Power steering suddenly turns a lot

[MistahYebba]

Okay...

this is hard to explain, but here goes:

This is most noticeable when I am parking in a spot...

Say I am turning the steering wheel to the RIGHT to make a 90 degree turn and pull into a parking spot... at a certain point, the steering wheel gets tighter and sort of "turns itself" the rest of the way to the right, all the way to the lock if I would let it, at a pretty fast speed.

It's not that big of a deal, and maybe it's normal... since I am used to it now, I just hold the steering wheel tighter to keep it where I need it to pull into the parking spot.

However, it just seemed kind of weird to me...

Your thoughts?

 

[mbrando1994]

First check your power steering fluid, always start simple. Next check your outer and inner tie rods for ply. For outer grab the wheel at the 9 and 3 positions (while car is jacked and properly supported on jack stands) and twist it back and forth, feel for any give. Next, visually inspect the tie rod end, is the boot torn? can you move it easily? Chances are they need replacement. For inner tie rods (not likely the cause of this) remove the outer tie rod from the knuckle, and push and pull it in reference to the rack, if there's any give, it needs replaced. Worst case scenario, which is probably where you're at in all honesty with these vehicles is that your rack is starting to go. It's not the hardest job to do but it can be a pain. I recommend replacing the rack, inner, and outer tie rods all in one go and that way their all done

When a steering gear is worn (rack), drivers usually notice a tight area in steering and then it gets really loose past that point or just returns to normal after that point. Which can be pretty dangerous at speed, it is most likely your rack, but inspect those other things first just in case