thanks, jfujimoto. I am just trying to figure what the possibilities are, and what can be totally ruled out as a cause of the thud/rattle. As I said earlier, I showed it to a tech, and he wanted to replace EVERYTHING in the front end. That doesn't make sense. Its like not understanding the problem and changing everything, so that most probably the problem will go away.

Swaybar bushing are one thing that can cause the thud.

Can a worn ball joint cause this kind of thud without any other symptoms?

Can a worn control arm bushing cause this?

Can a worn strut mount cause this?

If the answer is yes, yes, yes, then that puts these three also as possible suspects.

I just trust the opinions of many on this forum more than many of the techs out there - I guess only the good ones show up here.