My steering wheel moans and groans when I turn at all, and it’s getting so hard to turn that it can almost out-muscle me. I’ve been told I need a new ps pump, but other opinions are that some Ford’s just do that. Now, the steering wheel is beginning to shake when I go over the slightest bump. The whumpety-whump feeling comes up through the seat, so I’m wondering if it’s the ps, the strut bearings, or something else. (The tires are ok.)I would appreciate opinions about this before I decide whether to spend any more money on the car. Thanks for the feedback.
It could be several things, but something needs to be done soon, they can be a safety issue.
We can’t see it from here, you need someone with experience to take a look at it to determine what the real problem(s) is.
I’m leaning towards a worn out steering rack. When the internal valves begin to leak, you can have all kinds or weird and dangerous things happen. I remember a problem with worn out racks in Chrysler Minivans were actually causing the wheels to turn on their own.
Personally, with the age of this car, I’d replace the pump and rack together, since they work as a unit. I’ve scanned some sites, and www.partstrain.com lists the pump for $40 to $120 and a rack from $75 to $150, depending on the VIN code. Apparently, they used a few different systems, and the VIN is the best way to determine the correct one.
First thing is - have you checked the tire pressure?