unknown problem.. under the front driver wheel

[kak]

There is something banging/rattling behind my front driverside wheel. It knocked the wheel around enough to make 3 of the lugs go 3/4 the way off and the 4th is gone. I figured the noise was just the wheel wobbling around, so I tightened the lugs up and put a new one on, but the noise is still there [i guess the wheel about falling off was just a biproduct].

As far as the symptons go, it sounds like something is knocking the floorboard or the general area, I can feel the vibration (someone riding with me felt it from the passenger side too). It makes a very loud noise, you can hear it over the radio. When I'm accelerating/braking, it stops. Thats the only thing I don't understand.

I went to take my wheel off again and swap it out with another to see if the tire was just severely off-balance, but now the lugs won't even move. Its like they're stuck onto the studs.

Any ideas?

[kak]

sound clip is at http://www.intuitivefx.com/~kyle/cars/funnysound

[danronian]

Might be a bent half-shaft, that happened to my friend's escort somehow and she had this strange banging.

['89AccordLX(Rus)]

Look at suspension bushings, particularly the strut fork bushing. Inspect your ball joint. Try to pry the lower arm and knuckle apart. They shouldn't move apart. Look at your CV joints. Any tears in the boot can cause pretty quick deterioration of the CV joint and in turn cause vibration, noise, and even more catastrophic results. The tie rod end should also be inspected for damage. Finally, with the car in neutral, rotate the rotor/hub and feel for any roughness. With the wheel back on, try to move it in and out of the hub. Rock it both vertically and horizontally. Any play indicates worn suspension components. Hope this helps.

[kak]

If I only had an air gun.

All 4 lugs somehow kicked sideways on the studs and stripped them out, letting the wheel rock sideways a little. When I would try to tighten them, they'd feel tight. I knew something was wrong when I tried to take them off and they refused. The holes in the wheel (where the studs slide in) were wore out a bit for rocking. I didn't even drive it that much, just coming back from class.

Thanks for the help guys. Luckily, it wasn't any of those..this time.

['89AccordLX(Rus)]

The front wheel studs are a pain to replace yourself, and expensive if you have a shop do it for you. Glad it wasn't anything serious though.