Bad tie rod end - 2005 Suzuki Reno

if your checking the tie rod ends. jack up that side, and move tire side to side. if it moves tie rod is bad. to check for bad ball joints, move tire from top and bottom. and if it is bad you will feel it in your steering wheel.

What you describe is most often caused by a bad tie-rod end, which is part of your steering. This causes the clunking that you feel when you turn, and the tire wear.
Jack up the front drivers side and when the wheel is off the ground, try to force it left and right. If you feel any play in it, a tie rod end is bad.
To find out if it is the inner or outer tie rod end, look underneath and locate the tie rod for that wheel- it will look like a pole about an inch thick. Get somebody to move the wheel left and right like you did, and look on either end of the tie rod for which end is moving. That will be your bad tie rod end. The "outer" is the one by the wheel- the other one is the "inner". Most often it is the outer tie rod end that goes bad.
It is important to get a bad tie rod end replaced as soon as possible because it can separate and cause you to lose control of your car when the wheel will suddenly turn either in or out, depending on which way you are steering when it fails. After a tie rod end is replaced, your car will need an alignment to set the adjustment correctly. If you are changing it yourself, mark how far the old one is threaded in so your alignment will be fairly close to where it was.
Good luck, and Thank You for using FixYa!

The problem is probably not with the steering wheel- you most likely have bad tie rod ends.

You do not say how old your car/truck is, but the tie rod ends wear with time.

Usually it is the outer tie rod ends that go bad and cause loose steering, but you may want to replace both the inner and outer tie rod ends. Underneath, you can watch while somebody steers your wheels left and right, and you will see what ones are loose and need replacing.

Sounds like you need some front end parts. You can narrow down the parts you may need though. Get a jack and some jack stands and raise the front of your vehicle so the front wheels are off the ground. The first thing I would check is the tie rod ends as this would give you loose steering. Now that your wheels are off the ground, take both hands and grab each side of a front tire and wiggle it side to side. Keep your eye on the other front tire. If you can move the tire side to side at all, even a little bit, and the other tire does not move side to side with it, you have bad tie rods. Locate the point where the tie rod end connects to the steering knuckle at the wheel. The tie rod end will have a rubber boot with a bolt going through with a nut and probably a cotter pin holding the nut in. Now wiggle the tire again and keep your eye on this spot where the rubber boot meets the steering knuckle. If your knuckle moves (even a little) and the tie rod end does not, THAT tie rod end is bad. There are inner and outer tie rod ends. You want to check the pivot point (the place that the tie rod end is connected) on the inner and outer tie rod ends on both wheels. Again, you are looking for one side to move and the other to not move. Even if it only looks like a couple mm, it is bad. There should be NO movement whatsoever. Once you have identified all loose parts by moving the wheels side to side, we can now check ball joints and bearings. To do this is very similar to what we just did only this time we grab the top and bottom of the wheel and try to move it back and forth. Pull the top of the tire towards you and push the bottom of the tire away from you then vise versa. There should be absolutely no wiggle. If you do get a little play here, locate your upper and lower ball joints. these too will have rubber boots on them and just like the tie rod ends, you are going to keep your eye on the point where the boot meets the A-arm. If you see any movement here, that ball joint is bad. Now, if your wheel wiggles back and forth but your ball joints are tight (zero movement) then you have issues with the wheel bearings. If you have to replace any tie rod ends you will have to have an alignment done because your toe will be off and you will wear out your tires. When replacing a tie rod end, prior to taking it off, count the number of threads that are visible. You want to leave that same number of threads visible when you install the new one. Keep in mind, this only gets the alignment close enough to get to the shop to have it aligned. Good Luck!!

to check the tie rods you jack up the front of the car. Place your hands at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions on the tire. Push/pull on the tire. If you feel movement than look carefully at the out tie rod while you push or pull and see if it moves. If it does it is bad if it doesn't than the inner toe rod is bad. PYou will not be able to do the inner tie rod without some specialty tools.

The outer tie rods can be replaced by removing the tire, loosen the jam nut that holds the inner tie rod tight to the outer tie rod, removing the cotter pin (if it has one) from the tie rod end, remove the nut that secures the tie rod end to the knuckle, Hit the knuckle with a hammer where the tie rod goes through the knuckle until the tie rod comes loose from the knuckle (do not strike the tie rod end), remove the tie rod end from the knuckle and unscrew from inner tie rod counting the number of turns it takes to remove, install the new one using the same amount of turns.

After putting it back together you'll need to grease the new tie rod ends if equipped with grease zerks and have the car aligned.

The O2 sensor unthreads from the exhaust manifold as you thought. It will require an O2 socket which is a 7/8" socket with an opening down the side for the wiring harness to go through. you should be able to purchase the socket from the parts store that you purchase the O2 sensor at. DO NOT GET A UNIVERSAL FIT OR CHEAP AFTERMARKET BRAND, this will cause more problems and more money than just getting a good quality sensor from a reputable supplier or straight from the dealer.

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/jeremy_d728a59f986299fa

You may need a propane torch to heat up the nut on end of outer tie rod. With tie rod still attached to steering knuckle try to loosen the outer tie rod end nut that is connected to inner tie rod. Pull tie rod end back out of knuckle. Use pliers or vise grips to hold inner tie rod end while turning outer tie rod end to the left.

Instructions Things You'll Need:

• Lug nut wrench
• Jack
• Jack stands
• Wrench or pliers
• Tie rod puller
• Marker or paint
• Pen and paper
• Anti-seize compound
• Torque wrench

Remove the Tie Rod End
1. Step 1 Purchase tie rod ends that are specific to your Honda model and year, for tie rod ends vary from model year to model year. The tie rod ends often come with nuts and cotter pins (glorified bobby pins).
   
2. Step 2 Loosen the lug nuts on the front tires, but don't remove them. Jack up your vehicle, then support it securely on jack stands. Remove the tires.
   
3. Step 3 Use a wrench or piers to loosen the outer tie rod's locking nut, but do so by only 1/8th of a turn. Mark the tie rod end's position on the threaded portion of the tie rod with paint or a marker.
   
4. Step 4 Take out the cotter pin or key and use a wrench or pliers to loosen and remove the castellated nut from the outer tie rod end's spindle.
   
5. Step 5 Separate the tie rod and the steering knuckle with a tie rod puller.
   
6. Step 6 Grasp the tie rod with a wrench while you screw off the tie rod end. Make sure you keep track of the number of turns it takes to remove it, and write that number down. It'll help you when you install the replacement tie rod end.
   Replace the Tie Rod End
7. Step 1 Put a coat of anti-seize compound on the threaded portion of the tie rod end, and screw on the lock nut for the tie rod end.
   
8. Step 2 Screw on the tie rod end, making sure you do it in the same number of turns as it took to remove the original tie rod end (see Section One, Step 6).
   
9. Step 3 Slip the tapered end of the tie rod end into the steering knuckle and tighten the castellated nut to 29 to 35 foot pounds. If your tie rod end doesn't come with a castellated nut, tighten that nut to 32 foot pounds.
   
10. Step 4 Install the new cotter pin and tighten the tie rod end's lock nut. Repeat Sections 1 and 2 for the other tie rod end.
    
11. Step 5 Reinstall the tires, tighten the lug nuts and get the Honda aligned.
    

Look behind front wheel for rod that attaches to spindle/knuckle, and moves your wheel back & forth from steering rack. The tie rod (outer) is the piece attached on the end, that is threaded on that rod, and attaches to the spindle/knuckle, behind the wheel. Grab your tire and try to wiggle it hard from side to side. (hands at 3 & 9 o'clock ) Push with one hand while pulling with the other. If there is slop, or play, you have probably got a bad tie rod end, which you can observe it move by looking at where it attaches, while someone else wiggles it. Maybe this picture will help you I.D. it.

pretty decent job ahead first jack up car support with jack stands remove front wheels remove nuts on tie rod ends remove tie rod ends from spindles with tie rod end tool or tap with malet were they sit to loosen them hit the spindle area not the tie rod or tie rod threads then dissconnect power steering lines from steering rack also disconect steering linkage to rack there should be 2 main bolts holding assembly to frame remove them should free rack i know that car may have a unique design were u may have to remove inner tie rod ends first if it has those round bushings that always go bad disconect inner tie rod ends behind engine on top of steering rack then remove rack from wheel well replace those inner tie rod bushings u may be able to leave outer tie rod end connected to spindles and u may be able to get to the sterring rack from behind engine good luck

The noise you hear could be the tie rod ends or several other front end items. Can you jack up the front end? If so then turn the wheels from side to side with your hands griping the wheel at the 9 and 3 oclock positions. if you feel freeplay or looseness you have to reach arround and place your hand on the outter tie rod end and see if the play is there or the inner tie rod end at the rack. I worked for saturn for a few yaears and we had ALOT of front struts that made a clunking sound over bumps. Don't forget the lower ball joints could be bad also. Check these by placing your hand on the bottom of the wheel and pushing and pulling on the wheel with it off the ground while checking the tie rod ends. Good Luck, Scott