Hello all, I am new here. Here is the issue with my car. It’s a 1995 Honda Accord sedan, automatic transmission, inline 4. For the past 6 years or so, when you take a turn at a certain angle and a certain amount of acceleration and a certain amount of speed, it’ll make something like a rhythmic grinding sound until you straighten the wheel and escape the turn. It happens far more often on left turns than right turns.
Adding to the oddity, say you are getting ready to take a left turn. Now if you are at a turn where the angle, acceleration and speed necessary to make the sound – the sound can be completely avoided if you accelerate straight, let go of the accelerator, then use the momentum to turn, let the wheel straighten out to complete the turn, then begin to accelerate again.
A while ago I took it to a major repair center and they took out all the axles and some how concluded that it was the transmission. I really don’t understand how it could be that, as the car shifts fine, and the sound never occurs when going straight. This past week, I took it to another mechanic, and he concluded that it was the axle shaft on the left side, maybe the axle shaft on the right. So I had the left axle shaft replaced. I drove it home and didn’t notice it, thought it worked; the mechanic himself drove the car around for hours after and didn’t notice anything. Just to be sure, I take the car into a cul-de-sac that has the perfect turn angle to make the sound. Guess what, it’s still there, albeit muted a little bit.
I am wondering if it’s worth it to fix the other axle shaft, how it’s possible that it could be the transmission, or if it’s anything else that’s possibly wrong. Again, this sound has been going on for years. I am completely frustrated and want it gone. I am thinking about making a video with the sound, but I will need to find time with someone else to help me record it.
It won’t be the transmission, but it could be the differential, which is built into the transmission.
If the mechanic thought it was the axle shaft, CV joints to be specific, then he replaced the wrong one. If it makes the noise mostly during a left turn, it would be the right axle. Axles usually make a clicking sound though.
A wheel bearing would make a grinding sound. Again, the right side for a left turn, but they usually make a grinding, whining or roaring sound all the time, it just gets a lot louder in a turn.
The differential would be my last choice. It is hard to imagine a repair center removing the axles just to inspect them. That is a lot of work, must have cost you a bundle.
My inclination is that the sound is coming from the axles, but that may not mean the axles are bad. Has anyone inspected the motor mounts? If one or more were broken, the engine would move during a turn and that could tug at an axle, putting a strain on it that it normally does not see.
Its kind of funny, but our 97 Accord makes a funny sound on left turns too, but I wouldn’t describe it as a rhythmic grinding sound. It’s hard to describe but it seems to be coming from the engine and it only lasts for a short time.
When the axles went out, they made a loud clicking sound, I have new axles in it now. BTW, by now, I’m pretty sure both of your axles have probably been changed by now. The boots will rot out in about 10 years, and when they do, the CV joint will be damaged within a couple of weeks. Do you have reman axles in it? I have not had good luck with remans in the past.
I don’t know … I went to a private mechanic and he went to Autozone for parts. The car does drive smoother now with the replaced left axle. I really don’t know what to do anymore. I think I need to take a video of the car as it is turning so the sound can be captured.
I once had a grinding noise when I made turns at particular speeds/grades/etc. Turned out that the power steering fluid was low. But, before I discovered this, I had been told all kinds of stories by certified mechanics.
I as well am currently having a sort of grinding noise that only occurs when I make hard right turns. (I have a 2005 Toyota Corolla S with 100,000+ miles) It’s been happening for about 2 months now, and I wasn’t terribly concerned until this weekend, when I took a trip out into the country and was coming down an extremely steep hill, riding the brakes a little, of course, and heard almost the same noise even though the wheel wasn’t turned. Could this be my right brake? The only thing I can think of in common with this recent problem and the recurring problem is depression of the brakes.
CV joints can, in fact, make a grinding noise. I’d suggest that at 16 years old, and based on the fact that changing the left half shaft helped, it’s entirely possible that the right one needs changing too.
Typical noises from a half shaft are considered to be clicking, sometimes clunking, when the wheels are turned and rolling, which comes from the balls in the outer joint. But the inner joint, designed entirely differently, to enable not only articulation but also axial movement of the axle, can make other noises as well.