99 Solara V6 problem

[bronzemaxell]

my brother hauled some dirt and mulch with trailer to the backyard, and scrap the bottom of the car, so far i noticed the exhaust pipe heat shield at gas tank torn off, the heat shield is touching the exhaust pipe, but it has been rusted very bad, it is just a matter of time this thing will fall off anyway, i went under the car and got that problem fixed

now, another problem
while i was driving on highway at speed around 60 to 70mph, making slight right turn along the curvy highway, i felt some vibration from the car during the whole time, what i meant is while steering wheel not centered, i pull the steering wheel to right and hold it still to finish the turn, not sure where it came from, it feels like bumpy, with a little bit of grinding noise, like axle bearing/spindle going bad, or tire out of round, or feels like running over some uneven road(the road looks even), not a real violent shake though.

but doesn't happen if driving straight, or slight LEFT turn at curvy highway at any speed
and when i am off the exit ramp, going around 30 to 40mph while making RIGHT turn, it doesn't happen either.

it does happen when i am driving on straight highway, and I purposely pull the steering wheel to right a little bit and while the car turn right a little bit with centripetal force, but once the car is going straight, it stopped.

if there is a problem with bearing, i would imagine it will happen all time, not only at 60 to 70mph and right circle turn.

i called my mechanic friend, he suggest something with the suspension, maybe the ball joint or upper control arm problem.

has anyone seen this problem?

[Mister_Perkins]

Could be an axle going bad too, when the tires are turned the CV-Joints are at an angle in the sockets of the axle. If the joints are worn, it could cause a vibration while turning.

Jack the front end up and check everything. Grab the tire, make sure the wheel is tight left, right, up, down, Pry against the ball joint and control arm, feeling for any popping noise or feeling, grab the axle and check for up and down play, grab the tie-rods and check for in and out play on the inner tie-rod and up and down play on the outer. Make sure the input shafts on the transmission are tight, grab the axle stub (Input shaft with rubber boot) and push up and pull down right next to the transmission and see if the axle moves up or down. If it does, the differential bearings could be wearing out. Check the condition of the rubber bushings on the lower control arm. (Generally if the lower control arm bushings are bad, you may feel a clunk while stopping.. so this may not be your problem)

Theres a lot of stuff that can cause a vibration on a turn. Just make sure to check everything out thoroughly, and I'm sure you'll find what the problem is.

Good luck, and keep us posted

Edit
Also, if everything is good .. I would suggest to get the tires checked out for bends on the rims and out-of-round on the tire. An Out-of-round tire will cause all kinds of vibration. Sometimes at Varying Speeds.

[bronzemaxell]

ok, i jacked up the car and checked all wheel for freeplay, i found driver side front wheel has a little freeplay at 3 and 9 oclock position, and i can hear a small click noise like metal touching metal, 12 and 6 oclock no movement, no noise
i held the driver side outer tie rod, and have my brother did the 3 and 9 oclock test, and freeplay, click noise still exist

8 years ago, i did have free play on driver side rear wheel, also at 3 and 9 oclock, found rear control arm # 2 bushing worn, (the one for alignment) i did replaced, and still now, no more problem, no freeplay.

[bronzemaxell]

i also found visible wet spots on the steering rack. directly under the steering wheel area, not sure if that is realated, the freeplay on steering wheel doesn't feel excessive.

[Mister_Perkins]

nah, its more than likely not related.
I bet that the noise your hearing may be the Steering wheel turning slightly. (Possibly).

It sounds like the alignment is Ok.. I would now take it to a tire test and have them run a road force test

[bronzemaxell]

my driver side front tire is known to run low on air after 1 or 2 months, if i pump it to 32 psi, after 4 to 8 week, it will be around 25 or 26psi, i did pumped it to 38 to 40psi, and put it in water, let it submerge for a few minutes so the water is calm down, could not find the leak, must be a very slow leak. the tire age is about 3 years old already, my guesss about 20 to 30k miles on it.

what would cause small loose freeplay at 3 and 9 o'clock position on driver front wheel?
the click is distinct, definitely not from steering wheel turning

if i push harder, then i hear louder clicks from the steering rack. on both driver and passenger side like you mentioned.

[fenixus]

it could be a wheel bearing. though I have yet to see one causing free play when shake testing wheels at 3-9 or 12-6 positions. people say they can do that (free play), but it could be also the tie rod being loose I think.