Whomp whomp whomp sound

[blert]

Got a noise I need help with...
When I slowly go over things like speed bumps the front end makes a low "whomp whomp whomp" noise as the front bounces. Points of interest I should be looking into?

 

[Ed Fenwick]

Wow Blert, you get the good ones. You could try bouncing the front with your head under the hood. Maybe you could locate the culprit.
LOL Ed

 

[blert]

Unfortunately, that won't work (I tried). I can't get the front end bouncing enough to cause it.
Go over the speed bump too fast or too slow and it won't happen. Have to go over it slowly but fast enough that the front end bounces two or three times (does that make sense?).
It's not the shocks, they are practically new, and I can recall it doing it before I changed the shocks.
Going to try to pull the anti-sway bar this weekend and grease up the bushings.
Trying to narrow down where else I should be looking. Found nothing similar on the net, only banging/clunking/grinding.

 

[DAM Sport Trac]

First off, your Trac should not be bouncing that many times after a speed bump. Maybe twice with good springs/shocks.
First things I would check due to that info are the springs and there contact points, then control arm bushings, sway bar contact points, then inner fender liner for rub marks of loose, then front bumper etc….
You mentioned that the shocks aren’t very old but you could have a failure with the rubber cones.

 

[blert]

No springs in front so that's out. Shock bushings are good. Fender liners in good shape and not loose. Will be lubing the sway bar bushings this weekend. Don't think there is anything wrong with the bumper. How would I check the control arms?

It is not that it bounces out of control or anything. You have to drop the front end off of the speed bump fast enough that it causes a couple of bounces. Nothing really out of the ordinary.

Edit: Only other thing I can think to add is that, for past couple of months, the alignment seems to being going out of whack and pulling to the right slightly. Have owned this truck about sixteen years now and it has alway been straight as an arrow.

 

[Todd Z]

Bad front end component, Loose rim, bad body mount.

 

[DAM Sport Trac]

No springs in front so that's out. Shock bushings are good. Fender liners in good shape and not loose. Will be lubing the sway bar bushings this weekend. Don't think there is anything wrong with the bumper. How would I check the control arms?

It is not that it bounces out of control or anything. You have to drop the front end off of the speed bump fast enough that it causes a couple of bounces. Nothing really out of the ordinary.

Edit: Only other thing I can think to add is that, for past couple of months, the alignment seems to being going out of whack and pulling to the right slightly. Have owned this truck about sixteen years now and it has alway been straight as an arrow.

Take it to an alignment shop. They will find the bad component/check control arm bushings for you.
have you hit something like a pot hole recently that may have knocked the alignment off?
You could rotate the tires and see if that alters the pull in the alignment. If so that is related to a tire issue. That would be separate from the noise you hear.

 

[blert]

Thanks for the suggestions folks.
The body bushings are less than a year old but I will inspect them and check torque on them, and the lugs too, this weekend, weather permitting.
It's about time to rotate the tires anyway, so might as well do that too.
Have not hit anything. Need to take it to my AC guy soon so I'll see if he can do alignment/front-end stuff too.
Gotta say, I'm not too excited about dropping another chunk cash into this truck. Might consider selling it as I don't really need it anyway. I don't know, kinda attached to it. Have to check for videos on changing some of the larger bits in the front-end.

 

[OvalSports]

Sounds like a bad wheel bearing (grinding/groaning) and pulling.

 

[blert]

Sounds like a bad wheel bearing (grinding/groaning) and pulling.

No grinding. Everything sounds fine when making turns and normal driving around. I just replaced the bearings last year but I guess it would not hurt to give it a check. Doesn't look like the weather is going to cooperate this weekend though. Just a strange sound when under certain circumstances. It has actually done this for a while, long before last year's bushing/bearing/shock/brake refit. It just hasn't given me any other problems to complain about.
It does cluck at full steering (left or right), like when backing out of the driveway or making a slow tight turn. But last time it started the front sway bar links had come a bit loose. Tighten them up and the clunks went away.

 

[OvalSports]

Similar happened to me anyway. I paid someone to replace the front hubs, and a year later they were acting up again. The second time I did them myself and no issues in a few years. I know some fords required an initial high torque to set the bearings, then break torque, and retorque at a lower setting before installing the wheels.

 

[blert]

That's how I did it. Can't remember the numbers I used but it was something like 10-15ft lbs to set then loosen and retorque to something like 2-3ft lbs (really light). Most folks I spoke to said they do it by feel or... finger tight, then put your wrench at 12o'clock and then barely tight by turning the wrench to about 1.