97 legacy L Sedan

160k miles

auto trans

 

 

when i turn the wheel to the left moving or not, there is a creaking from somewhere in the steering rack... or so it sounds..

 

can someone explain this to me?

thanks

Ball joint?

 

Tie Rod end?

 

Tie Rod?

 

The mileage is right for any of these to fail.

 

 

If any of those are so bad they are creaking this needs to be checked ASAP. You dont want total failure of these while the car is moving.

Bad strut top bearing possibly too.

 

First thing to do is to look for obvious stuff like Nipper mentioned - look at the tie rod and ball joint boots - check them well and clean them off if they're dirty to see if they're busted or not.

 

If it's creaking while sitting still this is REALLY easy. Have someone keep turning it while you try and narrow it down.

 

Get on the left side and listen, find out if it's by the wheel (all the stuff Nip mentioned) or up high in the engine bay (pop the hood) - that would be strut mount.

 

Luckily none of this is expensive, all are easy to fix, and aren't a safety hazzard typically. Of course I dont' know the history so all disclaimers on the comment apply.