Civic - Honda :: 1999 FWD Unpredictable When Put In Slightest Steering Corrections To Keep Car Going Straight
Oct 11, 2016
I've had light steering issues at speeds above 60 MPH on smooth roads where my Civic FWD 1999 ( 230K miles) feels darty, dangerous and unpredictable when I put in the slightest steering corrections to keep my car going straight. One possible cause, i assumed, could be my front alignment. I'm lowered on lowering springs but never had this darty feeling before.
Inner tie rod boots have been torn for awhile but there is no play left right top bottom with each wheel so I assume they're still fine. Rack could also be worn out. It's been 7 years since my last alignment.
First, I measured my front toe using the string method. Aligned the string to the rear wheel front and rear to keep it parallel, inches away then measured the front. These are the readings from the left and right tire.
Left tire/Front- 9" 3/8
Left tire/Rear - 9" 5/8
Right tire/Front 10" 1/4
Right tire/Rear 10" 3/16
Difference b/w L and R = +5/16th inch toe out.
To confirm, I used another method by choosing a tread line on my left and right tire that are identical and using a 2x4 to keep my tape level measure and taking a reading on each tire.
Distance b/w L and R in front= 62" 1/4
Distance b/w L and R in rear = 62"
1/4th inch toe out in front
So I know I have slightly toe out by a little over a 1/4th inch. Could this cause darty and light steering? And why is my left front farther away from the center of my car then the right front (using the first method above?)
View 10 Replies
Advertisement
My manual 98 Honda civic hatchback has 435,000 miles. But for the past 5 months, it has had a reoccurring problem: it loses power at unpredictable times while I'm driving. The gas stops responding and the check engine and battery lights come on. Have to pull over, turn the car off and usually have to wait on the side of the road 5 minutes before it will start again. Lately, it can take as long as 15 minutes. Sometimes, it will restart immediately or after only two minutes.
So far, trying to get at this problem, the car has gotten: new battery, new alternator, new spark plugs, new coil, new distributer, new ignition switch, diagnostic testing (that indicated the coil [replaced] and the catalytic converter). There does not seem to be any consistent environment that goes along with the car turning off while driving. It happens regardless of how full the gas tank is and regardless of the weather.It's pretty bad to be going 70 on the highway and suddenly have to throw on the flashers and pull over... especially when there is no shoulder because of winter weather. What this is? Or is the car just old and tired?
View 7 Replies
I have a 2002 Honda Civic EX with 146,000 miles. It started making a whining/high pitched humming type noise whenever I turned. Every now and then it makes the same noise (though not as loud) when I'm just driving straight.
When I checked my power steering fluid, it was low, so I added to it. That worked with the noise briefly, but now it's back and the fluid level is fine.
View 3 Replies
My steering pulls hard left or hard right, and also seems to have a mind of its own when it turns sharp right or left suddenly, as though someone else is driving. It's very disconcerting when you think you're making a left and the truck veers right.
Today I was making a left onto a bridge and truck kept going straight. I almost hit the bridge. I have an 06 Ford F250 Turbo Diesel. What this could be?
View 4 Replies
We have a 99 Honda Civic that just started leaking power steering fluid. My mother was out with it when it suddenly ran dry so she bought some power steering fluid from autozone unaware that Hondas aren't supposed to use generic power steering fluid. Now the reservoir is dry again, the fluid leaked out in a matter of hours, so what kind of damage could the non Honda fluid have caused? Also, what could be causing a leak that fast?
View 5 Replies
I have had my 2010 trim two for about a year and have noticed something about it. When I get up to about 70 MPH on the interstate I am constantly having to make tiny steering corrections. On most cars I've had I could let go of the steering wheel and unless there was a curve the car would go straight. I don't know if there is something mechanical wrong, it is the wind shear, or all in my head. All I know is that I'm an old man, and it stresses me out to get above 65 in this car. If it is that way with all pri's are the Gen 4's any better.
View 19 Replies
I have a 2001 Ford Excursion. I had all 4 ball joints replaced and now I am experiencing poor steering and drivability. While driving in town and on the freeway I am constantly having to correct the steering. The car wants to dart to the right and then dart to the left. It will not drive straight for very long. Constant steering correction is very tiring, especially on long trips. Need to understand what is happening to my vehicle. What can I do to remedy the problem? The steering was not near as bad before the ball joint replacement.
View 14 Replies
At unpredictable times, all of the dashboard gauges, the factory installed car radio and a ham radio which is directly wired to the battery terminals, loses power for about 100 milliseconds, plus or minus, and may occur from 1 to 10 times in varying succession. Bumpy roads or bad weather do not seem to influence the electrical drop-outs. The ignition, and headlights if night time, are steady and unaffected. The battery terminals are tight. This has been occurring over several years.
I have had problems with chipmonks chewing on the wire harness on top of the gas tank, causing the check engine light to light. The harness was replaced and the check engine light has been off during the latest drop-outs. The above senario does not seem to be logically possible. What could cause this problem?
View 3 Replies
99 Buick, 170xxx miles. Pulled to the right, so much so that I had to steer to the left to go straight. After getting a 4 wheel alignment, it drives straight and I can't feel it pull while holding the wheel, but if you let go of the wheel it veers to the right. What I should check? Is is possible the tires are causing this?
View 11 Replies
My honda just celebrated its 155000 mile and low and behold it was greeted with a vibration in the steering column. It gets worse on uneven roads and pretty much goes away on smooth roads... What it might be?
View 1 Replies
2003 Honda Civic. Any speed between 30 and 50, car suddenly starts pronounced steering wheel shimmy, too intense to ignore. You can park, start up again and it's gone.
View 1 Replies
In recent months there is a new noise in my 97 Civic (75,000 miles). In any hard turn and particularly on U-turns there is a grumbling sound which seems to come from the front end. The noise doesn't happen on gentle turns. It grumbles a bit on 90 degree turns and wholeheartedly grumbles on U-turns. I checked the power steering resevoir and it is full so it is between the lines.
View 2 Replies
I have a recently purchased '05 Civic 1.7.I've noticed that the steering takes significantly more effort to turn left than to the right. Turning right, even when moving at a good clip, I can turn using 1 finger. It takes a decent grip to make the same turn to the left. I've also tried this from sitting still - same thing.
The alignment, as far as driving goes, seems pretty straight. I've also had a Honda shop that I trust from experience look into the issue to see if there is any physical signs of damage, bent parts... anything. They are very confident that all parts related to the front steering and suspension are in good shape and that both wheels are even.
I am a little stumped as to how any physical damage would only affect turning the wheel in one direction. I wonder if there is something that would reduce the effectiveness of the power steering in just one direction???
View 10 Replies
2000 Honda Civic DX, green, four doors, 91,000 miles. A few weeks ago I noticed that the steering wheel was loose when driving but only about 30% of the time--didn't seem to be related to whether the car was warmed up or time of day or speed, just that it happened when the car was moving. The steering wheel would have play when the wheels were pointed/driving straight and the looseness went away when turning. I brought it in to the mechanic and of course he couldn't get it to happen when he drove it. Replaced worn inner tie rods, did a power steering flush/replaced the power steering fluid and did a front end alignment. Drove fine for two weeks but then it started occurring again, this time even more loose/more play in the steering, still only when driving straight. Oh, just one time (so far) a few days ago it was loose when I was standing still at a stop light.
View 10 Replies
92 Civic DX hatchback, non-Calif. AT
Power steering suddenly not working when cold (~20 oF) in AM; nearly impossible to turn the wheel (for my wife). When I get home from work, and it's warmer (~30 oF), it works fine (for me). When it (mostly) behaves, it does drive fine (though I would say that the variable-assist PS is no longer as "tight" at high speeds as it once was, but the car's nearly 20 years old!
This just began a week ago (live just north of New York city), and has now happened enough times that I believe her So, since the PS fluid reservoir was just below lower line, I topped it up (Honda fluid!). No obvious leaks (I checked by putting some paper under the car, and watching for drips for a few days, including turning wheel from lock to lock over the paper).
Is it the pump? Or should I just flush the system (and how do you do that)?
View 3 Replies
My wife was driving our 2003 Honda Civic hybrid (125,000 miles) and the electronic power steering went out. She managed to get it parked, called me, and when I arrived everything seemed to work fine. (She said the yellow EPS light came on, but she didn't know what that meant.) I drove it for a while and had no problems. A few days later my daughter was driving and the entire car shut down. I jump started it and everything worked OK, but I took it to the dealer for a diagnosis. They could find nothing wrong (no codes). However, the next day the car once again would not start I replaced the 'starter' battery (the lithium-ion man battery pack had actually been replaced at around 79,000 miles--right before the expiration of the warranty!).
Now it seems fine, but my wife and daughter refuse to drive it, and I'm not sure if the problem is fixed. Here are my questions:1. Since this is a hybrid, once the car is running a failure of the 'starter' batter should have no effect on the EPS, or anything else, right? It all runs off the main lithium-ion battery pack. However, replacing the 'starter' battery seems to have solved the problem--or at least a dead 'starter' batter is temporally (if not causally?) connected with the other failures. This might be just a coincidence, since seems odd to have the 'starter' battery part of the larger electrical set-up. The dealership had no clue and I can't figure it out.2.
The first time just the EPS went out, but the second time the entire car shut down. This doesn't make much sense--especially since the dealer couldn't pull any codes. The car's auto-stop shuts the engine off all the time at speeds below 10 mph (this is a semi-hybrid), so why the total shut down?3. Why didn't the dealership tell me the 'starter' battery needed replacement? I've checked my records, and it seems to be the one that came with the car in 2003 (actually fall 2002). Should I give up?
View 14 Replies
My 2005 Honda Civic just made it through a blizzard (outside the whole time). This morning I started driving it, and whenever I got above 45 mph the steering wheel started vibrating / whobbling very badly. My car seat was also vibrating. I poured hot water over the rims when I got home and that did not seem to work. Should I take it to a car wash? Is my car safe to drive?
View 1 Replies
Wife's 2004 Civic isn't pretty but usually runs like new. Over 200k and going strong.Yesterday she had trouble starting. Dash lights are bright. Battery is Interstate and under a year old. She wiggled the steering wheel and it started ok . Then it wouldn't later in the day. I tried moving the shifter (automatic). Tried moving the steering wheel. Nothing from the starter. Dash lights very bright. Let it sit overnight.Today the tow truck arrived. Started right up as if nothing was wrong. Ignition switch? Transmission sensor? Starter?
View 3 Replies
I own a 1997 Honda Civic EX. Automatic. 160,000 miles. I have had the front disk rotors and pads replaced five (5) times within the past two years due to "warped" rotor issue. I recently changed the two front calipers as well to rule out caliper issues. Yet I continually end up with a warped right front rotor weeks after putting on new rotors. Here is what happens. Car brakes fine for a week or two with the new rotors. Then shortly afterwards, the right front rotor (passenger side) quickly develops a rubbing -like noise (not a grinding noise) when braking at a low speed. It's not a constant rubbing noise but a rhythmic swoosh swoosh swoosh noise as the tire rotates and the brake is softly applied. You can feel it in the brake pedal. This noise eventually gets louder and louder the more I use the brakes (or, the hotter they get?). It can also cause the steering wheel to vibrate at certain speeds when braking.
I have had it into four different mechanics.
Mechanic 1: Your rotor is warped.
Mechanic 2: You are too hard on your brakes causing the rotor to warp.
Mechanic 3: Did you go through a puddle of water lately?
Mechanic 4: You need new brakes. Period.
This is getting ridiculous. In all my years of driving, I have never encountered this problem. I am not hard on my brakes. I do not believe the "water puddle" theory at all. I should mention, although these are not oem rotors. they are not some cheap Chinese ones either. Something must be causing this rotor to "warp" if it's really warping at all. I have had the tires rotated to rule out a bent rim. It happens no matter what tire is on the right front car. What could be causing this? A bad front end alignment... bad wheel bearing... (although no mechanic ever indicated that as a problem)... bent splash guard... bad master cylinder? Air in the brake lines... old brake fluid???
View 3 Replies
So this problem started last winter. On occasion (only when it was cold outside), in the morning when I would start my car, it would start okay, but the power steering light would appear on my dashboard and I couldn't steer. Every time this happened, I was able to turn the car off and back on and it fixed the problem. Well, the problem is back this winter with a vengeance.
The other day, it was in the 40's overnight, and it took my two times of restarting my car before the power steering would come on. This morning, i had to turn my car off and on 5 times before it actually worked, and the second to last time I tried, I left it on for about 5 minutes.
I'm really worried that the problem is getting worse and it's going to be getting colder and colder. what could be wrong?
View 11 Replies
My wife drives a 2010 Honda Civic LX sedan with about 18k miles. She mentioned that its steering wheel started shaking a couple of weeks ago when driving at about 60 miles/hour at the same streth of the road during her daily commute. She did experience the problem during rest of her drive at lower speed. I drive the car about once a week at lower than 45 miles/hour and had no problem. I have checked the tires and noticed nothing obvious.
View 1 Replies
