Car making thumping noise in the front!

My Manuel car has been making a thumping noise coming from the front of the car and it has been getting worse over time. It does the thumping when I’m trying to keep a steady speed and it would start to jerk the car slightly and thump, but when I accelerate or decelerate (let of gas and stay in gear to slow down) the thumping goes away and does 1 small thump. I need some help I have done everything I have read and it didn’t go away.

Check the front lower control arm bushings and ball joints.

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Look at all the surfaces of the front tires too. Anything unusual looking? Bubbles sticking out? Flat spots on the tread, etc? Tread separating from the underneath part? Cracks appearing in the rubber? Check the lug nuts too, and that the tire is centered on the hub like it should. A badly out of balance wheel can cause this too, so check for missing wheel weights. A shop can check the tire for out of round.

I have already checked all that and made sure the bolts were torqued down

Then it sounds more likely what @insightful is thinking , a problem with the suspension or steering components. You need to go to a shop at this point for a pro to take a look. If you want to fix it yourself, good for you, but let a pro tell you what’s wrong. Steering and suspension problems can be dangerous to you and other drivers on the road.

Why is your car named Manuel?

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I’m thinking manual transmission honda civic

Because other names, like Juan and Jose, had already been taken?
:smirk:

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This could also be a failed CV joint. One of the ball bearings could be damaged or even split in half. that could result in an intermittent symptom, where the ball bearning lined up ok for a while, then it didn’t for a while and makes a noise. If it jams inside the cage temporarily, it could cause the wheel to partially lock up, and cause the steering to seem to pull to one side. The counter to this is that when this happens it usually isn’t described as a “thump” Usually described as a “click”.

Ok would this help narrow it down if I said the steering wheel vibrates (wobbly kind of) pretty bad when I’m on the freeway? But the thumping always stays the same no matter what speed, also I can hear a small clinking when I turn the steering wheel. But the main noise that jerks the car slightly is a thump not a clicking noise. And if it is a cv joint or lower control arm how would I be able to check if it’s good or not?

First see if the front A-arm bushing is torn:

I checked it and it’s in good condition @insightful

I kinda have the same problem but I have a thump noise when I turn the car on… and when I give it gas, it sounds like something is hitting down under the car but I checked it and nothing is wrong… also the “thump” noise is bad when I turn and give it gas can anyone help and see what it could be? My car is a manual by the way

That could well be a CV joint problem @Josezemp . Outer CV joint failure is often associated with noises when accelerating from a stop while turning, like when turning at a stop sign. Usually it is described as “clicking”, but if the CV joint ball bearings have severely cracked or even broken in half, you could get thumping too. Thump noises are often caused by tire problems too, so check all the tires for signs of uneven or unusual tread wear, etc.

I have changed that and also did both cv axles and this problem is slowly getting worse, it does not do it on cold starts and only when car is warmed up. It is jerking when I keep the gas pedal stationary (to keep a steady speed) and stops jerking when a either give it some gas and accelerate or I step off the gas/ go into neutral. @insightful I need some help!

What you need is a good front end shop. It appears that you are just throwing parts at this. I did not see what year and mileage of this vehicle is so it may be at the end of it’s service period.

From way out in left field -
Broken/cracked engine mount?

2002 Honda Civic 180k miles, my mechanic said it is more like its choking

So there you go, an engine problem not a suspension or drive problem. Then maybe a bad mount or two.

Really almost impossible to diagnose over the air. Not to hijack but the wife came home yesterday saying she heard a loud bang from our RDX. Thought she had been run into but no one around. Nothing around. Didn’t know if back or front or left or right. Everything is normal. I even checked the spare to see if it had blown up. No problem, no leaks, nothing I can find. Maybe someone just shot at her or a duck or something. I know mechanics run across this every day and often end up the same way saying everything looks normal. My sympathy.

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