2011 Suburban - Right turn "pop/clunk" but not all the time

[kevshoe]

Hoping someone can point me the in the right direction to diagnose this issue.

2011 Suburban LT 5.3
123,000 miles - I'm the original owner

Back Story - This is my wife's daily driver and a couple of months ago I noticed the idle was a little rough, so given the miles, I decided it was time to do some work including:

- New plugs and wires (#8 fought me but I won )
- New AC and Serpentine belt
- Cleaned the throttle body (did not remove)
- New fluids (rear diff, front diff, transfer case and transmission...did not change filter)

I also noticed (prior to all this work being done) that there seemed to be a slight "slip" from a dead stop. Long story short, it was the driver side motor mount. So, this past weekend I changed out the motor mount as well. I did it by removing the steering shaft (had to remove below the knuckle) and jacking the engine up from the oil pan (all the way forward where the drain plug is).

Current Issue - When gassing it up the other night, I thought I heard metal on metal when braking, but couldn't replicate. I asked my wife yesterday if she had been hearing this and she said yes, and also a loud "bang" when she turns right on a certain street. So, did a rear brake job last night and took it out to try and replicate this "bang"/"pop" sound. It only seems to happen in a very specific scenario and I'm not sure what that is yet (ie, it does not always do it when turning right, but when it does happen it's always a slow speed right turn). It's like something is binding up and then releasing. It feels like it's happening under the driver side where your feet are. She did say this morning it seems as it is happening a little more often at different turns (always a right turn), but again, not always.

Any ideas how I should go about diagnosing this? I'm by no means a master mechanic but also not afraid to turn a wrench and do most of my own stuff if I can.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[fiatdale]

Sounds like a ball joint. If they’ve never been replaced, it’s time to do them all (if you plan on keeping it for a while)

 

[davidzog]

I would check the sway bar end links....they rust out and break off, allowing the sway bay to bang against the frame, but it won't happen all the time. It is a really simple fix. I replaced the end links and the sway bar bushings at 100,000 miles and it did help the handling noticeably....cost was about $30 if I remember, using all Moog parts. Let us know...

 

[kevshoe]

Thanks for the replys guys. I do plan on keeping this thing for a while so will look into replacing all the ball joints. I'll also take a look at the sway bar end links. Was going to climb under there last night and start looking around but needed to tend to a new to me 2002 Silverado (only 59,000 miles) for my son that's turning 16 next week. Also, the popping has seemed to stop. There were two right turns where it was doing it every time, but it hasn't happened in the last day. Weird.

 

[kevshoe]

Just a quick update. It is the driver side sway bar end link. Snapped in two and bottom bolt is gone. I'll be replacing both today. Thanks for the help.

 

[MichaelSE]

Thanks for the update. Sway bar end links seem to be a somewhat common issue on these.

 

[Doubeleive]

ya shortly after I bought my 2012 I was inspecting it underneath and sure enough the right side end link was missing completely, I make it a point inspect the undercarriage about once a month for leaks or anything loose missing or broken. my driving technique is severe so I have to go with "under severe conditions" type of maintenance procedures.

 

[dmad1]

Drain third member and add the limited slip fluid with new grease.