Steering/Front Suspension; Steering Wheel Jossling

[RASCARS]

I purchased a 2005 LS-V8 with 32,000 miles on it in February, 2009. It now has about 38,000 miles on it. I just returned from a road trip where I put about 2,500 miles on the car.
Over all I am enjoying the car very much.

My issue that I need guidance and advice is as follows:

I have noticed that the steering wheel jolts back and forth excessively when I encounter uneven pavement. Even minor road imperfections cause the steering wheel to jostle left and right and left and right. When driving for an extended time, it can be very annoying and my arms get really tired!

Has anyone else experiencing this issue? It is normal for the LS? If not, does anyone have any suggestions to correct the issue? Does anyone know of a service bulletin from Ford about this issue?

Any help or any suggestions you may offer will be greatly appreciated.

Many Thanks.

[shorod]

You really need to inspect front end or have it inspected if you are not comfortable doing the inspection yourself before driving much more. This could be a safety issue, not just yours, but your passengers and fellow motorists.

Your LS likely has alloy wheels, if they were recently removed for some reason, the lugnut torque should have been checked after approximately 50 miles of driving. You might also have a loose tie rod end or ball joint. Ball joints can get expensive on these cars to replace.

-Rod

[RASCARS]

Thank you for your advice. I did have new tires installed about a month ago (3,000 miles). I will take the car into a my mechanic this week.

Ball joints at 38,000 miles? WOW! Oh well, I need as much feedback as possible prior to going into the mechanic.

[00V6LS]

This is enteresting... I had two new tires installed on the rear and moved the old rears to the front.

After about a week of driving I have noticed some slight sensation as being described here.

Is there a certain lbs torque the lugs should be measured to?

I'm not discounting that the symptom could be realted to something else, but this is a very simple place to start.

[shorod]

I don't have the manual in front of me but I think the lugnut torque for the LS is 100 ft-lbs. The issue with checking them after 50 or so miles is to ensure that they lugs were seated properly and didn't move/loosen after the initial torque. You don't need to perform this check every 50 miles, but should check them after initial installation.

The first thing to check would be to make sure that all four tires are properly inflated. Again, going off memory here, I believe the proper inflation is 30 psi front and rear (cold). I've experienced in the past where tire shops would run the tires to the max rating on the sidewall rather than what is specified for the vehicle. If they inflated the new rear tires to 44 psi, that could upset the handling enough for you to notice. If you have one tire that is inflated more than the others, again, could upset the handling. This is probably even easier to check that lugnut torque.

Depending on the age and condition of the tires you moved to the front, you may have a separated belt or, if the alignment is off, may be getting radial pull or other sensations due to different wear from tires that were on the rear. Inspect the tires for separated belts and uneven wear.

-Rod

[lincoln4life]

Aftermarket Lower Ball Joints are sold on ebay. A good mechanic has the ability to press these Ball Joints in without damaging the aluminum control arm. (I went to our Mercedes, Jaguar Dealer and he did them both for 40 bucks each) Also the u-joint at the end of the steering wheel that connects to the rack and pinion ceased on one end and would show these symptoms. I replaced it for 50 bucks from the junk yard.