Hey guys,

I have a 1995 civic dx. I have a loud rattle, almost cv joint sounding noise when the car is moving or hits even a moderately unsmooth surface. I thought it would be the cv's but it does it in nuetral and when i am going straight (maybe it is.)

I replaced the tie rods, they were shot, and the struts, bad advice.

Any other ideas of what this could be. It almost seems as though its in the steering linkage or somthing.

 

If the CVs are really 100% shot they will still rattle likecrazy evenwhen coastingin neutral. Think about it.. the drive shafts are still turning. CVs from Autozone or someplace like that are pretty cheap. Just be SURE to use the new clip when installing. You can't really go wrong replacing them. If they have never been replaced, it's probably time anyway.

 

Thanks. I kind of figured that, but I had some mechanics look at other areas and cv joints were not mentioned. And I have always heard it clunks when you turn. I will look into those boots to check.

 

Jack up the wheel and securely support the car so you can safely get under it. Hold the center part of the axle and try to rotate the wheel without the axle turning. Also try to move the shaft up and down and back and forth. Any slack at all in a CV joint means it's bad. Generally the joints only go bad after the boot fails.

 

Bad CV's rarely make noise when you're going in a straight line. They make a racket while turning. If they get so bad that they make noise in a straight line, they are probably already binding up and jerking the car around while you're driving. That doesn't sound like your issue.

Does the car FEEL bad, or does it just make noise?

 

it mostly just makes noise.

When I turn, its not as bad as it is when there is a somewhat rough road, or bumps.