My car seems to wobble side to side on the front , I can see this from looking down the bonnet when coming to a stop . I cannot feel much movement if any from grabbing the road wheels , but do get a strange noise when going over rough roads . I have allready changed front springs and shocks ,and anti roll bar bushes and drop links . Car has done 130,000 ish miles but never changed the wishbones , guess these dont last forever ? Or am I overlooking something ?
Car make added to subject header (as per the sticky request at the top of the page) to make question less vague.
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sounds like tyre tread out of line to me?
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Steve
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I tend to agree with Steve.o - check to make sure that your wheels and tyres are running true.
Number_Cruncher
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Ok guys thanks for the replies , just found out that my steering rack is leaking fluid from one of the rubber gators . Would this cause this problem , its under guarantee so will be done anyway .
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As its leaking fluid its letting in air which would cause pump to pulse so yes it would cause it,surprised you didnt feel it on steering wheel?
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Steve
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The steering feels awfull i must be honest , when going over uneven road the steering wobbles quite bad .Yes there is no play in the road wheels .
You know its the new style Vectra with an electric rack or something like that anyway .
What symtoms would happen when you say its letting in air , im a bit confused now .
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IIRC its an electric pump instead of mechanical pump driven by belt,this type guards against mechanical failure as it will carry on working from battery if engine dies.
Not certain of Vectra but guess it is the same system,problem would still apply whether mechanical pump or electric powered,But then I may be wrong?
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Steve
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what would be the symptoms of this problem ? what would it cause my steering to feel like ?
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>>what would be the symptoms of this problem ? what would it cause my steering to feel like ?
Vague with tendency for steering wheel to push against you on turns ie pulsing effect
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Steve
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IIRC its an electric pump instead of mechanical pump driven by belt,this type guards against mechanical failure as it will carry on working from battery if engine dies.
Engine dies - power steering dies, regardless of whether powered by the battery.
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>>Engine dies - power steering dies, regardless of whether powered by the battery.
I was wrongly under the impression it was a safety feature,ie if engine died power steering worked on battery power.
Not much point to it otherwise IMO
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Steve
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>>Not much point to it otherwise IMO
The point is economy. For a typical mechanical power steering pump always draws power from the engine, while the electrical system only draws engine power, via the alternator, when the system senses a demand.
This is a very similar argument to that which means that most modern cars have an electrical cooling fan, rather than driving a windmill off the water pump pulley.
Number_Cruncher
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NC that point crossed my mind as I posted,But it should be a safety factor on any car,not just to save fuel but power steering should be designed to work off battery if engine does die while driving.
I will not comment on this anymore as I dont know the car,and may be giving wrong info to OP,of which I have no wish to do
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Steve
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But its allways under high pressure internally I guess ? Would as my rack is leaking loose pressure and feel unstable ?
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I was wrongly under the impression it was a safety feature,ie if engine died power steering worked on battery power. Not much point to it otherwise IMO
Power steering doesn't work on my Vectra-C until the engine is running. I've also turned off the engine whilst still moving to elliminate a noise I once had. Once the engine was off, no P/S. It might be a different kettle of fish if the engine died while the ignition was still turned on, but the P/S on these cars draws one heck of a lot of power out of the battery. Enough to make the headlights and dash display momentarily dim down when the wheel is turned when the car is ticking over, so I imagine the cars electrics detects the alternator isn't working and shuts it down.
That aside, once the vehicle is moving, you need very little power assistance anyway. Remember, P/S is only a parking aid. At speed you don't need it as the wheels are turning which makes the steering lighter anyway.
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