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Hello Viewer, fellow Eric The Car Guy viewer here, (See what I did there B) )
I have 2003 Hyundai Sonata, I posted a topic here a few weeks ago and got some great help. I need help again from the world of ETCG. My sonata is a 6 cyl, and has about 130k Miles on it. Quite recently, my steering rack and pinion gave out and was replaced by a mechanic. While doing this job he also noted that my Upper control arms needed to be replaced. Finally, a couple of days ago once i got the funds to do this, I replaced my upper control arms, ball joints on lower control arm and tie rod ends.
However, after replacing these myself, I am getting a popping noise when turning or going over bumps sometimes. It isn’t a recurring pop like one of a CV joint, but rather a random pop at random intervals. It seems to be occurring on both sides. This did not happen before the UCAs, Balljoints and Tie Rod ends were replaced. I took it to my trustee mechanic and he suggested to get an alignment asap because my alignment is off. He said that he would take a look after the alignment was done because misalignment could cause issues in the joints. He tried to pry on the joints with a pry bar but everything seems to be tight and nothing seems to have any movement at all. Please let me know what you guys think or if you have had similar problems and their solution. I’m worried :S . Once this problem is solved, My front end of the car will be in prime condition. Please advise. Thank You and Stay dirty!
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Did you get the alignment? After you replace tie rod ends, you should have an alignment. Your front wheels might be fighting against each other…
-Karl
Thanks for the reply Karl, No I have not got the alignment yet. I plan on doing so today. But in case this doesn’t solve the problem, what could the problem possibly be?
Not all aftermarket parts are created equal. If you used aftermarket parts, then perhaps that could be the issue. Without hearing the noise it’s difficult to say. I suppose start with your mechanics recommendation and see if the noise is still there.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Hello Eric, great hearing from you. I got an alignment done just a while ago and yet the popping seems to continue. I haven’t had a chance to take it back to my mechanic yet. I must remark that the parts were aftermarket. I bought them off AutoZone. Is it possible that the joint boots were not filled with enough grease from manufacturer? When installing I did notice that the joints were right like they were supposed to be however the boots were not swollen up like we have all seen in ETCG videos.
Please advise . 🙁As stated, without hearing it, it is difficult to diagnose.. But something to consider is looking at the intermediate shaft U-joint…(comes down from your steering column into your engine compartment through the firewall) It may be binding in some way… This should be splined to the steering rack with a bolt holding it on… If it was not put back in correctly, it could be responsible for a popping sound… There may be a U-joint on the inside of the car as well… I don’t know this model well enough to say…
Also, if the steering rack is not secured properly, this could occur…
-Karl
Hmm…I know nothing of this model either. However, getting this sound after installing new joints n arms, tells me that alignment could be off. You’ve gotten that done, and the noise continues. I would definitely check every place where lube is supposed to be, check real hard. Check if anything is loose, or if you’re able to move anything by hand (which would not be good). For this one I’d say not enough lube, or some parts may not be tightened all the way or installed correctly. Maybe something could be getting stuck from being over tightened too, never know. I would gear towards that direction though. Let us know!
Karl, the steering rack seems to be on right. That’s actually something I thought at first too because I had the steering rack and pinion replaced a couple of months ago. However, upon checking myself and having it double checked by the mechanic, the steering column seems to be on right. Thank you though. I’m gonna have to check the joints again. I might return them and try new ones and see if that helps the problem. If the problem goes away, then either the joints were just faulty or i installed them incorrectly.
Motorhead, my mechanic seemed to think the same. He asked me to get an alignment asap as it was off. However, even after getting an alignment, the popping continues. 🙁
I have a feeling that there wasn’t enough grease in the joints. I may try DIYing some zerk fittings onto these joints or return these in place for new ones with AutoZone. Hopefully that should help the problem. If not, I don’t know what to think! 🙁Hey everyone! Good news from me! 😀
So, I took down all the parts that were newly installed, swapped em out at AutoZone, reinstalled them but this time I made sure that all the parts were not crazy tight but as EricTheCarGuy usually does, SNUG and then just a tad bit more. Ran into some problems, one of the nylocks were stripped, had to split it. (I WANT CASTLE NUTS. DAMN THESE NYLOCKS :angry: ). Then, the balljoints would NOT come out even with a balljoint separator that I rented from Oreilly. Finally, bought a ball joint separator the one I’ve attached as a picture, and it works like a CHARM. After that, it was smooth sailing. I installed everything, and wrapped up the job. Started my engine, hoping and praying that I won’t hear popping noises once I backed up. I backed up nice and easy, put it in drive, started cruising. NO SOUNDS. 😀 😀 😀 Thank you for your help everyone! Eric thanks for tipping me off about all parts not being equal. If you had not mentioned that, I wouldn’t have thought about swapping out my parts. 😀
My Hyundai is happy! 🙂 Next up, oil change in 2000 miles. haha! Easy stuff! Yaaay!Right on man! There ya go! So in this case it was fasteners and unequal parts eh? And I thought the replacement joints came with zerk fittings, that’s weird. I love how auto makers claim factory joints to be “life lubricating”. Life lubricating my right! LOL! Glad to hear you fixed the problem man!
Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude. :angry: &@*$&#% started making the noise againnn. I’m seriously considering adding my own zerk fittings and filling those joints up with grease and see if that helps. If not, then lord knows what I’m gonna do. The noise was gone for a whole day after installation. Then, one side slowly started making noises.. then it became back to square 1. Both sides. *RAGE* I don’t have the patience to do it all over again. The UCAs are making noise, the Balljoints, and the tie rod ends. Nothing is loose. I checked everything again. Nothing is loose. Everything is on right. Just the way I left it when it made no sounds. I don’t know what to do anymore. :unsure: ETCG help!
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