starting in brief, 2 probs.
1:Front end wobbles BAD on pot holes
2:left rear clunk on potholes

More info
Motor on the 82 is still strong, BUT...
1: Front wobble's gotten worse to where it wobbles pretty bad on just getting blown funny by the wind. Calling out of work tomorrow to fix it if I can. This MUST be fixed before we drive it any distance again. Already have all front tie rod ends, gonna check up and down wobble tomorrow to see if I need to order bearings. replacing tie rods tomorrow and ordering idler arm(hopefully will arive before I work on Thurs.) Basically I'm going to replace all the outer portion of the steering system. Any other input on what I may need to order tomorrow for worst case scenario so I can have it ready by work on Thurs. Could Pitman arm cause this?
Also, if it helps, the wobble only stops if you brake hard to slow down or jerk the steering wheel one way or the other(makes me think tie rods and/or idler arm)

2: Rear end thunks in driver rear on decent bumps and right turns...checked the back/trunk for loose items and loose hatch shocks(like everyone else) and nothing. Bounced up and down on the drivers rear and it sounds like suspension(sounds like it's in the wheel well). Looking into it more tomorrow as well.
BIGGEST QUESTION, can the rear wait or would it be chancing catastrophic damage to wait until next week to fix on my days off?
I read that it may be watt's linkage bushings? I've done the searches and found a few possibilities, just trying to cover all the bases since I'm in a time crunch. We have 4 cars between the fiancee and I...the DSM is broken(as always) and the 2 RX-7's(hers and mine) are having issues that prevent them from being safe or running at all, leaving one car for 2 people.

I really appreciate any answers I can get on this. Thanks.

Sorry for any grammar...been a long day.

 

Polyurethane bushings are your friends for #1.

 

for time crunch reasons, which ones would I need and could I get them no later than Wed morn anywhere?

 

Yes, order from Mazdatrix.com. Not cheap, esp. if you have to order 2nd day air, but worth it IMHO.

http://www.mazdatrix.com/h6_79-85.htm

A, B, D, F.


I don't know if you can get them locally. Maybe.

 

So would you think it could be possible that pitman arm could cause the front end issue? I might replace the tie rods and idler arm to make it work for now then order the bushings for next weeks install days. You think that would work?

 

I'm leaning towards a problem with the front wheel bearings on the wobble problem. Then again the idler arm bushings may be shot. That is easy to check, from the engine bay try and lift up and down on the idler arm. There should be no up and down play.

Jerking the wheel one way or the other is changing the load of the wheel bearings so I would really look there for your first problem.
#2 has always been a mystery.
I would check the play of the rear hatch glass upper mounts. The ones that are at the top of the glass and generally hold the glass in place.

 

Idler arm doesn't budge...and just to make sure I'm not retarded...there's only one idler arm, right? Passenger side to the rear of the tie rod?

 

Maybe he has a bad ball joint?
And as for the thunk, first thing I'd do is physically examine all bushings including sway bar... I had a sway bar bushing go bad and it would always clunk if I hit something or turned just right from the bar going up and down too far. The only other thing I could think of is a badly seated spring?

 

I'm looking up info on ball joints now. Never had to change them before. Looks pretty easy to do, but how hard are they to find?

 

Ok, got some info on ball joints. Don't know if they need replacing but I'll take a look at them after the suns up. For now I'm going to sleep, but thank you to everyone who has helped so far.

I won't be asleep long, so PLEASE continue giving me your ideas. I'll be chacking back soon. Thanks again everyone, I appreciate the knowledge. The FB may be the Rotary that goes to Tail of The Dragon this year if we find too many more problems with the FC. So I might as well replace all the old parts since a lot of them may still be the originals(or at least very old).

 

I was thinking ball joint too. Check with www.rockauto.com for replacement parts, they are usually the cheapest source. If you haven't already ordered the idler arm, take a look at the Moog unit (much beefier).

The noise in the rear could be anything. Start by jacking the car up and rotating the wheels, jerk on them, see if anything feels loose. Then take a good look at all of the linkages back there. Check for slop in the ujoints too.

 

New thought on the 1st problem. Check the tension rod bushings.

Reread thread on 2nd problem.
Possible shock or shock bushing problem?

 

tension rod bushings? Hmm...Gotta look that one up. I got the idler arm ordered as well as the bushing for it and a pitman arm. Like I said earlier, idler arm feels solid, but I think I'm going to just go through and replace it all over the next month or so. Bout to go check the wheel bearings and replace the tie rod ends. I hope it's not the ball joint, I don't feel like going that far into it until I can just afford to replace ALL the steering system parts. That's the biggest reason we had waited until it was so bad, we were saving up to replace it all at once...almost have enough now, but don't have the time to order it all so looks like we'll be doing it piece at a time anyway

 

I would look into the struts also. I had a Bug that when I went over the RR tracks, the steering wheel shook so bad I could hardly hold on to it. Good stab of the brakes stopped it. Replaced the shocks, good as new, Since you have problems on 3 corners of the car, that's a consideration. Try the bounce test on all 4 corners.

 

i was gonna suggest ball joints and bushings up front for #1 and for #2 i was going to say possibly bad shocks/springs/bushings

 

Thanks for everyone that helped me out. Looks like we got the problem fixed. Tie rods seem to have been the culprit up front. Ball joints look they need replacing as well, but the shakes are gone for now. Just ordered the ball joints and I just got back from taking the FB for a test drive to the parts store where I picked up my Idler arm, idler arm bushings and pitman arm. No shakes the whole trip. She still floats a bit so the next step will be suspension all the way around.

As for the rear, simple, simple fix. Bolt on the strut came loose...like finger loose. I tightened it back down and checked the other side to be safe. Jacked the car up and inspected the U joint, watts linkage and all the bushings. Bushings look pretty ugly, but they're still holding pretty well.

In retrospect, next step is ball joints, followed by new motor and tranny mounts(which have been squeeking a bit) then full suspension including good bushings, watts linkage and shocks/struts. Any one have any advice on the best place to find all of the above? I will prolly go black dragon for anything I can't find aftermarket upgrades for. Looks like I'm off to start research on best for all of the above. Thanks again for all the replies and help.