R50/53 Need Urgent Help With Steering Problem!?!
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Neutral
Joined: Jun 2016
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Need Urgent Help With Steering Problem!?!
My fiance's 2006 Mini with 90,000 miles on it began making a growling sound from the right (passenger) front side when steering either direction at low speeds. It sounds like it is coming from the strut tower and sounds like rubber on rubber. I lubed everything up and the sound reduced but is still there. Today her power steering went out. She cut the car off and then turned it back on the steering was fine afterwards.
I jacked up both front tires and tried to wiggle both to check for wheel bearings and did not find any issues. I turned the key enough to unlock the steering wheel and can still hear the noise when moving the steering wheel so it is not dependent on the vehicle being turned on. The power steering fluid is full. The sway bar drop end on the right front side was completely shot so I replaced that a few days ago before lubing everything up. There is no change in acceleration and the sound is not present when driving in a straight line. The ABS light also comes on intermittently.
Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
I jacked up both front tires and tried to wiggle both to check for wheel bearings and did not find any issues. I turned the key enough to unlock the steering wheel and can still hear the noise when moving the steering wheel so it is not dependent on the vehicle being turned on. The power steering fluid is full. The sway bar drop end on the right front side was completely shot so I replaced that a few days ago before lubing everything up. There is no change in acceleration and the sound is not present when driving in a straight line. The ABS light also comes on intermittently.
Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
5th Gear
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 938
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Just guessing off your description, I'd bet the rubber on rubber sound is the steering rack bushing, which is a $25 part that takes hours to get to. It could also be the strut mount bushing going.
I think the growling sound and the ABS light mean you have a wheel bearing that's gone bad. It's hard to feel any play when these go bad, but they make noise and the ABS light and sometimes the traction control light and the TPMS light will come on (it's often called the trifecta) Some code readers can tell you which side it is, but I'd buy one and swap out whatever side you think it is, if that doesn't solve it, put the new bearing on the other side, and put the old bearing back on.
I'd check your power steering fan and see if it spins freely, sometimes they get gunked up, if it doesn't spin, I'd replace it and hope that fixes it. If it does spin, I'd replace the power steering pump (and probably the fan too for good measure) The pumps are $700 and the fans are $100 but it's a pretty simple job.
I think the growling sound and the ABS light mean you have a wheel bearing that's gone bad. It's hard to feel any play when these go bad, but they make noise and the ABS light and sometimes the traction control light and the TPMS light will come on (it's often called the trifecta) Some code readers can tell you which side it is, but I'd buy one and swap out whatever side you think it is, if that doesn't solve it, put the new bearing on the other side, and put the old bearing back on.
I'd check your power steering fan and see if it spins freely, sometimes they get gunked up, if it doesn't spin, I'd replace it and hope that fixes it. If it does spin, I'd replace the power steering pump (and probably the fan too for good measure) The pumps are $700 and the fans are $100 but it's a pretty simple job.
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