XC90 D5 2005 - Steering woes and unbelievable sounds.

[Mcbonio]

Morning all.!



So recently I purchased a 2005 D5 XC90 auto. Great car and very useful as I live in the country although shes not without her issues. I'm handy with cars and have experience with Volvo as we own a 2010 V50 D5 manual.



So issue is this, when turning the steering wheel the left wheel has a noticeable 'pop' which jolts the steering wheel.



When in motion, pressing the brake also creates the same 'pop' which the car jolts to the right then straightens up when you let off the brake.



When the car is cold, you can't hear much noise from the front end when driving, when it's warmed up it's clanking, popping, creaking, snapping, it's terrible, everyone in street looks over.

+ " Squeak and pop with wheel turned out. " via YouTube

I've gone over the suspension as follows,



Lower control arms - NEW.

Sway bar links. - NEW.



Lower ball joints . Good and still tight.

Inner and outer tie rods. Shows play when opposite wheel is on the floor but not when both are raised..

Strut mounts, feel good. Can't turn 21mm bolt more than half inch before mount springs back.







Here i'm doing 6 and 12 o'clock wiggle and then 9 and 3. There is play on the 9 and 3 wiggle, but only when one wheel is off the floor.

+ " One wheel off ground, noticeable play at 3 and 9 o'clock. " via YouTube

Here you can see me turning the rack with both wheels off the ground. You can hear some clanking from what sounds like the steering rack but not the same level as noise as when the wheels are on the ground. The inner tie rod has no play when I detach it and check for play by hand... which is odd as the symptoms are pointing towards a bad inner tie rod.. press brake and car jolts to right.

+ " Both wheels off ground, some steering rack clunk. " via YouTube

Thank you for reading, any help would be appreciated.!

[Familyman 90]

Morning. There may be play in the tie rod or rack, but it may take quite a bit of load to make it apparent, possibly more than your arm can provide.

It does sound a bit strut-mounty to my ear, and that is a common age related failure, but I couldn't swear hand on heart from a video alone. It needs to get properly up in the air, all the wheels unloaded, for a good prod.

Good luck.

[S60D5-185]

Couple of points.

1. That noise almost sounds like something touching the front exhaust heat shield which is near the angle gear.

This can happen if the rear engine mount is worn out and allowing the engine to sit lower. Easy to check if you get underneath.

2. Years ago, I had a Saab 99 and when cornering, the car would sudenly, momentarily lurch to one side and then settle again.

Like you I checked everything but eventually it was traced to a bottom ball joint that did not show any wear when tested conventionally. Once removed it was obviously shot.

Let us know how you get on. 👍

[Kev0607]

Looks like tie rods (outer) & strut mounts. Put your hand on the spring whilst someone turns the wheel to see if it does any “skipping” or jolting. That indicates worn strut mounts.

That squeak in the first video is the noise a bad ball joint makes, but it could also be tie rod related. Make sure you check the ball joints properly for any play. Get a pry bar underneath the wheel, lift up & down whilst someone puts their hand on the ball joint or is actually looking at it whilst you move the bar. Any excessive movement should be easily seen.

Check the condition of the actual springs around the shock absorbers, as they can make a racket if cracked or broken.

Here’s a video that shows testing the tie rods & explains what to look for/feel;

+ YouTube Video

These items should be replaced in pairs & you’ll need an alignment afterwards.

My guess is worn strut mounts & worn outer tie rod ends.

[ltec]

The first video sounds like strut bearing creaking and it would jump as well if half siezed. Look in at the spring and see if the spring is twisting and jumping when Turning steering and touch the spring while someone is turning the steering too to make it creak. If it is, you'll feel the spring tingling.

[Mcbonio]

Well well well, seems like it was an easy fix after all.

it was the 18/21mm lower control arm bolt. No matter how tight I made it, the LCA still jumped around in the carrier.

New bolt from Volvo did the trick.!

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by Mcbonio

Well well well, seems like it was an easy fix after all.

it was the 18/21mm lower control arm bolt. No matter how tight I made it, the LCA still jumped around in the carrier.

New bolt from Volvo did the trick.!

That I find hard to believe!

I suppose stranger has happened, but one bolt caused those terrible noises you described!?