So there has been a rattling the the steering for a while. I was not sure what it was. The owner before me said something about the balljoint so i thought maybe it had something to do with that or just the bushing. I have no idea really so i took it to a mechanic, i explained that i knew that the shocks need to be replaced and what not but what is the rattling i feel in the steering wheel while driving sometimes. Come to find out he says there is nothign wrong. So what could be the rattling then?

thats like the least descriptive thing ive ever heard.



when does it rattle, does it go away when you turn, does it get louder with the speed you're going, does it go away when you are in neutral, etc etc etc.



im a mechanic, and this is why its hard to diagnose stuff people come in and are like "this car thingy makes some noise, what is it?"



kevin.

[quote name='teknics' date='May 6 2005, 02:05 PM']thats like the least descriptive thing ive ever heard.



when does it rattle, does it go away when you turn, does it get louder with the speed you're going, does it go away when you are in neutral, etc etc etc.



im a mechanic, and this is why its hard to diagnose stuff people come in and are like "this car thingy makes some noise, what is it?"



kevin.


[/quote]



we had a guy come in saying the front of his mazda 3 hopped. we drove it, its fine. we have him drive it, and he does a 6k rpm clutch dump, warranty doesnt cover wheel hop....

sorry for not being descreptive, i was kind of in a hurry i guess. Well it only does it when you hit bumbs. It is hard to descripe, i definantly know its not a clutch dump, ahhaha. Its like something is loose that shouldn't be. maybe it is something else besides the suspension that is shaking around but sometimes it seems like i feel the vibrations in the steering wheel. Well i am getting new shocks soon so maybe i will be taking a look at a lot of stuff while i am doing that. Sorry for not being very much more descripitive and i did not mean any offense to you as a mechanic it is just i have a hard time trusting mechanics around here with rotarys.

[quote name='NoeVuh' date='May 6 2005, 11:59 PM']sorry for not being descreptive, i was kind of in a hurry i guess. Well it only does it when you hit bumbs. It is hard to descripe, i definantly know its not a clutch dump, ahhaha. Its like something is loose that shouldn't be. maybe it is something else besides the suspension that is shaking around but sometimes it seems like i feel the vibrations in the steering wheel. Well i am getting new shocks soon so maybe i will be taking a look at a lot of stuff while i am doing that. Sorry for not being very much more descripitive and i did not mean any offense to you as a mechanic it is just i have a hard time trusting mechanics around here with rotarys.


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the only things on rotaries that mechanics wont understand is the motor itself, everything else is a normal old car.



i say when you replace the shocks tell them to give the whole suspension a good once over.



When you hit a bump or turn sharply is it a thud sound and some vibrations? if so i might look at the sway bar endlinks, the same thing happened when my girl's mom's jeep's endlinks broke apart.



kevin.

[quote name='j9fd3s' date='May 6 2005, 08:20 PM']we had a guy come in saying the front of his mazda 3 hopped. we drove it, its fine. we have him drive it, and he does a 6k rpm clutch dump, warranty doesnt cover wheel hop....


[/quote]



we had someone come in and say the a/c didnt work...... they had the vents closed.



we also had someone come in complaining the interior lights never shutoff..... they had the lights turned on.



people are slow, they dont think when it comes to cars, once something is strange to them its like "OMG"



kevin.

could be anything from a balljoint to the swaybar links.

damn it... wouldn't let me edit.



Put the car up on jackstands, and grab suspension parts and give them a good tug, see if you find anything that is obviously loose or making noise. Thats the same thing the mechanic is gonna do anyway..

[quote name='GreyGT-C' date='May 7 2005, 02:11 PM']damn it... wouldn't let me edit.



Put the car up on jackstands, and grab suspension parts and give them a good tug, see if you find anything that is obviously loose or making noise. Thats the same thing the mechanic is gonna do anyway..


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cant just put it on jackstands, if you wanna check balljoints you gotta support the control arm, so dont put a jckstand on the frame or pinch or anything, itll be hard to tell if its balljoints.



putting a car on an alignment rack can determine suspension problems in like 5 minutes, i love having one at my disposal.



kevin.

how about if the car was up on jackstands, then you supported the front tires to normal ride height?