[AnnieM74]

Rack and pinion

Hi everyone...

I am hoping for some advice...

Ever since Ive had the car it has made some noise, groaning when I make a tight turn like in a parking garage etc... lately it has also started making some popping noises when I make a tight turn... The noise is only occasional and to be honest the performance of the car is fine except for this noise... it happens rarely and so I havent brought it in to get checked out...

On Saturday I had the car at the dealership getting an oil change, when I picked it up the guy pulled me aside and said "why didnt you tell me about all the noise the car is making???" and I was like, OH, the steering, sure, it makes that noise since I had the car, but not all the time, so when I brought it in, I didnt even think of it... so he says "You need to bring the car back in, I think it is the power steering pump... since its not a safety issue, I couldnt call yu and ask you if you wanted me to check it, we arent allowed to make suggestions of warranty work unless you specifically ask about it..." so he tells me to bring the car in on Monday (yesterday) and act like he didnt say anything and that I was just bringing the car in on my own to report the noise so he wouldnt get in trouble... he says their policy is that they dont tell you about problems that are warranty covered unless the problem is a life and death kind of problem... oook...

SO... i take the car in yesterday, again he tells me he is sure its the pump so they will have the car for two days probably... so now I just get a call and he says... the pump is fine, everything looks fine, the fluid level is fine... the car is not making any noise... so he suggests a synthetic fluid flush at the cost of $130 to me...

I'm no mechanic but I feel like I'm getting shafted... can the groaning when turning be caused by something else? and the popping? Is it possible its a drive train issue or something? Im not car smart at all.. but the car IS under warranty (20,500 miles) and maybe they see something else but as he said before,they arent going to tell me unless I specifically ask...

Is there anything specific I should request that they look at?

Hi ya my car is doing the same thing yet again and this is the second time it is going in the shop, ask them to look at the rack and pinion..
Hope you get it fixed

 

[Sine]

same here ill let you guys know

 

[Lucius]

Not sure about the groaning sound, but I have a 2006 G6 GTP Coupe and it's making the popping noise; I can hear it and feel it in the steering when making a slow left or right turn. I attempted to research the problem myself (so I didn’t step into the same trap you fell into), and found that the tie-rod is not the problem; ask them to check your rack and pinion. The rack and pinion on the 06 G6’s is hydraulic; consequently, a little more expensive ($300-$500). From what I understand, after the rack and the pinion are both replaced, the popping will go away. I am soon to send my baby off to the dealer to get this fixed before the factory warranty runs out. Hope this helps; let us all know how it goes.

If you haven't taken it in yet it's most likely the intermediate shaft (I think that's what it's called). It's a common problem and I had mine replaced not too long ago, under warranty.

 

[Sine]

I got my car back from the dealer they didn't replace my shaft yet apparently the new updated shaft is not available yet. This is the paper work they gave me explaining the problem. I hope they have it available for me before my warranty expires im at 32000 damn...

Click the image and you'll be able to read the lettering...

 

[legalcat]

Hi everyone...

When I last updated.. the mechanic had diagnosed my car with a faulty "tie rod end" and immediately replaced it... told us to come get the car... when we went to get the car, the service manager said we basically couldnt have it, because the mechanic didnt have authorization to replace the tie rod end and that was NOT the cause of the problem. Note that the mechanic actually came out, heard the noise, drove the car while it was making the noise, and put it up on the lift immediately... It basically turned into a drama between the mechanic and the service managers.. they said he was always doing stuff without authorization etc etc and he was completely wrong and the tie rod end could not have been causing the noise (they were not there when i brought the car in while it was actively making the noise - they had previously been unable to re-create the noise)... anyway... long story short, I had rental for the time they had my car so I didnt really care I just thought the whle thing was VERY peculiar... they were trying to prove that their own mechanic didnt know what he was talking about... of course... they were unable to re-create the noise the whole time they had my car after it was "fixed"... they finally had to give the car back to me... it hasnt made the noise since... seems like the mechanic fixed it afterall... its been about 2 weeks now and i havent had a single noise or popping from the car at all, also the steering is more even, not looser turning one direction than the other as it had been... hmmm...

so far so good...

then the funny thing was... i realized that where the dash board meets the front windshield there is a rubber hose of some sort squished between and sticking up... as in, they took off the dash board and then when they put it back on the rubber piece (About 8 inches of it is sticking up) got stuck in the wrong position... its not really a hose it looks more like some insulation or something... so I'm not sure if they took the dash board off or... ??? So I'm going to take it by on Saturday and have them fix that.. .,it looks like i could just push it back down through with my fingers, but I didnt think that was the best way to resolve it...