I have a 02 dodge dakota, RWD 4.7L V8 It's a franken-truck because it has a ton of durango parts. I replaced my ball joints, tie rods inner and outer, sway bar link, new tires. only things near the tires not replaced is the shocks and upper control arm.

when I turn at times, going fast or slow I get a loud clunking noise from the driver side tire area. it also happens when I stop too fast.

my theories are motor mounts, upper control arm or shock. I've gone under to check for anything that may be loose or worn but im coming up dry. if anyone can help point me in the right direction I'd appreciate it.

 

Jack up the truck and secure it with a jack stand under the frame. Try to move the driver tire in and out by hand, with your hands at 6 o'clock and 12 o'clock, then again at 3 and 9. Use a jerking motion to try and move it. If something is loose, you should feel it. Check both tires, because noise can travel in strange ways under the hood. What sounds like a driver side issue may be a passenger side issue.

If nothing turns up, have someone move the steering wheel back and forth while you are under it. Watch how each part moves together. Everything should move smoothly as a unit, anywhere that the motion of one part lags behind the part it is connected to needs to be checked.

Bad shocks can be checked by pushing down on each corner with your full weight, then letting off. If the shock is good, the corner should go down, come back up once, then settle a bit. If it bounces more than once, the shock is bad. Next, push down as hard as you can, and pull up on the corner to help the truck come back up. If you hear a clunk during any of this, you have a loose shock mount.

Sorry, not sure how to check an upper A arm mount. I've never had an issue with one before. The uppers are there more to hold the wheel in position, not to take the vehicle's weight, but they are built to the same strength level as the lower which does hold the vehicle's weight. Not saying they can't go bad, just that they don't go bad often and I've never had to deal with one.

To check the engine mounts, have someone hold the brake on hard, engine on, in drive. Have them pop the gas pedal while you watch the engine move. A bad engine mount will be very obvious. The engine should torque the truck, but not move independently of it. If it does, a mount is bad. If you hear the clunk but the mounts appear fine, check the trans mount. Put a jack stand under the tail housing of the transmission and jack it up. When the truck starts moving up, stop. If the trans mount is bad, the trans will lift off of the crossmember. If it starts lifting the truck's weight without coming off the crossmember, the trans mount is fine.

Hope some of this helps.

 

The upper control arms can and will move with shock travel. There are little teeth that engage from the tiebar to the chassis seat. Over time these can wear down, - the looser the mount gets, the more worn they get. Eventually they'll get to the situation on my truck, where the only way to set camber/caster is practically with a welder.