Steering groan only turning right....

[TowX]

Been away from the forum a while racking up the miles on the X5 towing the 911 to tracks all over the midwest and northeast. I have to say that for an open trailer and car (4500 lbs) my 4.4 works extremely well.

Back in February my dealer replaced my front subframe because of a bad weld that was causing clicking noises at slow speeds when turning the wheel. Supposedly the weld was moving just enough to cause the noise. Subframe replaced, noise gone. But now whenever I turn the steering wheel to the right, it groans. My 7 yr old says it sounds like a cat meowing. Only to the right. Fine to the left. Shouldn't be the steering rack since that was replaced a month prior to the subframe and no noise then. (Rack and subframe replaced under warranty thank heavens.)

I've read the posts about the fluid additives, but they're all for groaning all the time. No leaking PS hoses, no loss of fluid. I'm stumped and the dealer says there's nothing wrong with the car. Any thoughts?

[mrbmwx5]

Check your lower control arm.

[TowX]

Originally Posted by mrbmwx5

Check your lower control arm.

Are you thinking it's loose, or the bushing is bad? Strut rods were replaced not too long ago but not the other bushings.

[Harley Monster]

Before you do anything CHECK YOUR POWER STEERING FLUID LEVEL again. I had the same NOISE and thankfully it was only low on fluid. I serviced it and have check it several times since; the level has not gone down again and no more noise. I could not find any leaks either.

I used a turkey baster and sucked as much of the old fluid out as I could, added new fluid, started the engine and cycled the wheel from lock to lock several times then repeated until the fluid in the reservoir was the same clarity and color of the new fluid...a poor man's flush. It solved my problem.

[Weasel]

One quick check to do is whether the noise happens when sitting in park with your foot off the brakes. I've seen people mistake the brakes groaning while turning sitting still as a problem.

If that is not the case, it could be the ball sockets of the lower control arms and/or thrust arm (at the spindle end) dry and creaking. If you suspect that, have someone turn the wheel back and forth for you so you can see what side it is on and maybe poke a tiny hole in the boot and spray a shot of penetrating lube in there (with the little red straw) as a quick diagnosing tool to see if it quiets up.

[TowX]

Originally Posted by Weasel

One quick check to do is whether the noise happens when sitting in park with your foot off the brakes. I've seen people mistake the brakes groaning while turning sitting still as a problem.

If that is not the case, it could be the ball sockets of the lower control arms and/or thrust arm (at the spindle end) dry and creaking. If you suspect that, have someone turn the wheel back and forth for you so you can see what side it is on and maybe poke a tiny hole in the boot and spray a shot of penetrating lube in there (with the little red straw) as a quick diagnosing tool to see if it quiets up.

Interesting thoughts, thanks. Definitely not brakes, happens all the time.... forward, reverse, on or off the brakes. Good thought about the control arms. Thrust arms are new a few months before the subframe, complete arms not just front bushings.

But the control arm bushings are a good thought since the problem started after replacing the subframe. Wonder if they screwed something up with the install. Wouldn't be the first time with this dealer.

[Weasel]

So the subframe was recently replaced... if the control arms were tightned at the bushing end while up in the air, unloaded, it could be the techs fault if the noise is from there. You could bring it back and have them get it on the alignment rack to turn the wheel back and forth on the turn plates while the tech or forman is under there looking. If it happens to be from the bushing end of the control arms and the bushings have a twist on the rubber it can be put on them. However if it is the more likely ball socket end it couldn't really be anything they did unless they tore the boot with a pickle fork.

[cn90]

Old post and old topic but common issue, if anyone has any bright answers, please advise.

2006 X5 M54 6spMT with 125K miles.
- Steering Noise (best described as a minor "belt squealing") only when:
1. COLD weather (today was -15C).
2. ONLY when turning RIGHT. When turning LEFT, no noise.

- All belts are new Conti.
- All pulleys are INA (I did a cooling overhaul using only quality parts).
- PS fluid is Pentosin, as prescribed by BMW doctors. Fluid level is good.

So, every year around this time with temp < -10C, I get a squealing noise ONLY when turning RIGHT. Not a big deal as I live with it for these rare occasions of extremely cold weather.

I can sit in the driveway stationary, radio off, I slight touch the steering wheel with one finger, and gently move it to the RIGHT (the actual tires do not need to move) ---> squealing noise.

I wonder what the root cause is? Since this is temp dependent, my theory is when it is too cold, the characteristic of the Pentosin fluid changes. But why only RIGHT turn, but not LEFT turn?

[Crowz]

Originally Posted by cn90

Old post and old topic but common issue, if anyone has any bright answers, please advise.

2006 X5 M54 6spMT with 125K miles.
- Steering Noise (best described as a minor "belt squealing") only when:
1. COLD weather (today was -15C).
2. ONLY when turning RIGHT. When turning LEFT, no noise.

- All belts are new Conti.
- All pulleys are INA (I did a cooling overhaul using only quality parts).
- PS fluid is Pentosin, as prescribed by BMW doctors. Fluid level is good.

So, every year around this time with temp < -10C, I get a squealing noise ONLY when turning RIGHT. Not a big deal as I live with it for these rare occasions of extremely cold weather.

I can sit in the driveway stationary, radio off, I slight touch the steering wheel with one finger, and gently move it to the RIGHT (the actual tires do not need to move) ---> squealing noise.

I wonder what the root cause is? Since this is temp dependent, my theory is when it is too cold, the characteristic of the Pentosin fluid changes. But why only RIGHT turn, but not LEFT turn?

I had this issue with my 323i and what was causing it was the steering rack was bent on that side. Basically it was binding up all the time but didn't cause any noises till the temperature dropped.

It did randomly seem to bind some when I was turning into my driveway at times too.

My theories as to why are as follows (changing the rack fixed all of this but this is why I figured it only showed up at certain times).

1. The pressure is much higher when the fluid is cold. The resistance with it binding coupled with either sitting still and or moving very slowly plus the thicker fluid (from the temperature) caused the belt to slip at the pump.

2. The binding only happened on the turning into the house and in parking lots because the bent section of the rack wasn't extended far enough normally to get to where it bound up against he bushing.

Again that's my guesses as to how it was playing out. Replacing the rack with a lifetime warranty one from rack doctor solved it.

[Crowz]

I just remembered another thing that has made racket based on temperature. The filter in the reservoir gets clogged over time and will cause racket when it restricts fluid going back to the pump. If it remains restricted long enough it actually damages the pump itself too.

There was an excellent article on one the sites showing what happens to the pump from the filter being clogged. I need to see if I can find it.