Why is there a knock when turning the steering wheel to the right, to the left?

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

At the first stage of owning a personal vehicle, the owner focuses mainly on the traffic situation. Over time, comes the understanding of certain features of your car. It becomes possible to self-diagnose car breakdowns (there was a knock when turning the steering wheel, for example).

Self-diagnosis: easy to master

This does not come immediately, of course, but with the acquisition of experience, a person with a minimal inclination to technology may well determine a number of regular breakdowns of his car. To some extent, the skill of self-diagnosis is also due to the high cost of maintenance, and sometimes the incompetence of specialized personnel at the service station.

Typically, the ability to correctly identify car breakdowns will come in handy in any case, regardless of the chosen auto brand. First of all, the undercarriage of the car suffers - most often due to bad roads. We will try to understand the reasons for the rapid wear of the undercarriage of today's popular brands. We describe the possible options for their breakdowns,we will learn how to diagnose by symptoms (knock in the steering wheel when turning, for example), and also consider options for quick current repair and prevention of our “iron horses”.

Domestic doesn't mean bad

It's no secret that today the most popular cars are the so-called consumer class. A fairly large segment of sales in this sector is occupied by the domestic auto industry. As a rule, a consumer who has bought such a car is guided by the manufacturer's affordable pricing policy with a quality that has increased almost to world standards. And that's why we see brand new Ladas on our streets more and more, in which we don't even recognize the features familiar from childhood.

The new "Grands", "Priors" and "Kalinas" embody almost all modern innovations available for cars of such a modest class. However, are they reliable? The latest generation of VAZs, the famous "eights", "nines" and "tens" quite often lost even old-style foreign cars in reliability and adaptability to our roads. They were still bought because of the modest price, but still they were considered more as a temporary component of their lives, hoping to transfer to more comfortable and reliable cars of Western or Asian production in the near future.

As already noted, most often in modern road realities, the running gear of the car fails. Is it reliable in modern VAZs? The answer is unequivocal: yes. Engineers and designers have tried to make life easier for the modern driver.

Repair is businessexpensive

However, the use of innovation and increased reliability have a downside. Modern mechanisms are much more difficult to repair (and we are talking not only about technology, but also about money). And although the repair of the "running" VAZ, of course, cannot be compared with the repair of a similar Western product, but there is no trace of the former cheapness.

Based on this sad fact, the financial risks of a modern driver who has chosen a product of a domestic manufacturer or an imported car vary markedly. Consequently, the value of self-diagnosis of car malfunctions has increased significantly, at least as common as knocking in the steering wheel when turning.

Knocking in the steering wheel - what to do?

Believe me, if you clearly define what exactly is wrong in your car, you will spend much less money on service stations. The reason is simple: you won't have to pay for something that you don't need (but that they may try to impose on the service station).

So, consider the situation. You went to the sea (to the mountains, out of town - it doesn’t matter) and heard a knock when turning the steering wheel (“Priora” is your relatively new!) Do not rush to immediately go to the service. Try to figure out the problem yourself. The set of regular and non-standard situations for such breakdowns is rather limited.

Let's consider the main options. The most frequent critical situations are related to the steering mechanism. The first thing to determine is the nature of the knock. It comes in "plastic" and "metal".

Plastic protection loosened

If with a sharpturning the steering wheel, the knock is similar to the friction of plastic, almost 100% with the car everything is fine. As a rule, such sounds are made by ill-fitting wing protection. When turning the front wheels, very often we touch and slightly deform the plastic locker. It is he who makes such unpleasant, but rather harmless sounds.

But don't ignore it completely. The fact is that the plastic protection is attached directly to the “skirt” of the front bumper. And if it is completely deformed, it is possible that one day at the next turn you will simply tear it out (and damage the bumper in the process). Therefore, it is better not to hope for "maybe", but to adjust the protection.

When parts need to be replaced

The situation is much more serious if the knock when turning the steering wheel is more like a metallic crack or rattle. This means that in the near future you will have significant financial expenses. And in order to reduce them, you need to figure out the reasons yourself.

When there is a "gurgling" knock when turning the steering wheel, the simplest explanation for this is wear on the tie rod ends. Quite an unpleasant phenomenon that requires attention. After all, if the wear process continues, the entire steering mechanism may fail, and as a result, expensive repairs, and maybe even an emergency on the road. Repair is not very expensive, although the tips are usually changed in pairs - on both sides of the car. The main difficulty lies in the subsequent work on the wheel alignment.

Another fairly commonthe problem when a knock appears when the steering wheel is turned (“Kalina” or “Priora” are subject to this “sore”) is associated with wear of the bearing of the upper support of the shock absorber strut. The disease is unpleasant, but quite easily eliminated. The bearing itself is not very expensive, and the work to replace it will not take much time.

From broken spring to shock replacement

Quite an unpleasant knock when turning the steering wheel burst springs. The repair is associated with the dismantling of the front struts and, as a result, the possible replacement of the same bearing of the upper support. It should be noted that in the event of an incorrect diagnosis or another reason why you cannot carry out this repair, the consequences for you will be very serious. A broken spring will not be able to take on that part of the load that it experiences during the vertical buildup of the car. In this regard, there is an additional impact on the shock absorber strut, which can lead to breakage. But this is a full-fledged repair of the front suspension of your car. It is not difficult to calculate the financial losses in this case. You will have to buy not only new springs, but also new shock absorbers, which in most cases are changed in pairs.

If the knock when turning the steering wheel to the right or left is also accompanied by a rumble, this is a direct consequence of the failure of the front wheel hub bearing. Sadly. The complexity of the repair lies in pressing the old bearing out of the hub (a very long and expensive operation). Such a breakdown can be "lethal" for all front andall-wheel drive cars. In the event of complete wear of the hub bearing, the destruction of the front suspension is possible and - God forbid, of course! - emergency on the road.

How to diagnose CV joint wear

Let's move on to the main and most serious noise that you can hear: a knock when turning the steering wheel ("Kalina" or "Priora" - it doesn't matter) in one direction or another. A metallic crackling sound when the steering wheel is fully turned indicates a failure of the CV joint or, as it is also called by the people, “grenades”. When a crack is heard both on the right and on the left, this means that both of your "grenades" must be replaced. If, when turning the steering wheel to the left, a knock is heard from the same side, you know exactly which part is worn more.

The situation with the failure of CV joints, as a rule, is associated with damage to the rubber boot that protects the metal case of this mechanism. Even a small tear can result in the replacement of one of the most expensive components in your machine's undercarriage. Therefore, once a month it is better to check the anthers of both "grenades" for damage.

Monthly noise prevention

Noises and cods on VAZs can occur due to the loosening of numerous threaded connections. These are easily diagnosed moments and just as easily eliminated. The main thing is not to panic, but to call on a good lift or "pit" in the garage. Then, armed with a wrench of the right size, simply tighten all the loose and knocking connections, including the wheels of your car.

Foreign brand does not guaranteeno breakdowns

The situations described above are typical not only for Russian cars. In principle, an expensive foreign car is not immune from this either. The whole question is how often this will happen.

As already noted, the quality of cars produced in Russia has improved significantly. This applies to both truly Russian VAZs and cars produced under our license. The percentage of factory defects is significantly reduced: a knock when turning the steering wheel (“Logan”, for example, is assembled in Russia) will not appear immediately. And it is quite possible to avoid such situations. Experts advise to undergo the necessary diagnostics at specialized service stations once every six months, avoiding the notorious “knocks and crackles” in the chassis.

In addition, given the not always high-quality road surface, it is necessary to observe the speed limit and take security measures when crossing difficult or simply bad sections. If these simple recommendations are followed, your car will serve you for many years without any breakdowns, and the funds not spent on car repairs can be used for something else.