Slight knock when turning wheel

[simonbuk]

I've noticed that when I park the car up and put it into reverse then turn the wheel, I get a bit of a clunk. Having just put some cardboard under the front wheels and then turned the s/wheel frim side to side there is a slight 'knock' sound.

What's this likely to be - track rod ends ?

I would turn the wheel and have a look under but currently by myself and my arms aren't that long......

[lotusflasherman]

I've noticed that when I park the car up and put it into reverse then turn the wheel, I get a bit of a clunk. Having just put some cardboard under the front wheels and then turned the s/wheel frim side to side there is a slight 'knock' sound.

What's this likely to be - track rod ends ?

I would turn the wheel and have a look under but currently by myself and my arms aren't that long......

Not sure of the significance of your "put it into reverse then turn the wheel' but you can usually cause a slight knock when you rock the steering back and forth on a power steering rack if the engine isn't running. It's due to it's design as there is a rotor sleeve and torsion bar on the end of the pinion input shaft that acts to open valves dependent upon the twist of the torsion bar but there are some internal mechanical stops to stop excessive torque being applied to the rotor sleeve - such as when a wheel is alongside a kerb, and to still provide steering if the torsion bar fails. If you rock the steering hard without the engine running and no power assistance you will be moving between these mechanical stops and will hear a knock.

If you still get a knock with the engine running and power steering operating then... yes, check track rod ends, also there is a ball inside a screwed cup on each end of the rack bar that may have play. There are inside the concertina boots on the ends of the rack. Suspension ball joints, lower or upper, can also move when steering loads are applied if they have excessive play ... Happy hunting ..

[simonbuk]

Thanks for the detailed response. The reverse bit could indeed be a red herring, I just noticed a clonk when changing direction (forward/reverse) but I was also moving the wheel to the other lock.

And yes I was doing this with the engine off at the time so could explain it.

[lotusflasherman]

MOT looks for slack in steering, track rods and suspension ball joints so if it hasn't done a huge amount of miles since last MOT I would think it's probably OK. No harm in looking though..