Another automotive mystery!

[mathnerd]

I own a 2005 Mazda MPV. I bought it in April of last year. Right before I bought it, the previous owner bought two new tires, put them on the back, and put the old back tires on the front. It was out of alignment when I bought it, so the next day I took it to get aligned. It was back out of alignment within 100 miles. For the record, I've only put about 7000 miles on it since I bought it.

So, here's the other symptoms:

-light squeal coming out of both front wheels, but slightly louder on the passenger side
-faint clicking from the front wheels (I can't tell if it's one side or both)
-When reversing cold, a very loud squeal coming out of the front wheels.
-Won't hold an alignment: pulls slightly to the left
-Wobbly steering wheel, worse at low speeds.
-Bad alignment causing uneven wear only on driver's side front tire

Now, I no longer have access to "Daddy's Garage", which means I'm limited with tools and lack a flat place to work (there's a couple classic cars and a classic motorcycle in the garage). I've taken it to various mechanics to have it looked at and a problem diagnosed. I've been dismissed out of hand and told I just need new tires on the front. That's bullshit. I need new tires because there's something wrong. The dude I took it to today was rude, condescending and dismissive. He wouldn't listen to me and refused to believe anything I said to him. Now I'm pissed. Anyway, I'm hoping you guys might have some ideas.

The bearings look good and the shocks and struts are fine. I do need both front and rear breaks in the next 1000 miles or so, but they're not in any danger of going bad right away. Thoughts?

[ApolloSZ]

Is it a front wheel/all wheel drive? - CV Joints/boots? Last time I had shudders etc on my old sprinter (front wheel drive) one of the tyres had a massive bulge in the tread face. Like, deformed bulge, and the clicking noise I had was the CV joints starting to go.

[mathnerd]

Front wheel drive and I'm 99% certain cv joints. A visual inspection with the car on a lift and the wheels off doesn't reveal anything of concern. The wheels are also solid when I try to pull/push sideways on them with them off the ground and appear to rotate smoothly.

[protege]

The clicking noise probably is the CV joints starting to go. What usually happens with these, is that the rubber boots tend to split. Over time, dirt, grit, and moisture finds its way in...and eventually destroys the joint.

As for the car pulling to the left, what are the tire pressures like? Low pressure on that side could easily cause the car to pull. Another cause, would be bent or worn suspension components. What do the suspension bushings (usually rubber) look like? Are they frayed or torn?

The squealing has me thinking that the brake caliper pistons aren't retracting all the way--causing the pads to ride on the discs.

[wolfie]

If there's "slop" in the suspension, an alignment won't hold. Things that can cause "slop" are bushings that have gone bad (worn/weathered/whatever), worn kingpins (in my truck - your car probably has ball joints instead, but same issue), stuff in the steering linkage (don't know what the equivalents in rack and pinion would be called, but for my truck it would be the drag link and the tie rod).

[ApolloSZ]

Front wheel drive and I'm 99% certain cv joints

The clicking noise probably is the CV joints starting to go. What usually happens with these, is that the rubber boots tend to split. Over time, dirt, grit, and moisture finds its way in...and eventually destroys the joint.

Sorry, I wrote my original email in poor england - The CV Joints are inside the Boots, they are one and the same Mine had a clicking sound on full lock turning. The CV boots were torn (much like Protege is saying) and not only was the grime and dirt and crap getting in, I had a line of grease that was getting flung out in the back of the wheel well. Its worth getting them checked/replaced as needed - They replaced the whole joint, fresh grease, and a new boot for me and both at once. I think mine were 300 to 400, but thats NZD and for my model car.

The wobble - I'd go to a tire place or if you can lift the wheels to spin, see if one has a noticeable bump in the tread. My one the guy pointed and I could see it instantly - Was getting new tyres anyway tho.

Bit gutted for you with the treatment from the mechanics. I followed a golden rule I was taught - "Find a good mechanic, and keep them". Current ones don't over charge, work with me on costs, and are speedy and friendly.

[mathnerd]

I love mass miscommunication. And I also wasn't clear. I meant I was 99% certain that the CV joints are aging and a possible cause for all this, but it just doesn't quite seem to fit.

[mathnerd]

Yesterday I inspected the front tires. There had been a bubble I missed when I inspected them a few weeks ago, which had burst in the interim, exposing the steel. I put new tires on today. That solved the steering wheel bobbling. It also lessened the squealing noise going forward. I've read in a couple places that uneven wear on brake pads can cause squealing in reverse. Since the front pads are about 10%, I'm going to replace those this weekend. The back brakes might also need replacing, but I haven't looked. When I have the wheels off to replace the brakes I will take a closer look at the suspension. I'm still not fully recovered from my appendectomy so I'm not sure when I will do it.

[Seshat]

I was going to say that the easiest to diagnose is probably the tires.

Examine the tires, inside and outside, for - as you found, in the post just above this one - any sort of bubbling or delamination or deformity.

Get a cheap exercise book, or one of the kids' old ones. Start using it to maintain records of stuff like the following:

Using a tread gauge (NOT a credit card or a thumbnail), measure each tire's tread; centre, inwards and outwards, in each of eight compass points. Make a chalk mark for 'north' (if you like, also for each of the other points). Move the car when you need to measure 'south' and 'se' and 'sw'.
If the tread wear is uneven, this points to a problem. A good mechanic will be grateful for the info; especially if you mark the 'north' point with a tape or something that will survive the trip to the mechanic.
Different wear patterns are caused by different problems. This is why you go to all that trouble to record the pattern.

Get a good tire pressure gauge. Record the pressure of all five (NOT four) tires. The fifth is the spare.
Never ever trust the gauges at the petrol station: tragedy of the commons. You never know how the poor things have been abused. Get your own, care for it as a precision instrument.

Whenever you rotate tires or buy new ones, and whenever you get a wheel alignment or other change done to things which affect the tires, mark that in the exercise book and highlight it.

Keep the book, and your copy of every repair document, in one place. This will help you (and mechanics) diagnose wtf is going on with your car.


As for further diagnosis of this particular set of problems: I do na' like it. But I dinna ken what is wrong. Here, I defer to the others.

But if any of them want to know the pressures or tread wear patterns....

[wolfie]

Using a tread gauge (NOT a credit card or a thumbnail), measure each tire's tread; centre, inwards and outwards, in each of eight compass points. Make a chalk mark for 'north' (if you like, also for each of the other points). Move the car when you need to measure 'south' and 'se' and 'sw'.
If the tread wear is uneven, this points to a problem. A good mechanic will be grateful for the info; especially if you mark the 'north' point with a tape or something that will survive the trip to the mechanic.

No need to mark (and hope the marking survives the trip to the mechanic), since there's already a durable marker installed on the wheel - the valve stem is "north".

[mathnerd]

Well, new tires and new brakes have solved a substantial chunk, but not all of the issues. I still have the faint clicking noise and a much lighter squeal than before. Unfortunately I couldn't see anything obvious when the tires were off. Everything looks to be in great condition, especially considering it's a 10 year old van. I'm stumped. But at least you can't hear me coming from half a mile away anymore.

ETA: When I got the front brake pads off they were cracked and crumbling. I'm guessing some of the noise was little pieces of brake pad breaking loose and getting caught around the rotors. There's some grooving in the rotors, but not enough to worry me. I may replace them anyway, just for the fun of it.