chances are if the boots are ripped, all the grease has come out already... it only takes a little while to get all or most of it out. When you are driving in a parking lot or something, make very sharp turns... turning the steering wheel till it stops... if you hear a popping or clunking noise from either of the front corners of the car, the shafts are shot... Try to notice which side the sound is comming from if its not both sides. My guess is that the shafts are shot though.


The grinding/squealing noise can be a number of things... you said you checked the brakes... what does that mean? Did you inspect ALL the pads (not just the outter pads, but the inners too), sometimes the slider bolts for the caliper get froze up so the caliper dosent move anymore, making the pads wear unevenly... if the inner pad is worn excessivly the wear indicator maybe starting to rub on the rotor. This is just a small piece attached to the brake pad that starts rubbing on the rotor when the pads need to be changed.

Also, check the brake shields... sometimes rocks may hit them and make them rub against the rotors... thats simple to fix, just bend the shield back.

You may have a broken brake pad...

check the wheel bearings... they can make all sorts of noises when they start to go bad... a good check for this is to grab the tire and force it side to side, as if you were trying to turn the steering... if the wheel has any play in it (other than the steering itself), the wheel bearing is bad.