In August 2013 I had a knocking from within my power steering rack. I have a 2009 1.4 petrol BERLINGO VAN. I am presuming that my problems relate to hitting potholes over a long period of time but I also had someone clonk me in the rear at a roundabout about this time, though I'm not sure if that is relevant as the steering groaning started before that. I do high mileage, roughly 55k miles per year. It started about 3 months ago, when I noticed a creaking groaning sound when starting up in the morning without moving or turning the steering wheel, coming from the back of the engine compartment roughly where the pedals are. If I turned the steering wheel it would moan/groan even more. I found that letting the van idle for 5 to 10 minutes before moving off seemed to get rid of the noises. After a couple of months I noticed the steering pulling to the left hand side, which gradually got worse and worse. So I had new front tyres fitted and the tracking done. The tracking needed 3 adjustments to get right - but even then it's wasn't spot on and the tyre centre seemed a bit confused as to what was happening. Then over the next few weeks new symptoms occurred such as my van started to wallow and over time the creaking and groaning when moving stop/start came back and became more noticeable when starting ignition and the moving off and then the groaning dissipated and gave way to a steering knock. I had my mechanic check things, and he determined the rack as being the cause of the knocking. Or at least when we rocked the steering side to side, (n/s/f jacked up) the knock could be felt at the centre part of the rack roughly at the middle of the bulkhead area engine side. For my peace of mind I got him to change both lower ball joints as part of an elimination process - resulting in less noise/vibration and a softer ride over bumps but these were in fact in perfect condition. He determined that there is no play in the steering arms (both sides both ends). The SYMPTOMS that appeared after that were these: When driving, although my van steers pretty straight, it has a tendency to wallow/wander and veer/lean to the left mostly but sometimes right depending on road condition. It is very camber sensitive too. This can be exaggerated when applying the brakes when coming to a stop - sometimes the pull is alarming - it's quite violent sometimes to the left but can be either to left or right depending on road camber. The n/s knocks when going over bumps/pot holes - and seems to kick back to the rack, where I feel the effect in my steering column and at my feet- as it were at the bulkhead. On standstill - engine on - rotating the steering hard right and rocking the steering wheel quite hard induces what seems to be extra movement and the knocking - doing the same in the opposite direction is not so pronounced. At this point I also had what seemed to be a 'torque' issue sensation/movement at odd times through the steering on acceleration - in the forward aft plane, as if something had been forced out of position on hard acceleration, then momentarily held there before moving back after a few seconds, like the engine moving forward then back. Then in March 2014 - In an effort to solve the problem, having had several garages fail to find the fault, I had my local mechanic replace the front lower ball joints. Ran the vehicle for a month or two no improvement, in fact seemed to develop a floating rack syndrome, where bumps on uneven roads seemed to dictate the direction of the steering. I then had my mechanic replace the steering rack (but not the damper which sits above it) and n/s/f shock absorber. The knocking (again seems mostly n/s/f induced going over bumps potholes) got worse. When I turn left into my road there's a slight cobbled raised bump and conflicting cambers as one comes on/off it, and then a further up incline/camber as I continue to turn left into my parking space. As my van travels over these it rolls quite a bit from side to side, that's when the knock happens and it sounds loud - metal to metal. But it can also happen just going along straight at say 30 mph, when there's a bump, dip or pothole - that's to say something seems to be knocking/kicking upwards as well as sideways. Currently, on motorways when power on it's much better as if the thrust pulls steering into line but when powering off, though the steering wants to go straight and is dead straight, there's still this pull from the /n/s/f and a dipping sensation - almost like the n/s/f tyre is running on its edge - if you get me. Again, currently, if I move from standstill the steering still seems loose but seems more solid the higher the speed - less loose that is. At speeds over 30-40 mph on corners, especially uneven roads and chamber changes the steering fights back after the steering wheel is turned more than 20 degrees. I also have a crabbing sensation at times on really bad uneven roads. I had a 4 wheel alignment check and adjustment after the latest work had been done, and Kwikfit had problems bringing my caster and camber angles into position. At present I still have this awful knocking sideways and up/down induced by bumps and bad road surfaces but my mechanic and I still can't fathom things out. On the sub frame he says there is no adjustment just straight holes, so we don't feel this is a problem. The rack is new, so that can be ruled out, as can the n/s/f shocker and both bottom ball joints, so you see I have quite a problem here. My next move is to get two new tyres (front are close to wear indicators) and then to have the rear wheels swapped front to back, just in case a wheel is bent and adding confusion into the mix. After that - when I can afford to take a day off I will get my van back in for my mechanic to have another look. If anyone wants to have my 4 wheel alignment readings (before and after fitment of new parts) please ask - I'm told there's no camber/caster adjustments possible on my van - not front nor rear - and I would of course be very grateful for any suggestions viewers may have on helping my mechanic and I to cure my van woes.

Edited by OkBud on 15/03/2014 at 11:42