This recently started happening in the front end of my '04 sebring touring sedan 2.7 about 4 months ago, its driving me up the wall.

i have gone through an array of replacement parts, and actually have one last set to try in the trunk ( inner tie rods and sway bar bushings)

its had and was making the noise before and after all of these) :

all new struts on all 4 corners (they were original and very dead after 20 years)
new front lower control arms w/ ball joints
new upper ball joints (control arms checked during service, bushings and arms are in good condition)
new tie rod ends (had an alignment since)
new calipers, brackets, pads, and rotors on all 4 corners (a couple of calipers were slow siezing so i did them all, did not affect the rattle noise)

all parts used sourced from rock auto, even though im in canada (good luck finding parts here that arent through your nose expensive)

to describe the noise, it rattles over small bumps in the road inconsistently, i think it depends how much the suspension is jarred on the drivers side front (source area of the noise)
if i turn the wheel back and forth while parked, i hear a clunking noise if i move it back and forth in short increments.
the rattle only happens when driving straight, sometimes does and does not continue when applying the brakes.
when going over bumps around corners theres little to no noise.

when this issue first started, i had thought it was brake pad rattle but can confirm it is not because all outer pads are glued to the calipers with silicone, and the inners have disc brake quiet on them where they contact the pistons. there is no play in the pads. Hardware is installed and torqued to spec properly.

i have double checked for anything loose from what my mechanic installed or the alignment shop may have moved. nothing moves even with a breaker bar on it trying to pull it tighter, the sway bar bushings under the car dont look worn out, but are slightly soft when i poke them with my fingernail.

i really want this to go away. ive had no issue with this car from new up to this point. any help would be appreciated on locating this noise.

if the information is helpful, the car has 257k on the clock. and is rust free other than some minor surface rust on the undercarriage where the rustproofing has come off.

 

update :

anybody with a rattle or consistent clunk over small bumps in thier front end, should immediately look at swaybar bushings and inner tie rod joints on the steering rack side.

changing both has silenced my sebring once more!

 

I heard a clunking noise and never would have known it was my ball joint until I recently put my car in the shop to do my inner tie rod, mechanic is good and told me what was going on.




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