2005 Ford Escape XLT (4WD) (non-Hybrid)
I apologize for the long story, but I'd rather you have the info.


Our Escape had uneven wear on the front tires. Because the mechanic we've used over the year we've lived here doesn't do alignments, my wife took it to a chain tire place on a Sunday afternoon because they were open.

He said the ball joint was bad, so he wouldn't do an alignment and because they were super-busy and short-handed, he asked if we could bring it back during the week for an estimate.

A couple of weeks later I called my guy, who recommended a shop a few blocks over who does alignments, so we took it to him. We told him that the chain store had said about the ball joint. I'm pretty sure that before we took it to him, the car had started occasionally started jerking a bit in a curve, but it's been a couple of months and I only know for certain it was doing it after. (I'm not certain if it was doing it before because my wife was mostly driving that vehicle, then)

The first time it was in his shop, the mechanic said it wasn't the ball joint, but the tie-rod. After fixing that, he sold us a couple of tires and aligned the vehicle. On the way home is when I know I was aware of the car jerking a bit in curves. I'm pretty sure it was jerking in the direction of the curve, but again, it's been a couple of months.

Took it back to him the next day and though we suggested he test drive in one direction which had multiple curves, he said he retightened the tie-rod because one side wasn't right, ran it through alignment again and test drove it in another direction which only had one s-curve.

I want to say it was better for a while, but I can't really swear that to be the case.

We've long had an ABS light which our previous mechanic in another part of the country said was the sensor. I had forgotten, but the first mechanic we used here had broken the axle and replaced it at no charge, when he was replacing the alternator.

The alignment mechanic said that we had a bad tone ring and the easiest thing to do would be to replace the axle. A week or so later, I called him and said we were ready to do the brakes, but I have one car and he does many and I wasn't really clear, instead of doing anything with the axle or the tone ring, his shop replaced the brakes.

Somewhere around this time, the vehicle started occasionally jerking to the left. Not in a curve, but in the straightways and the best we can tell, it's mostly when we're accelerating and is most noticeable between 30 & 45 MPH. This may not be entirely true, but it's true enough that we believe it. The "jerk" sort of feels like a car driving through fresh snow "falling" into a rut. It also sort of feels what I imagine a faulty ball joint might feel like.

While it was still more of a minor issue -- it happened more rarely than it's happening now -- we took it to what I'd consider our regular mechanic and got him to replace the axle. I didn't actually say anything to him about the jerking because it was still too occasional and I was hoping it was related to the tone ring.

It's now gotten progressively worse and I'm at a loss for diagnosis. You'd think that if it was the ball joint, between the two alignments, the brake job, tire replacement and rotation and getting a new axle, one of the mechanics would have noticed it.

Compounding the issue is the fact that there's two (or three if you count the first guy, four if you count the chain tire place) garages involved. Also, I've done some of the engine work my regular mechanic recommended, so there could be a thing about me getting them to diagnose and then doing the work myself or the one mechanic replacing the axle like the alignment guy had suggested. Who knows. We haven't lived here long, so there's not really a lot of history. All I know is that they all get good Yelp reviews.

Also should probably be factored... the alignment mechanic said he felt vibration around 45 MPH and because didn't think we use the 4WD, he said he disconnected the drive shaft from the CV joint (or something like that) as a means of diagnosis. (If there had been a vibration, we hadn't paid attention to it and he did this at no charge, all on his own) Also, a few years ago, prior to our move, the transmission was rebuilt twice (once under the transmission shop's warranty) and I don't remember what the vehicle was doing, but on a third trip the transmission shop had to do something with the transfer case.

Any thoughts?

Mostly around 40 MPH -- though it may just be too subtle to notice at higher speeds and we rarely drive this vehicle on the highway, so we're mostly traveling short distances at 35 & 45 MPH -- the SUV lurches a bit toward the left and there's a little jerk in the steering wheel. It really feels like I described, like it's getting caught in a rut. Both the car and the steering wheel jerks to the left side. There hasn't been any noticeable uneven wear over the three months we've been trying to figure this out and the front tires look straight up and down. We also haven't noticed any noise. Not going down the road, not when we turn or when the steering wheel jerks.

Thanks. I'd appreciate any suggestions or help

 

My experience with "jerking" into a corner as you described was related to the beginning of a failed wheel bearing.

 

It started as jerking into a curve -- so much so, we suggested the guy test drive it on a curvy road -- but now I don't know that it'll even do it in a curve. After these several repairs, it may just do it on the straights. Is there any kind of test I could do or another sign I could look for to see if this is the case?

Thanks. This is a predicament and I appreciate all thoughts.
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PS in General: After conferring with my wife, we're more than 90% positive that prior to taking it for the alignment and tie-rod, the Escape pulled to the side like it needed an alignment, but didn't jerk. This and the couple of unnecessary repairs (including my mistake) is why I'm reluctant to take it to the alignment guy and without any guidance, ask him to figure it out.

 

Way too much history to make sense of. What actually happens now, on a straight, floor the throttle, which way does it pull? Lift off, which way does it pull?

 

First thing came to mind was a bad CV joint that grabbed one of the fingers as it moved internally.(actually the outer part moves, but...) Sometimes a spot may get more wear, causing slight grabbing, or the bearings get worn, dirty, or damaged, again causing grab.
BUT, the axle has been replaced, or have both? Not too clear at this point.
Bearings should feel 'rough' if the vehicle is raised wheels off the ground. As the tire is rotated, the bearings that are bad should indicate by rough spots in their race surfaces, causing a slight grabbing or hesitation in the smooth rotation.
Ball joint looseness would allow the knuckle to move around, causing sloppy wheel/tire positioning. The vehicle weight is carried by the upper strut, and the lower ball joint just 'positions' the lower arm fore & aft, in & out from centerline. It may/will wiggle as side loads are applied when turning, but should generally take a 'set' as it gets loaded.
All that said, Teach, which of the garages/mechanics do you think is really paying attention? Is trying to find a solution without seeking a boat payment or dental brace payment for their teen(s)? Which is actually looking, moving things, wiggling, using a long iron bar to load/unload the suspension in any/all directions? (you can't really shove using a hand.. stiff springs, bushings, etc) Choose that one, and have them take a ride with you at the wheel, normal speeds, normal weather, loaded with X or Y passengers as is common. Demonstrate the glitching, and then let him/her take the wheel & experience it.
tom

 

@tomw: The front axle was replaced.

I'm planning to get the car up and following the Youtube instructions, check the ball joints and the outer tie-rod, but I didn't get to it today. The idea was to get it up, check those and any suggestions from the forum. I'm really not seeing any indication the vehicle is about to fall apart or present much danger driving it around town at city speeds, so I'm still driving it ten to fifteen miles a day. When it goes up on jacks, it'll have to come back down, so I'd like to check as much as possible at once.

When I get it up, I'll also spin the tires to see if I feel any roughness or hesitation.

Earlier this evening, I took it out to make certain we're not hearing any noise before I replied. Driving around, I'm not hearing anything, not even when it jerks. I've also tried backing out of the driveway and doing 5 MPH down our street. Inside the car or standing alongside, we're not hearing any noise. But, tonight I took it to a grocery store I don't go to often. It has a very rough parking lot and I noticed that if I went real slow around it, you'd hear the popping sound described as possibly indicative of a bad ball joint.

As for the mechanics... one I believe is more of a motor shop and the other, we've thought the problem was the ball joint and have been delaying because we just went to a great expense (on two different vehicles), but as we've become more and more certain that it wasn't jerking before going in for the alignment, we've wondered whether the problem is something he may have caused and would like more information. My feeling is that he'd make it right and I could be convinced to pay something, but I'd rather go in with a good idea of what's the problem, if that's possible.

We haven't lived here but a year and though we'd say we're mostly pleased with both mechanics, I can't really say I'm ecstatic. Also, when we took it back the next day after the alignment, we suggested the mechanic take it for a test drive to the left and he took it to the right because he "didn't have time" to make a five mile circle than go two miles out, then back over the same route. (There's also the way he disconnected the drive train or something and the fact that not only did his computer not alert him that I needed a tone ring, they didn't notice when they were redoing the brakes or that the ABS light didn't go off) (The other guy on the other hand, he may be quoting me book, but there have been a couple of things he's estimated I thought were bit high based on the labor to do it myself)


@simonsi: I haven't tried flooring it, but going up the 35 MPH through road which goes by my street, it might jerk twice in the 2.5 miles to the turn, then again like a 100' after the turn. The two times it jerks, the steering wheel goes like 1/2" or maybe an inch to the left and the car follows what could be the appropriate amount. I then just straighten it up.

After the turn, it might jerk an inch to an inch and a half. On the 45 MPH road, the steering wheel probably jerks two to three inches when I'm up to speed. The lower the speed, the less the jerk and though I rarely take it on a 55 MPH road, I'd say less than 30 and more than 45, the jerk is so subtle it's barely noticeable, if it's happening at all.


Again, I appreciate all the help.

 

Im trying to find out whether putting the driveline under heavy DRIVE strain prompts movement, that is the usual way to diagnose these things, flooring vs overun puts the ball joints under different direction loads, it has nothing to do with speed.

If you want to diagnose this then please carry out some actions as described, random driving round and long-winded descriptions when the loads causing the symptoms arent known dont help at all.

Carpark clonks are almost certainly swaybar links but they do NOT cause any alignment issue.

 

I can't say that I've noticed anything different about merging onto a highway than driving through town. By "accelerating", I mean not coasting or decelerating, but I don't really have a place to do jackrabbit starts. There is a highway at either end of town. Merging onto them requires me to get up to speed in a short amount of time and we took trip for New Year's that had lots of highway merging, but the car doesn't really behave any differently than driving through a 45 MPH commercial zone.

I think there is some jerking from 55 to 75 MPH, but it really isn't enough to move the wheel or divert the vehicle. It's just a sensation in the steering.

I understand you're not asking about speed, while I'm saying that in the window of 35 to 45 MPH is where there's an action and a noticeable reaction. If there's something in particular I should feel for as I merge onto the highway, I could make the 45 minute round-trip to the highway and the next exit, but two weeks ago I merged onto one of the highways four times and a couple of weeks before that, I drove the highway system through Orlando and spent a couple of days merging on the highways from one end of Tampa/St Pete to the other, then back across Florida. I'm pretty sure the vehicle probably jerks once on most on-ramps as I quickly get up to highway speed, but it's not more than driving through town with city traffic and stoplights. One to maybe three inches on the steering wheel and the car goes what seems like the appropriate amount, always to the driver's side and I just straighten back up.

 

Then I think it is unlikely to be an alignment/suspension issue.

Feelings like that can be a loose power steering pump belt - has that been checked?

 

Most if not all FWD vehicles have the toe set to a bit outward. When the vehicle is being driven, the offset of the tires from the virtual kingpin will pull the tires toward each other at the front. That will tighten the outer tie rod, and the inner tie rod, putting them in tension.
Have you raised the vehicle on stands, and tried to wiggle the tire back and forth, grabbing at 9:00 and 3:00 positions? That is the tie-rod check method. If you can get some wiggle, something is worn. (or loose) There should be just about zero play in the outer tie rod, the inner tie rod, through the rack, other inner tie rod, and out the other side to the other outer tie rod.
For something to 'grab' one of the wheels, and have enough force to move the steering wheel it has to have a pretty good bit of energy involved. If you manually try to move the steering wheel, both tires off the ground, you will likely give up pretty quickly. You will be able to move it slowly(likely, anyway) if the column is unlocked(key in OFF or ON, not LOCK). You are moving the tire & wheel, the tie rods and rack & pinion and the other side wheel, tie rods, etc. AND moving the piston in the power steering built into the rack, AND moving the steering column shaft AND the steering wheel.
It is not really easy to send enough force backwards through the steering system to readily move the steering wheel.
It is possible the valve in the rack & pinion is hanging, or has something, particles or chunks, that are intermittently clogging the valving, and 'powering' the steering to jump. Not real likely, as the valve is a 'spool' valve that is opened in either direction by twisting a flexible shaft that moves the valve, just a small amount, and then provides hydraulic 'push' to help move the column in 'that' direction, and, once the steering linkage & wheels have moved to relax the flexy shaft, the valve will close, removing the hydraulic power. If you had some 'goo' or rubber chunks, or ???, it could jam the valve or make it twitchy. Just cannot tell from 500 miles away. What does the power steering fluid look like? Brown and toasty, smelly, or purplish and non-stinky?
tom

 

In addition to Toms instructions, also see if there is ANY play up and down (12 and 6 oclock positions). Push in at the top and pull out on the bottom, then reverse.
If you detect any play whatsoever, pull the wheel off and repeat on the hub. There should be NO PLAY in that bearing.
If there is the slightest amount of play, the toe in will suddenly change in a corner and it feels just like you've described.... a sudden pulling effect like drifting into slush. Not enough to lose control, but certainly enough to notice. Also worth noting is that this may or may not be accompanied by the sound of a bad bearing. Eventually, though, it will.
Unfortunately, the front end will not allow spinning of the axles freely and in turn the hub. Wiggling the top and bottom of the wheel in and out is the quickest and easiest test.
Check both sides.
Another inspection point would be the brake pads. If the bearing is allowing the wheel camber to change, the pads will not wear evenly when comparing the top of each pad to it's bottom. It only takes a few degrees of slop in the bearing to change the rotor alignment with the pads.

 

@simonsi: The belt looks okay and I'd have to check the bill to see if it was replaced when the third (1st) mechanic replaced the alternator and did something to the axle which caused him to replace it at no charge, reportedly with one that wasn't the right fit and may have come with a bad tone ring.

Based upon your suggestion, I checked the power steering fluid and it is a bit low - maybe about a half inch below "min" -- though there's still plenty of fluid visible.

@tomw: I was going to pick up some power steering fluid and top off the reservoir after reading @simonsi's suggestion, but before doing so, based upon your inquiry, I thought I'd mention to you and the other helpful members of this forum: The power steering fluid looks to be on the brownish side of clear. It isn't purple and it's more clear than brown, but it definitely leans toward that hue. As for the smell, I'd say engine-like. It's not sweet and smells like it's been heated, but I don't know that "toasty" is the right word and I wouldn't say it smells burnt.


I still haven't jacked the vehicle. My wife is out of town and it's what I have to drive. I'd like to get to it tonight, but there's only a short window between kid events and I have the jack that came with the vehicle, plus I should have another like it. I may be able to get on it later tonight, but it might actually be tomorrow evening before I can get it into the air. (I have ramps, so I'm able to quickly get under it, but I'm thinking that jacking, checking everything and putting it back down would probably take me almost two hours, maybe even three if I'm doing both sides and removing tires.)

Another point which has occurred to me as I've studied this problem by writing it all out: the jerks could be predictable. Like a lot of people, I mostly drive the same routes.

I think there's always a jerk after the two turns from and onto roads with speed limits of 35. Memory says that often there's a jerk maybe a 100' after I accelerate through or from a major intersection and one coming out of one that's usually congested, plus one where I pretty much always accelerate because the lay of the road, but just now on a test drive, I just had the ones after the two corners and no where else. They also only happened as I went north and not as I drove back south. I haven't paid enough attention to know if that's the usual. I think it's not, but can't swear.


@got2bjoester: I'll check the 12 and 6 when I get it in the air and I'll look at the brakes. Thanks.

Though now that you remind me... prior to taking it in for an alignment, we had a blowout from the uneven wear. That's why my wife took it to the chain tire place. Because I didn't set the parking brake or chock the tires, the vehicle fell off the jack when we pulled the tire off and the metal hub came crashing down onto some wicked-old, sun-heated, soft asphalt at the edge of a driveway.

After rejacking the vehicle, nothing looked damaged and the chain tire guy didn't say anything about it, when he was replacing the tire. (Though he was short-handed and very busy on a Sunday afternoon, plus he had already diagnosed the ball joint the eventual alignment guy dismissed)

From Sunday to Friday, I didn't do anything regarding the vehicle, then on Friday or maybe Saturday, I called the mechanic whom I've been calling the alignment guy and he suggested I bring it in the next Tuesday or Wednesday. By that Tuesday, Hurricane Matthew was headed our way and everybody was in preparation mode, so I didn't take it in because I figured he was busy and then we evacuated across Florida in the Escape. It was probably two weeks after the hurricane and around four weeks weeks after the SUV had fallen off the jack that we took it in for the alignment.

I mention all this because neither my wife nor I remember any jerking before we took it into the alignment shop, but we definitely remember it on the three mile drive home. Maybe he fixed it so well that the jerking became obvious after it stopped pulling. And again, it seems like it may have been better for a few days after he had retightened the tie-rod (or maybe it was the toe). We didn't take it back a second time after that repair and I'm pretty sure it wasn't jerking when we took it back a week or so later, when due to a miscommunication, they did a brake job instead of addressing the toe ring. Otherwise, I would have surely told him about it and he might not have given my brake job to his son.

All of this was long after it had fallen off the jack. Though, I guess it could be a factor.


Thanks to everyone for all the help.

 

Promise I won't bombard you with every little update, but I just laid on the ground looking up under the vehicle to see where to place the jack. The ball joints are caked in black, fresh-feeling grease. I assume the alignment guy gave them a good coating. Also, I see that he didn't just disconnect the drive shaft from the CV joint (or something like that, I'd have to research) to get rid of a vibration he felt in the console around 45 MPH (that was never a concern to me or anything we remember), but he's taken it completely out and kept it.

Also, topping off the power steering fluid to get it between min & max didn't do anything about the jerking. Didn't think it would, but I put what seems like around a cup in it, then drove it.

Edit: The left lower ball joint is caked in grease. The right looks bone dry.

 

I'm going to leave the SUV up in the air for a couple of hours, as I do a little more studying and in hope that one of the helpful members of this forum might chime-in with thoughts or something else to check. If need be, once it's down, I could get it back up tomorrow evening around 9.

There's no play with pulling the tires at 12 and 6, but there is play on the left side with hands near 9 and 3. It's like maybe a quarter to half an inch, in and out.

If you go to around the 3:18 mark in the following video, if I stick a crowbar between the knuckle and the control arm (as he does in the video), I get the same result. The stud bolt moves up and down in the pinch joint.
(This could go along with the alignment guy telling us that the uneven wear wasn't caused by a bad ball joint as the tire chain guy said, but the "thing the ball joint screws into" -- or something like that. Whatever it was, he kind of breezed over it and I'm guessing he thought he had fixed it.)

The stud on that side, above and under the pinch joint is covered with grease.

When you spin the tires, there's a little rub, but they spin relatively easy and though I didn't do it for a long time, I didn't notice any binding or skips.

And, if one person grabs the left tire at 9 and 3 and gets the play, another person looking under the car will see that it's all (or at least mostly) in the stud. I'd describe the movement as more back and forth, though there's also an element of up and down in the way the stud moves through the pinch joint.

The other side seems fine and it has what feel like the same spinning tire rub as the left.

Again thanks. All help and suggestions is appreciated.

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Late edit: The head side of the bolt which goes through the steering knuckle looks as rusted as everything around it, while the nut side looks like it's been cleaned-up with WD-40. Appearances are that the alignment guy may have tightened the pinch joint. I tried to do it myself this evening, but the tire was in the way and it's after midnight, so I dropped it back down and will try again in the next few days. Hopefully, unless anyone has any cautions, I'll be able to tighten it with just one wheel into the air.

Of course while it's up, I can check anything else. Grabbing ahold of the lower tie-rod as some do in videos, it didn't move.

Because the pinch bolt has been tightened before and it needs tightened again, I'm thinking something might need replaced, but not sure what and how difficult it'd be.

Thanks again for all the help!

 

I watched the video (3:18-3:45) and if you have the same problem then you need it fixed immediately. I've wrenched cars and trucks my whole life and never seen a ball joint do that.

Get it fixed. And based on your descriptions and wording of your posts- you don't seem to have the necessary experience to do such a project.

Get it it fixed by a professional.

That ball joint holds your wheel on the car. This is a safety issue for you AND for others on the roads you are sharing.

Tow it it to a shop. If you have to drive it, keep your hazard lights on and do not exceed about 35mph.