Disturbing sound when turning

[rdeyoung]

Hey guys,

About 2 months ago I heard a disturbing sound when making tight right turns which can only be described as a loud winding sound - sort of like if your power steering is bad when you turn left or right consistently. But this is inconsistent. It only happens on right turns that are tight - if I hit the gas while its making the sound it gets worse. At first the occurrence was rare but now I'm noticing it becoming more frequent and I'm starting to become concerned. It scares the poo out of me when it happens.

I took it in about a week or so after I heard the noise the first time to a reputable BMW service shop in town here in Glendale, ca for an oil change and mentioned my issue. They checked out the hoses and the steering pump and said that they don't see anything unusually and everything checked out ok except for some minor leakage in the hoses...

It's been about 2 months since then and I'm still having the issue. Any thoughts as to why this might be happening?

Thanks!

[upallnight]

Have you check the fluid level in the power steering reservior?

[rdeyoung]

I have not checked the fluid level since - I will check it out this afternoon!

[e30mpower]

Check CV boots and axles. Torn CV boot + noise = time for new axle.

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by rdeyoung

I took it in about a week or so after I heard the noise the first time to a reputable BMW service shop in town here in Glendale, ca for an oil change and mentioned my issue. They checked out the hoses and the steering pump and said that they don't see anything unusually and everything checked out ok except for some minor leakage in the hoses...

Thanks!

minor leakage in the hoses = PS fluid low and causing whining sound???

After topping it off (make sure you don't overfill, there is a definitive MIN and MAX on the PS reservoir dipstick, if you have leaking hoses you might want to replace those, shouldn't bee too hard to replace the hoses and reservoir.

[TerminatorX5]

Originally Posted by e30mpower

Check CV boots and axles. Torn CV boot + noise = time for new axle.

[rdeyoung]

Yes! One of the CV boots is torn badly (the other one is fine). I cant remember if it is the right or the left - but the mechanic pointed it out to me and mentioned that its easier to replace the whole axle instead of repairing the boot

How much should a new axle job generally run? I think he quoted me close to $1K for an OE (not bmw brand) axle.

Would that be whats causing all this noise? Last night was the worst, it started going crazy! It happens only when I turn right sharply and this time it was going berserk even standing still.


Thanks again guys!

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by rdeyoung

Yes! One of the CV boots is torn badly (the other one is fine). I cant remember if it is the right or the left - but the mechanic pointed it out to me and mentioned that its easier to replace the whole axle instead of repairing the boot

How much should a new axle job generally run? I think he quoted me close to $1K for an OE (not bmw brand) axle.

Would that be whats causing all this noise? Last night was the worst, it started going crazy! It happens only when I turn right sharply and this time it was going berserk even standing still.


Thanks again guys!

yes, if the axle boot is torn badly and you have been driving with it, better to replace the joint/axle instead of just the boot, the existing outer joint is most likely already damaged somewhat!

You have 3 options (or more) for replacement, in my opinion:
1) Keep existing axle, buy new outer CV joint ($179 from BMW) and OEM GKN Loebro boot kit ($15), replace outer joint and boot on axle (approx. $200 plus labor)

2) Replace axle with aftermarket axle readily available at Napa/RockAuto, Cardone Select comes up a lot on these forums, and I don't know how they do this but they sell completely new Chinese made axles for under $50 PER SIDE, if you replace the side with a Cardone one, I'd recommend doing both so both sides are "fresh"

3) If it were my car, and I had a leaking boot already which meant axle replacement, I would get a replacement axle from Raxles (www.raxles.com) they manufacture racing and OE replacement axles using OE cores and brand NEW inner and outer joints, boots, clips, etc, and extremely high quality grease. I had both replaced with Raxles on my VW, phenomenal quality. They run about $250 per side for our X5's with no core charge (though you still have to send back a core I believe). You can also get OEM GKN Loebro axles for just under $300 per side as well.

[e30mpower]

And this is why I check my CV boots monthly. Already had to replace 2 axles. It ain't cheap.