Would anyone be so kind as to give me a few ideas here?
I have a 96 Corolla with 165,000 miles on it that has developed some sort of front end problem. I had new brake pads and rotors put on last May and I've been caring for the car since.
A few days ago it seemed like the steering was getting "stiff." Power steering fluid is ok and I thought maybe it was my imagination. Late this week it snowed here in Colorado and my tires seemed to "drag" a little bit on stopping, I presumed it was clumped up ice and snow around the wheels or mud flaps, but now the snow has melted and I still get this sound just before I come to a complete stop, sort of creaking metal sound. When I say drag I mean a sound similar to is something was catching on a tire every rotation. I can tell it is coming from the front and not the back. The sound is not consistently there on every stop, probably every 4th or 5th. The car does not pull to any one side and I'm a little bit perplexed here.
I have been mulling over a set of struts as the car bounces pretty good over bumps, but it only becomes a problem when my wife is riding in the backseat. Ugh! =)
Can anyone give me a few ideas to narrow down my target list?
Thank you for time and help!
Zach