the car is a 95' ford escort. i thought it might have been a cv joint or something with the drive axles. it is pretty loud at highway speeds. the faster you go, the louder and faster the thumping gets. i took it to a shop and the mechanic said it was a tie rod and some kind of wheel bearing. he said they couldnt fix it and it probably isnt safe to drive. could i lose a wheel, from a tie rod? does anyone know what could be wrong with the tie rod and what kind of bearing he was talking about?
2007-09-18 16:18:12 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
It is probably a tie rod end, or ends, and if he couldn't fix it, I take it you went too late in the day for him to get the parts. Don't drive until it is fixed if he says it is unsafe.
2007-09-18 16:38:23 · answer #1 · answered by Fred C 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the inner or outer tie rods have play in them then the wheel will have a tendency to fishtail while driving. this will be exaggerated if the alignment is out of spec too. If the wheel bearing has play you will experience a groaning or grinding or whining type noise that sounds like a jet plane is about to land on your car. This sometimes can be verified by quickly jerking the wheel in one direction while the noise is happening. If the noise goes away briefly then it may be the wheel bearing. A tire that has irregular wear on the tread will cause a thumping noise. You can verify a tire problem by roating the tires. If the noise has now changed then you've nailed it.
2007-09-18 23:33:09 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
He is talking about the wheel bearing, I am not sure why they said they couldnt fix it as they are not hard to change, just takes some time and patience.. the part he is referring to is here http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductList.aspx?PartType=184&PTSet=A
They can definetly cause your "thumping" noise and vibration.. they usually wont cause a life threatening issue but if it goes completely your wheel will break away and drop the side of the vehichle and in most cases will just lock up til its fixed, the wheel itself shouldnt go flying off the explorer, definetly worth the change tho to be safe
As for tie rods go to www.advanceauto.com or call any parts store near you and put in your info and look for "tie rod" it will ask for inner or outter, passenger or driverside and they are not expensive The tie rod you definetly want to change if its bad because if a tie rod snaps your wheel yanks hard to the right or left depending on side it broke..without the tierod the wheel has no stability to hold going straight so it just yanks and HARD. Itll put you into a ditch or oncoming traffic before you even knew what happened.. that one get changed asap
Hope this helps :)
2007-09-18 23:35:08 · answer #3 · answered by CitationOne 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had a problem with this once on my elantra. I have to get a brake job and a tire replaced and they could not get the tire off because of a lock on the tire and they broke it to get the tire off and then they "jerry(sp?) rigged it" and then gave me the car back as if nothing happened. As I was driving the car to work the night I got it back the steering wheel suddenly started turning completely around and around. The wheel barring and tie rod where stripped and snapped and my whole axel had to be replaced. I almost died that night.
I dont know if you have had any work done but this could be a possibility, it could have been done a long time ago. get it checked out.
2007-09-18 23:35:23 · answer #4 · answered by rxing 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sounds like a ball joint to me.it's not the wheel berring,that mechanic is not a very good one lift the front up and wigle the wheel and have a buddy see what part is sloppy,i don't understand why he cant fix that makes no sence,take and have a different mechanic look at it,prefferably a older person not some punk that doesn't want to do it.
2007-09-18 23:35:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Couldn't fix it...jeesse take it to a real mechanic...I had a noise that I located in the tie rod because in cars today they don't install grease fittings and the the tie rod was binding up very bad,, I could feel it in the steering and it made a slight knocking sound...first the mechanic said it was my power steeting oil ...geezes...I said put your hand on the tie rod and I''ll push up and down on the hood..." oh yeah, your right he says" duh...gotta watch'em today...so I had him install a new rod...WITH A GREASE ZERK.. check yours out,, I bet there's no grease zerks anywhere on yours too..
Yahoo can't translate my spelling..I wrote "steering" and it comes out "steeting" ..dame the whole world is full of jerks..
2007-09-18 23:31:39 · answer #6 · answered by xyz 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Calls hisself a mechanic that can't fix a problem, sounds like he's the type that checks the oil, doesn't put dipstick in all the way and says you need a quart of oil or it'll hurt the motor. Old trick, dumb, lazy sh*t. Take it else where. Even Midas.
2007-09-18 23:52:59 · answer #7 · answered by FORD-MAN 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I find it amusing that this so-called mechanic could be so sure about his diagnosis and his inability to do the repair. Let a proffessional front end shop do the troubleshooting. Good luck!
2007-09-22 23:03:19 · answer #8 · answered by jjohnny65 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A "MEKANIK" and he can't fix it ?? I would suggest you find a shop that does alignment and have them look at it. I would not wait it might be dangerous to drive.
2007-09-18 23:31:01 · answer #9 · answered by tronary 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋