Creaking Noise 04" Aveo?

[Raleigh St. Clair]

So, my car has been looked at for what could be making this noise… it occurs generally at slow speeds when making hard turns/stops. It sounds like it is coming from the front right in the engine compartment, I was told by the shop that it appeared the strut tower was coming loose… but I've read on here that this might actually just be the design of the car? Are they missing the real problem here?

[avguy]

... I was told by the shop that it appeared the strut tower was coming loose…

Is there significant rust on the tower? That's the only reason I can think of why they would say 'coming loose'. If the tower is rusting, it would probably be a fairly expensive repair (if done properly), presuming you don't do that type of DIY welding. But if it's not rusting, ask them exactly what coming loose means.

[Raleigh St. Clair]

There was no mention of rust whatsoever, they simply said they watched the whole assembly move when they had it lifted and pulled on it.

[avguy]

There was no mention of rust whatsoever, they simply said they watched the whole assembly move when they had it lifted and pulled on it.

Ok, 'assembly' is quite a bit different than talking about the strut tower, which is an integral part of the body. It sounds likely the strut mount is worn, and is causing the movement they're seeing. Not uncommon at all for struts and mounts to need replacing at the age of your vehicle.

[pilothoward]

I could be the strut. I had mine replaced and it helped but I still suffered from a persistent creak and the occasional pop.
I found out that the ball joint and the lower control arm bushing on the passenger side were bad.
You can buy this as an assembly from a place like Rockauto. If you've got some experience, it's doable. On my car, the rear bolt from the control arm was frozen in the bearing and I had to cut it out with a recip saw. I also have a ball joint removal tool from Harbor Freight that really helped as well.
Let us know how it goes.