My 2000 GLE has been experiencing some strange steering issues for the past year or so. When I drive over uneven bumps at 30 mph or less I feel the steering want to wheel rip out of my hand and steer the vehicle in a direction other than straight.

In addtion, If I try to hold the steering wheel firmly in my hand while driving over moderate to nasty bumps, I can hear and feel a "clunk" inside the upper portion of the steering column.

The steering wheel turns very smoothly and feels tight when stopped, but feels notchy and loose when the vehicle is moving. The vehicle also shakes between 65-75 mph.


At first it was barely noticeable, but it has gotten progressively worse. I have had my tires balanced dozens of times, replaced the tires, replaced the struts, bump stops, lower ball joints, (all oem components), new raxle driveshafts, and had a couple of alignments done which all have done nothing to solve my problem.

I took it into the dealer for a rountine oil change and had them look at the issue and the service advisor told me i needed new sway/stabilizer bar endlinks. Does this sound like it might solve my issue, or does anybody else have any other suggestions?

 

Anybody?

 

I have something similar and its my right front stabilizer link. Got one from rockauto.com. They had have a reasonable selection and heavy duty ones.

 

Alright, I think I am going to try that. Rockauto sells the Moog links (which I have heard from many people are far superior than oem) for 15 bucks a piece vs 40 bucks that the dealer quoted me. Thanks again.

 

What's the level of difficulty to install them?

I think I might have the same problem. When I go over uneven road surfaces the steering wheel seems to be wobbling side to side.

 

A few days after i bought my car, Since the roads here are VERY rough (where I live anyway.) I would drive over bumps, and the wheel would turn very roughly and unexpectedly, almost losing my grip driving. On the highway it was even worse. No shaking in the steering wheel for up to 85 mph. (Havent taken my baby higher than that yet, but will as soon as I start modding.) but when even going over slight bumps at those speeds, it almost felt dangerous. I took it back to the used dealer (30 day warranty) and he had the tires balanced with an alignment. Seemed to fix the problem, I thought i was just imagining things while driving...guess not. Also 10 days after driving the Bank 2 Catalytic converter had to be replaced. A 500$ job, the dealer wanted me to pay a 100$, for a "fee" but I argued with him, using the "Implied Warranty Law." Dont let dealers take advantage of you!

 

I just replaced the sway bar end links and the problem persists. Sloppy steering especially when driving over bumps.

 

Take it back to the dealer and see what they have to say now...

 

Do this: Jack the front of the car up and grab the edge of each tire firmly. Shake back and forth. If there's movement, you may need to look at your inner or outer tie rods. The outers are easy to inspect; you'll see the play in the ball joint. The inner ones are underneath a boot, so most likely if it's not the outer, it's the inner ball joints.

Seeing as how you've replaced nearly everything else, it seems like this should be the issue. However, what kind of tires did you get, and what kind did you have before? I had falken ziex 912s the last time around and I had no problems. I now have crappy goodyear eagle RS-a's and the tramlining on them is really bad...my car follows any bump or rivet in the road very prominently.

FWIW, I would have initially guessed it to be the endlinks...is it any better at all, particularly with the clunking noises?

 

When I replaced the endlinks, one of many clunking noises disappeared. I still can hear a clunk in what seems to be the upper strut area, possibly the strut mounts. Could worn strut mounts cause an easily turned steering wheel due to road imperfections? When i replaced the struts (myself), i did the idiot route and didn't change the strut mounts which currently have over 110,000 miles on them. I also have Yokohama AS430 tires. Not the best, but I have the same tires on my 07 Maxima (albeit 17" vs 16" rim) that do not exhibit the same issue. It definitely feels like a suspension problem.