Mountainbike poses an interesting point that I had not thought of.
That brings to mind a couple of questions for the OP, namely–
Are you the first owner of this car?
Are you aware of it ever having been in a front-end collision?
This could be a case of a car that was badly-repaired/not repaired after a collision.
Without details about the column I can’t fault the dealer but I can fault a mechanic who would brush off a front end noise and say not to worry.
The odds of a tie rod breaking are almost non-existent but can cause noise (even through the column), erratic steering, and premature tire wear.
A worn tie rod end can certainly break and have the same symptoms as tie rods so that is a concern.
I’ve found tie rods and tie rod ends to be a very common problem with any make of car. Much has to do with the road surfaces and environment.
Recently, I had to replace both tie rod ends on one of my daughter’s car after only 20k or so miles accrued from the last replacement. The roads are beating them to death and those ends were also MOOGs; not that it makes much difference because the worn ones were also MOOGs and the original ends were TRW. TRW and MOOG are one and the same other than the box and an occasional stamped logo.
If certain settings on the alignment are off enough, it can result in a delayed steering response. For example, too much toe in.
My reaction agrees with Caddyman. Why should you be stuck in this trap? Get more opinions. Three estimates are always a good rule to use for any auto or home repair job. In this situation, you might need four or five.
Can you describe the noise and when you can hear it? Can the loose steering column be tightened or is “loose steering column” a bad choice of words?
Why don’t you just get the car fixed?
I took it into a third shop today, and told them I wanted the tie rods replaced and the alignment done. They found that only the right tie rod was bad, and the alignment took care of the steering problem. Drove the car home, nice and quiet and the steering column nice and centered.
This makes the dealership wrong on two counts, including the expensive steering column replacement. And the independent guy flunked, too, because the tie rod needed to be replaced, not just a noise. (He’s told me “it’s just a noise” on three of the four things I have brought to him.)
I like this third guy. Also an independent. Car was all washed and cleaned up, too. I’ll stick with him for a while. Maybe he’s my car man.
Thanks for all the feedback. Saved me $900.
Excellent. Glad to hear. Double score - problem fixed and a new mechanic. Thank you for reporting back. Many people don’t so we are all just left to wonder. Your time is appreciated.
I’m claiming the tip-in on this one.
I too like this third guy. Instead of just changing what you told him to, he actually checked and did what was needed to fix the problem.
Tip for the future, unless you have a specific reason, you should always tell the shop the symptoms, and additional information you know of, and let them do the diagnosis and repair. We gat numberous posts here of people who told the shop what to change and then were unhappy the car wasn’t properly fixed. It’s one of the most common mistakes people make.