Wheels turning the steering wheel

[DiscoStu]

99 Legacy OBW 150K+ miles. I've noticed lately that imperfections in the road are causing my steering wheel to move at all speeds. Even very small bumps in the road at very slow speeds, like when coming to a stop at a light.

And at high speeds like on the highway. Is this normal? What would cause this?

 

Thanks.

[subie94]

are you hearing any noise when this happens? like cruching,poping,etc.

 

can you easily keep steering wheel still or do you have to fit it a little?

 

i had a 86 gl wagon with bad outer cv joint and when joint would pop(after centering wheels from turn),it'd violently cause steering wheel to move...

[DiscoStu]

Not hearing noise when it happens. I do hear some clunking when going over large potholes or bumps. I don't have to fight to steer. I do seem to have to correct a lot.

[GeneralDisorder]

Check your tie rod ends and ball joints for play. The clunking when going over bumps indicates possibly your ball joints are going out.

 

GD

[Suzam]

I'd check the entire front end including tires and if all components seem ok then I'd suspect you need an alignment.

[porcupine73]

Yes the steering gear, tie rod ends, etc should be checked for looseness. Clunking over bumps esp in turns without looseness can also be an inherent thing on certain soobs; there's some articles on endwrench about different power steering hoses that can help dampen it. Outer:

 

Here's an image you might use as an avatar? hehe

[DiscoStu]

Thanks for the Avatar! And thanks for the photo of the tie rod ends. Should I be able to feel for looseness with my bare hands with the car on the ground? How would I check for bad ball joints? Thanks.

[porcupine73]

Yes if the outer tie rod end is loose you should be able to feel the play by shaking it right where the jam/lock nut is, which is where the tie rod threads into the outer tie rod end. There is an inner end too that can get loose.

 

For ball joints I think you get the wheel off the ground, then use a long pry bar to lift under the transverse link and watch the balljoint for any up-down freeplay.

[forester2002s]

I would suspect front alignment.

 

My experience with all sorts of cars, is that the normal slight toe-in keeps the steering very stable.

 

And as the toe-in disappears to zero (=parallel front tires), that the steering becomes unstable.

 

And if things get worse to a negative toe-in (=positive toe-out), then the steering is downright horrible!

[mwatt]

99 Legacy OBW 150K+ miles. I've noticed lately that imperfections in the road are causing my steering wheel to move at all speeds. Even very small bumps in the road at very slow speeds, like when coming to a stop at a light.

And at high speeds like on the highway. Is this normal? What would cause this?

 

Thanks.

 

Rotate the tires first and see if there's any difference. I had a God-awful problem with my '99 Legacy GT doing that. At low speeds (up to about 50 mph) any imperfection in the road would cause the steering wheel to tug back and forth---the road was "steering the car". The two-year old Michelin Pilot tires that I purchased at Costco were extremely noisy (roaring sound). I put the car up on a lift and carefully inspected ball joints and tie rods myself---there was no play in any front end component. I took the car back to Costco .They replaced the Michelin Pilot tires with Michelin Primacy's, absorbing most of the cost as a "goodwill" adjustment. Not only is the car extremely quiet now, but it goes dead straight over any road imperfections.

[porcupine73]

Also are you lifting your hand off the steering wheel to see these movements?

 

[The Dude]

99 Legacy OBW 150K+ miles. I've noticed lately that imperfections in the road are causing my steering wheel to move at all speeds. Even very small bumps in the road at very slow speeds, like when coming to a stop at a light.

And at high speeds like on the highway. Is this normal? What would cause this?

 

Thanks.

 

Go ahead and have the alignment checked. But I had to replace the ball joints on my Forester at 150,000 miles. Since I don't live in the rust belt, I found replacing the ball joints to be a fairly easy DIY repair.

[DiscoStu]

The steering wheel moves if I lift my hands off. I can also feel it move when I don't.

 

As for the tires, I have Kelly Navigator Gold from Belle Tire. Anyone had any bad experience with these?

 

How big of a job is it to replace your own ball joints? Could I do it with a set of socket wrenches and a floor jack? How much should it cost from a reputable mechanic? How much from the Dealer? I'm guessing I would need an alignment after that anyway right?