Need Opinions - Suspension noise w/video

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CodeRedR51

CodeRedR51

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Wanted to see if this sounds like anything that anyone here has heard before. Car is a 2006 Chevy Cobalt LS Sedan, 5-speed. Trying to pinpoint the problem and have yet to find it. So far the following have been replaced:

  • Front struts
  • Sway bar links + bushings
  • Control arm bushings
  • Upper strut mounts
  • Steering shaft universal joint

Only happens when I am braking to a stop and the noise is coming from the left front. Car makes no noises driving down the road. The steering wheel shakes some and I can feel it in the brake pedal. Pulled the left wheel off last weekend and looked around. Pads are new-ish and still look good. I don't see any obvious warping in the rotors but will be replacing them next anyway.

 
That sounds pretty awful. Other than what you have replaced already, I am at a loss. Maybe try the Cobalt forums?
 
It's not a warped rotor. Check the tie rod ends for play. I think it may be a very bad wheel bearing as they are known to be weak in those cars. Check the tie rod by moving it side to side with the car jacked up. To check the wheel bearing jack it up and grab the top and bottom and shake it to see if there is play. Usually a wheel bearing will be evident all the time but not always.
 
ZohsixGT5
That sounds pretty awful. Other than what you have replaced already, I am at a loss. Maybe try the Cobalt forums?
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Done that. They weren't much help.

savage388
It's not a warped rotor. Check the tie rod ends for play. I think it may be a very bad wheel bearing as they are known to be weak in those cars. Check the tie rod by moving it side to side with the car jacked up. To check the wheel bearing jack it up and grab the top and bottom and shake it to see if there is play. Usually a wheel bearing will be evident all the time but not always.
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I did check play from top to bottom and side to side when I checked the brakes. There is some play left to right and you can hear a small clunk when doing so. I didn't notice any play top to bottom. Won't wheel bearings make a scraping or howling noise when they go bad? The car is pretty silent going down the road otherwise.
 
R1600Turbo
Done that. They weren't much help.

I did check play from top to bottom and side to side when I checked the brakes. There is some play left to right and you can hear a small clunk when doing so. I didn't notice any play top to bottom. Won't wheel bearings make a scraping or howling noise when they go bad? The car is pretty silent going down the road otherwise.
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Yea, but mine are only noisy under braking so I figured better check anyway. If there was side to side play then it is most likely from the tie rod end. I'd have the entire tie rod checked up to the steering rack though as Thats an awful noise. The only thing is tie rods cause steering slop no just shaking so I'm not sure. If the tie rods check out I'm not sure but check the ball joint anyway.
 
While sitting in a stopped position, if you shake the wheel back and forth you can hear clunking from inside the car and there's a little bit of play.
 
R1600Turbo
While sitting in a stopped position, if you shake the wheel back and forth you can hear clunking from inside the car and there's a little bit of play.
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Ok that narrows it down. I'll call it a very odd tie rod, steering rack problem. Check the ball joint on your tie rod end for play when you jack it up and take the wheel off. I don't have much experience with upper tie rods, however I dont see one going bad on such a new car.
 
I did find a video on youtube that points to a problem these cars have with a plastic bushing of sorts in the steering rack, that over time will wear out enough to make a similar noise. I just called the dealership and scheduled an appointment for next friday to have them look at it for the 5th time.

Also, wouldn't necessarily call it a new car as it's got almost 120k miles on it. From what I have read these cars have all kinds of front suspension problems of which I didn't research before I bought it. (should have) I just really needed a car and dove in which was a bad decision.

Can't complain about the gas mileage though. :)
 
R1600Turbo
I did find a video on youtube that points to a problem these cars have with a plastic bushing of sorts in the steering rack, that over time will wear out enough to make a similar noise. I just called the dealership and scheduled an appointment for next friday to have them look at it for the 5th time.

Also, wouldn't necessarily call it a new car as it's got almost 120k miles on it. From what I have read these cars have all kinds of front suspension problems of which I didn't research before I bought it. (should have) I just really needed a car and dove in which was a bad decision.

Can't complain about the gas mileage though. :)
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I forgot but you may want to park it if you can because last summer my friend had a steering problem on his cobalt that sent him into a concrete median at 65 mph then up an embankment. That car had on 50,xxx miles on it. He said that there was some kind of recall on it. Generally domestic compact cars are junk, They just can't balance cost and quality.
 
Yeah I heard about the steering issue. I checked with the Chevy dealer after I bought it and all recalls were completed. Unfortunately it's my only way to work so I can't park it. So if something happens, as long as I don't die, GM can expect a lawsuit. ;)
 
R1600Turbo
Yeah I heard about the steering issue. I checked with the Chevy dealer after I bought it and all recalls were completed. Unfortunately it's my only way to work so I can't park it. So if something happens, as long as I don't die, GM can expect a lawsuit. ;)
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:lol: well good luck with that and be prepared for insanely high prices at the dealership, they charge extra because they just can.
 
R1600Turbo
I did find a video on youtube that points to a problem these cars have with a plastic bushing of sorts in the steering rack, that over time will wear out enough to make a similar noise. I just called the dealership and scheduled an appointment for next friday to have them look at it for the 5th time.

Also, wouldn't necessarily call it a new car as it's got almost 120k miles on it. From what I have read these cars have all kinds of front suspension problems of which I didn't research before I bought it. (should have) I just really needed a car and dove in which was a bad decision.

Can't complain about the gas mileage though. :)
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Likely the same bushing in the MR2. Passenger side tie rod, if you can grab it and move it up and down or side to side (not in and out), the plastic bushing has failed. Its usually just the source of some clunking sounds at low speed bumps when the failed bushing lets the steering rack rattle around inside that end of the casing.
 
Lol I knew this was a Cobalt the second I saw the thread title.

You've covered the common issues, but they also had issues with the ecu rattling against the airbox under the hood, as well as the coolant reservoir not being firmly clipped on with the crappy metal clip that holds it on.

I would MAKE SURE to mention what you've replaced so far to the GM dealer when you take it in, since all of those parts you replaced commonly go bad. (EDIT: I guess they were the ones that replaced these parts, so I guess never mind on that part.)

EDIT: There's a way to check the plastic gears in the power steering assembly. IIRC, you pull the fuse for the power steering, and go drive the car around. No power steering makes it so theres a load on the gear when you're turning, so if you don't get a rattle, or it stops when you turn, it's likely those gears.
 
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I probably should have mentioned I'm not taking it to a GM dealer. It's going to the no-name dealer I bought the car from. Hard to get appointments in a timely manner there, but so far they haven't refused to fix anything. Shouldn't as I paid extra for the "warranty".

It's definitely coming from the left front. I'll try to concentrate on it some more in the morning and update if I figure anything else out.
 
Pretty sure I found the issue. As mentioned above, plastic gears in the steering column wearing out and causing the noise. Found several threads on several forums across the net with people having the same issue while braking. Many of them had their steering columns replaced multiple times as the noise kept coming back.

Turns out, GM actually sued the manufacturer of these columns for $30 million because they were having to replace so many of them. So, I'm hoping that I can print out an article about the GM suit and maybe a couple threads with people having the same problem and use it as evidence that it was a big problem for GM and get it replaced.

*fingers crossed*
 

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