OK, I’m stumped. There, I said it. Therapy over. Now, here’s the problem: The car is a 2001 Mercedes S500 and it makes a ‘thump’ or ‘thrump’ noise when going over bumps where both front tires are NOT going over the same bump. It sounds like its coming from the wheel well, especially on the right front side. We’ve taken it to our favorite (and extremely dependable) shop that uses Mercedes-trained mechanics and they have dismantled, inspected, lit tapers, practiced voodoo and reassembled all pieces and parts without resolution. They didn’t charge us for this last round, but did say that everything looks good and the car is 100% safe. Ummmm, OK, but Mrs. Crankey and I aren’t sure we agree–at least until the noise has been diagnosed and repaired. Any thoughts, comments or questions are welcome.
Almost sounds like sway bar links, especialy as the two front wheels are opposing each other. To properly diagnose you must strap your mechanic under the vehicle whilst you drive gung-ho over those same bumps 