, but I did capture a video of what I think the noise is.

Oh and I also have a lovely nail in my tire...











and then the nail...



video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V59v_DX6fuM