three.twoTL

97 3.2 TL 96k miles bone stock.

Like it says.... sitting still if I wiggle the steering wheel back and forth I have this looseness/clunking from side to side. a very small play. Until I got under the car and looked I swore it was worn out tie-rod ends b/c that's exactly what it feels like.

However after having a shop inspect them and I checked them myself (just visually) they don't seem to be the problem. It all looks tight, wheels move slightly with the slightest touch of the wheel... felt up where the steering rack comes down into the power steering assembly (I'm pretty clueless to steering components)... I can't for the life of me figure out what the problem area is. But regardless it won't stay perfectly aligned (drives 99% straight but murdering the inside of my front tires).

I want to sell the car but I won't be able to sleep at night if I dont fix this problem first. If ANYBODY has ANY idea's please help. Or if somebody has an idea but needs more specific info please ask. I don't know much about steering components or their make-up, therefor I dont know how to detail the explaination.

mean while, I'm going to continue searching...TIA

01tl4tl

You cant visually check for anything but damage.
It needs to be on the rack at an alignment shop for a proper inspection
Something is causing severe toe in or out condition- thats the wear pattern you described on the tires

Go90go

^ Also check to see if your upper ball joints are worn, or if your camber is out of whack due to blown shocks.

~Cheers~

three.twoTL

ok. When I bought the car I felt it and said something about the tie-rod ends (b/c of the way it felt to me). They took it to a little in-town shop, had it aligned and inspected the tie-rods and searched a little for the prodblem. The salesman (usually can't believe anything they say) said the mechanic told him it was somewhere in the dash. Is that even possible? Any components on the interior side of things that could be worn out?

I was just being my usual nieve / know-it-all self and thought he was full of crap. I didn't want anybody digging around in the dash creating a bunch of squeeks and rattles. Now I'm thinking I should be kicking myself b/c it my problem now.

I could understand bad balljoints to cause that clunking feel, but blown shocks? Thanks for the idea, I'll check the ball joints saturday when I can get back under the car. keep the idea's coming guys. Thanks

Go90go

Well, I suggested blown shocks for the tyre wear issue, and I know that shouldn't cause the clunking. There was an issue with 96s and I believe some 97s where the upper ball joints could separate and cause the suspension to collapse, so I still recommend checking those out. My friend's Maxima has the same problem as yours and clunks almost doing anything, including turning the wheels while parked, which started after he blew all four shocks. Just worth looking in to, IMO. Good luck.

~Cheers~

Sask32TL

Mine had a slight clunking noise when I turned the wheel, and if I drove off of a dropoff (like entering a pothole) I would hear the clunking again.

The shop said it was a stabilizer bar linkage. After they replaced it today, I took it over some bumps and it sounds fine now...

three.twoTL

I have been told it is most likely inner tie rod ends are worn. That they're not hard to change, just time consuming....we'll see.

three.twoTL

for future reference incase somebody searches for the same thing needing an answer... even though visually the outter tie rods looked alright, when they were taken loose it was obvious the outter tie rod ends were the cause of this clunking in my steering wheel, hence messing up the alignment and wearing my tires out. Thanks!

acitydweller

Contrary to post #2, the car does not need to be on a rack to diagnose the problem.

You can try putting it on a lift or even jack stands.

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

i have started to develop this same problem over the past few weeks... when i am at a complete stop, there is a little play in the steering wheel when i turn it until you feel the steering wheel "bite/click" into the wheels... so i will look into the tie rod ends about this...

i will look at the stabilizer bar links since i am also getting clunking when i go over some bumps or potholes...

how do i check if my shocks are blown??? i just replaced my rear ones last year but my mechanic said my fronts were still okay at the time...

it needs to get warmer faster dammit...

TexasHonda

A good shock test is to drive over a vertical drop of 2-3 inches. If tire slams down hard w/ impact, the shock is definitely sub-par. This is a pretty severe test, but a new set of shocks will pass this test, lowering the wheel slowly enough to prevent the "slam".

good luck

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

is the tie rod ends also called the radius rod? i am looking in the acura catalog...

TexasHonda

No, tie-rod end connects the power rack&pinion drive to the wheel knuckle. It causes the knuckle to rotate about strut to provide steering.

good luck.

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

what the hell is a radius rod then???

three.twoTL

why don't you make your own post about a radius rod instead of adding useless info to this thread.

That way you can help the search feature for somebody in the future.

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

well if this radius rod is the same as the tie rod, wouldn't it be better for future searches to be in one thread instead of two?