I've got a challenging one I think. My 2009 Ford Escape just had tie rods, stabilizer bars, lower control arms etc. anything with rubber in it up front was replaced last fall. about a month or so later I started feeling an uneasy feeling in the steering it just didn't feel right, as it has gotten worse I am able to diagnose it better. when I accelerate the truck pulls to the left quite a bit, and when I decelerate it pulls to the right. So when I'm maintaining a certain speed it's like driving on top of a big pipe, constantly feeling a subtle left and right movement. After the work was done I had it aligned, and when it went in for a tire replacement a month ago, I had them check to see if everything was tight from the front end work. They ended up sending it for a realignment and they said the toe in was off a little bit. None of this helped, the problem is still there. Sometimes I hear a clunk when I go from P to R to back up an incline, it feels like it's coming from where the lower control arms mount to the frame under your feet. The alignment shop said my rear stabilizer bushings are shot, but could that be causing all this? The best word I can use to describe the steering is squirrelly. Would a broken motor mount cause this behavior?

It's a 09 Escape Limited with a V6 AWD and 148k on it.

Thanks,
Bob

 

Check your wheel bearings. I had a bad one in my '02 and it felt "darty" where it would dart left, then right for no apparent reason.

 

Check and make sure all those new parts still have tight bolts and that none of the rubber bushings have failed prematurely. It sounds to me like the lower control arm is moving, probably on the right side. Could also be a loose sub-frame that's moving under the torque load.

Might as well check the motor mounts while you're at it. Look to see if either the transmission or the engine is sitting on the sub-frame and whether or not the engine rocks fore and aft when shifting between forward and reverse while at a stop.

 

Hello EscapeeBob. Did you ever find a solution to this problem? I have a 2011 with the same issue. I have been trying things for a couple months now and am to the point where I will probably sell the vehicle. Any info you can give will help.