i'm not sure if this is steering or suspension related.

when i'm at a dead stop and turning the wheel (eg. when parallel parking), i sometimes hear a faint "clunk" in the front. i try to make it repeat by doing full opposite locks but it fails to come back until the next time.it never happens when the car is moving. is this normal, or is there something wrong? it's a 2000 rx300 which we bought over 6 months ago so we don't know if this is normal or not.

 

If you were moving, I would say suspension and I would know of two places where there could be an issue. (Will photograph those spots today and put up on CL). At a dead stop, it could be that the part of the steering column in the engine bay needs some lubrication. I had that clunk you describe not too long ago, but we lubed it (since I was my engine and underside once a month) and no issues.

 

pics appreciated... and what type of lube as well please!

 

I will put the pics up before evening. As far as the lubricant, it was a generic grease that my uncle gets here in Mexico, and I remember it was not available either in Canada or U.S., but perhaps another CL member can chime in on this one.

 

Plain ol' High Temp Wheel bearing grease. Synthetic or Natural

You'll need to jack up the left front, jackstand the edge next to the jack and remove the left front wheel. .. Safety first.
Then you have access to the steering and suspension. With a flashlight, check for rust or shiny wear on the moving pivits of the lower A-arm, sway bar. Glance at the inner and outer boots on the drive shaft, looking for holes or cracks in the boot. Check the rubber at the spring bottom where it sits in the strut cup. Look for signs of rust where steel is rubbing against steel.
Shine the lamp up toward the firewall, behind the transmission and you'll see the steering shaft as it enters the top of the steering rack. There is a small U-joint at this point; smear a little grease on, in and around it with your fingers. Wipe off any excess grease with a throw away rag.. Look for any steering fluid leaks.
While in there, I spray a little rubber protectant on the rubber dust seal and the "bellows' on the steering shaft output of the rack, the axle driveshaft boots, along with any other rubber in the area. Use a small 1/2 inch sash brush to spread the protectant into the grooves, all around, collecting up the drips.
Lastly, glance at the brake pad and rotor wear while the wheel is off.

 

Here is the picture of the area where my uncle put some grease on the last time it made a clunk. It is that joint that is partially blocked by that hose coming across. There is another area below this that also should be greased, but when we turned the wheel this is where we heard something.

 

Another place I have had issues with is the bushing on this suspension arm (bushing is located right below where that yellow paint mark is and held by two bolts). I have had to replace the arm on each side due to my terrible driving (I take responsibilty) and terrible Mexican streets (pothole, speed bumps, etc.)

This will not only make a little clunk, it will affect the alignment and the steering wheel will jerk a bit.

 

The other place drove me nuts for a month with the sporadic clank and my uncle and I could never duplicate until one day someone at Hangar 1 (the shop that did my exhaust work) found the culprit. This rod just below the front shock had a loose bolt, so we tightened it and end of story.

 

thanks for taking the time to do this! i will try and tackle this hopefully soon (too damn cold outside right now... wishing i was in mexico)