Pontiac Repair: Brearing plated, bearing plates, annoyance

Question
What is a bearing plates and can are the damages it can do to a vehicule if not changed?

Answer
Bearing plates are the top part of your struts and what allow the assembly to rotate so you can steer. If these go bad they will tend to make banging noises as you go over bumps and can bind up making steering difficult. There really isn't a way for them to cause damage but a lot of annoyance and if they bind in a turn possibly cause an accident.