Mechanical Question

[brandisher]

My mom's car is making a "womp womp" when you turn the car left and right. She thinks I know what is wrong so she took my car and now I am stuck with her car (92 corolla DX). Anyyways does anyone have any clue to what is wrong. I went to a mechanic and they want to ripout my CV Boots so they could look at it. I said no because those are fairly new boots (4-years old) and if they could not find anything wrong I would still have to buy new boots cause they will destroy the one the want to take out of the car. Does anyone have any idea what is making the womp sound when you turn left or right?

[Quiggs]

More info needed...

Does it do it at a stop? At slow speeds? High speeds?
What does it sound like? Metal on metal grinding? Something hitting something else? Or a more mechanical sound?

It may be in the power steering system. Pump may be going bad, or it may be low on fluid. Check the level. Add as necessary. A flush might be a good idea, too.

[brandisher]

It sounds like driving on flat tires and the tires are good on pressure, all the fluids are up to level and has been flushed already. It only happens when you do a turn, speed doesn't matter slow, fast it makes the sound reguardless.

[Quiggs]

Is it both wheels at the same time or only one (inside or outside)? CV joint(s) may be cooked.

It's really hard to diagnose something like this without being able to actually hear it...

[h00t_h00t]

That will be CV joints or bearings. Its not like the boots are expensive or difficult to fit either. A fault with the steering would be felt through the steering wheel.

[Quiggs]

Originally Posted by h00t_h00t

That will be CV joints or bearings. Its not like the boots are expensive or difficult to fit either. A fault with the steering would be felt through the steering wheel.

Yea, I'm leaning toward the joints...

[brandisher]

That is what the mechanic was guessing but the boots was covering the joints so he could't see it but wanted to cut it and see for sure. We don't want to buy another boot just on a hunch and be wrong

[baddabang]

Originally Posted by Quiggs

Yea, I'm leaning toward the joints...

Are CV joints the same as ball joints?

[Quiggs]

No. A CV joint allows the drive shafts to maintain speed regardless of angle. A ball joint connects the steering knuckle to the control arm.

[baddabang]

Originally Posted by Quiggs

No. A CV joint allows the drive shafts to maintain speed regardless of angle. A ball joint connects the steering knuckle to the control arm.

Yeah I had to replace ball joints when they made noises like that.

In fact I've replaced them twice now.

[pimento]

Definately sounds CV jointey. Worth checking out, you don't want them to fail....

[brandisher]

What does happen if they fail, just wondering

[pimento]

Your wheels fall off.

Well.. on an old mini they probably would. They're what couple the drive to the wheels, so them failing means no drive, and possibly damage to surrounding components.

[PerfAdv]

If it's the CV-joints then it'll get worse sounding before any parts start falling off. Also, bad CVs tend to make more of a clicking sound.

Could be bearings and in that case the noise should get louder and constant, not just when you're turning.

It would be sad to have a catastrophic bearing failure where the bearing locks up, causing you to lose control of the car. Most likely though it'll give you lots of warning before that point.

If it was my car I wouldn't do anything until it got a little worse, so the problem is more apparent. Just avoid long road trips and very high speed driving...

[drakkie]

maybe you can record the sound on something so we can hear it. Probably some pictures of the secions involved would help too