Loud & WIERD popping noise in front end-->mystery solved.

[COBALT]

A few months ago I posted a question about a strange popping noise in my front-end that only happened when I pulled away from curbs, or sometimes just stomped the gas. It never seemed to happen when I hit a chug-hole, or mashed the brakes, or when I went over speed bumps, which is usually when I would think ball joints would be bad. It had me baffled, and it sounded VIOLENT, so I figured I would find the reason when I did my front-end rebuild, which I started Labor Day weekend, so....

I found it. My passenger side lower control arm center rod was completely loose on one end. The passenger side has NEVER been rebuilt, and taking it apart has been a real b!tch. The threaded cap that goes into the control arm, and onto the rod had been ovaled out. It looked as though play was introduced some time in the past, and the rod has been slamming back and forth inside the cap for a long time. The grease was basically thick rust-colored paste where the cap has slowly been disintegrating, and when I got it loose from the control arm it just fell right off the rod. There's no threads left at all.

Luckily my lower control arm hasn't been ovaled out as well by all of this movement, which surprised me. All of the wear was absorbed by the cap.

Just an FYI for anyone who hears a loud pop from their front and it doesn't seem like it's a ball joint...

Happy Trails.