grinding sound

I have a 1998 Windstar. When the van is stopped or going very slow it makes a grinding sound while turning right. It doesnt do it at all at speed and doesnt make any sound when I turn left. I can not find anything rubbing anywhere. It was making the sound before I replaced the worn out inner tie rod, which I thought might have been the noise problem because there was a half inch of play in the inner tie rod. I ended up replacing both inner tie rods, and both outer tie rods since I needed an alignment done anyway. The rack was replaced in 2007 so I am hoping it isnt going bad again. Anybody have this problem or a solution to fix it?

sounds really bearing related. I'd be starting there.

Mine made a noise that sounded like a whale moaning or something to me (is that what you mean by grinding) and it turned out it was the power steering rack - luckily for me it was still under warranty but once they fixed it I never had the problem again... and it was the same way, only happened when I turned right.

Have you flushed out the P/S fluid? If not, I would start there as the Windstars usually cooks the fluid. Mine had a whining sound when turning left about 2 years ago and I flushed the fluid out. Never had that noise happen again and the steering on the van got smoother after that. Very inexpensive and easy to do, make sure you use Automatic Transmission Fluid with the Mercon V label and NOT Power Steering Fluid. Good Luck

I would second that, changing the PS fluid. My wife drives the 2000 Winnie. One day I happen to drive it. It was making terrible noise. I thought I need to replace the Pump or ties rods etc. Then I read here. I changed the fluid, Mobil-1 Synthetic ATF. The noise went away the next day. Even if it is not the cause, I would change it. There are procedures documented here in other posts.

If you want to do it the easy way, you can buy a turkey baster......suck most of the fluid out of the power steering resevior.......replace with new Mercon V ATF (The Mobil 1 mentioned is an excellent choice and easy to find).
Do that a few times......driving the vehicle in between changes.....and you will end up with nice fresh fluid.
Mobil 1 is a synthetic fluid....which will be able to take the heat better and also give you better flow in the cold winter.

The power steering fluid change is super cheap and super easy.....and is recommended routine maintenance every few years.

A wheel bearing could be the cause, or also a tight tie rod end.....as they don't have grease fittings, they can dry out.....and make noises as you are turning the wheel.
However, checking these out is best left to a mechanic....rather than just replacing.
A good alignment includes a thorough shake down of the front end.......checking all these parts out.
Worth having that done every once in a while, or, like now.....when you notice something odd like a noise.

The noise is very load like a low groaning sound. It doesnt make the noise if I turn to the right when the engine is not running, but with it running just the slightest movement to the right makes the noise and it does it to full lock, but not a sound when turned to the left. The tie rods are new and the outer ones do have grease fittings on them. The noise was there before they were replaced, and still there now. If it is the rack going bad wouldnt the noise happen when I turn both ways, not just to the right? It was replaced with a new rack in 2007 shouldnt they last longer than that?

I would try the fluid exchange first....as it is the easiest and cheapest.
If that does not help, then it is possible that there is a problem with the rack.
Should they last longer?....YES.....I still have the original on my '96 windstar at over 214K miles.
However, they can fail.
Was the unit that was installed new or rebuilt?
Of course, before spending the money for a replacement rack.....I would want to check into it....or have it checked into......before replacing it......and possiblily having the problem be caused by something else.

One other thing that is sometimes recommended when a steering rack or pump is replaced is the fluid exchange.....and a Magnefine filter.
The Magnefine filter will filter out any particles that may be in the fluid......like metal particles from a failing steering rack.
As shown in the picture, you would want the 3/8" size for the power steering.
I installed it into the hose that goes from the cooler (pipe in front of the bottom part of the radiator) to the resevoir. This is the low pressure line, the metal line from the pump to the steering rack being the high pressure line.

The Transmission takes a 5/16" size.

Here is a link to a picture of the filter that I installed on my '96 when I replaced my power steering pump (due to a noise that I later found to be the idler pulley).
http://rides.webshots.com/photo/1334942382011220610PicgSc

I want to thank you all for the recommendations here. I have a 2000 Windstar LX and I have been experiencing this grinding noise ONLY on sharp left turns for quite some time. I just went to our local automotive store and got the Mercon V ATF. The man that helped me was surprised to find out that I was putting automatic transmission fluid in the power steering reservoir (he looked it up and verified that Ford indeed recommends this...). I sucked out the fluid, refilled with new fluid, turned on the engine and cranked the wheel all the way to the left/right a few times--and repeated this process 3 times. I then took a test drive and......the annonying (embarrasing) sound is gone!! Thank you SO much for the great advice! :-) My husband is happy and I am SO pleased that this was all taken care of for about $5.00.