How to Diagnose Why A Car Makes Noise When Turning

Most of us who have been driving for at least a few years have experienced it at some point: Your car makes noise when turning. These sounds can range from the mildly unsettling to the downright disastrous, and many people describe them as clunking, clanking, rattling, or dozens of other colorful adjectives. Regardless of the sound, if your car is making noises whenever you turn, it’s likely an indication of a problem with your suspension system.

If these problems are left unchecked, the results can be extremely dangerous. A failed suspension component can lead to serious injury and possibly even death as the result of a bad crash or accident. Does your car make noise when turning? If so, read on to find out the most common causes and how to fix them.

Why Your Car Makes Noise When Turning

Most often, if your car is making noise when you are turning, it’s a problem with your suspension system. Your suspension system consists of dozens of parts. These include the shock absorbers, springs, ball joints, tire rods, control arms, steering knuckles, struts, and all kinds of linkages and bushings. 

In addition, nowadays there are also several different kinds of suspension systems. These include MacPherson strut, double wishbone, leaf spring, rigid axle, multi-link, independent, and air-ride. All of these systems work differently than each other and use slightly different parts, and unfortunately all of them are susceptible to issues.

It’s important to diagnose and fix any problems with your suspension system as soon as you realize they are happening. The suspension system is the lifeblood of a car’s handling. With an improper suspension setup it can be difficult to safely control your vehicle. Obviously, if you can’t safely handle your vehicle you can’t safely drive, making your suspension a pretty vital component. 

Most Common Car Noise When Turning

The most common reasons a car makes noise when turning are:

• Cause #1 for a Car Knocking While Turning – Tie Rods
• Cause #2 for a Car Rattling When Turning – Sway Bar Links and Bushings
• Cause #3 for Why A Car Clacks – Ball Joints
• Cause #4 for Why A Car Clunks When Turning – Suspension/Steering System
• Cause #5 for Why A Car Whining While Turning – Power Steering System Failure
• Cause #6 for Why My Car Thuds While Turning – Shocks & Struts
• Cause #7 for Why A Vehicle Makes a Clunking Sound While Turning – Wheels & Tires

Top Causes of Car Noise When Turning

Cause #1 for a Car Knocking While Turning – Tie Rods

One of the most common causes of a car making noise when turning is a bad or damaged tie rod. There are two tie rods for each wheel, an inner and outer tie rod. The tie rods’ purpose is to connect the steering rack to the steering arm — which the steering wheel controls. Without tie rods, your vehicle would not be able to hardly maneuver or really turn, leaving the car basically undrivable. 

The most common signs of damaged tie rods are loud knocking or clunking sounds, which are especially present when turning. You might notice the sounds more at lower speeds than higher speeds. Additionally, the steering wheel might excessively vibrate or feel loose. You’ll also notice uneven tire wear from an uneven alignment. The ride will probably be a bit bumpy when turning, too. 

If you suspect a tie rod is the issue, it’s best to stop driving until it’s fixed. Luckily, tie rods are not too expensive to replace, so the repair is much cheaper than others. Still, it’s an important fix to make if you suspect a problem. A damaged tie rod can also damage other components like the steering arm, rack, and knuckles. 

Cause #2 for a Car Rattling When Turning – Sway Bar Links and Bushings

The next most common cause of a car making noise when turning are the sway bar end links. Sway bars are also known as anti-roll bars in the aftermarket community. Their purpose is to help reduce body roll and sway when cornering at speed. They also improve traction and stability.

Sway bars connect to the car frame through a bushing, and to the control arms through end links. Often, the end links or bushings will become compromised. This leads to the anti-roll bar having too much slack. Too much slack makes them ineffective, and can also result in pieces falling off and damaging other suspension components if the end links or bushings fall out. The end links can fail after high mileage and repeated abuse. While bushings often fail after becoming brittle over years of use. 

The biggest signs of sway bar end link or bushing failure are clunking or rattling at all speeds, increased body roll, and uneven tire wear — particularly on the outside of the tire. You will also likely notice less stability on bumpy roads and less steering response. While sway bars aren’t as important as a tie rod or ball joint, it’s still important they are properly working. They definitely have an impact on handling, and they can also prematurely ruin a set of tires over enough mileage. 

Cause #3 for Why A Car Clacks – Ball Joints

Our third most common cause for why a car makes noise when turning are faulty ball joints. The ball joints consist of a ball and socket that allow the steering knuckles and control arms to pivot/move. Without the ball joints, controlling the vehicle would be extraordinarily difficult if not impossible.

With bad ball joints, you’ll notice knocking and clunking coming from the wheels pretty quickly. The handling will also suffer and feel loose and disconnected. Your steering wheel might also vibrate heavily, and there will be widely uneven tire wear on the affected tire(s).

The ball joints are very important for your car’s ability to handle, so any problems need to be addressed immediately. In addition, if the ball joints fail it can also hurt other components attached to them. This includes the control arms and steering knuckles.

Cause #4 for Why A Car Clunks When Turning – Suspension/Steering System

For the most part, if your car makes noise when turning, it’s usually either the tie rods, sway bar end links or bushings, or the ball joints. However, there are literally dozens of components that make up the suspension and steering systems. While we can’t get into each individual part due to space, any one of them can become damaged and fail. 

If you notice a bad clunking sound coming from your car and it’s not any of the first three causes, there is still a good chance it has to do with your suspension system. Often on high mileage vehicles, the various bushings can become brittle and fail, leading to harsh metal on metal contact. In addition, other parts can become rusted out from road salt and other environmental conditions, also leading to failure. 

It’s important to make sure whenever you are doing maintenance under your car to give your entire suspension system a good lookover. This can help you spot any problems before they become too serious or catastrophic, which can ultimately save you a lot of time and money. The suspension is the lifeblood of a car’s handling system, and without it working properly handling will always suffer. 

Cause #5 for Why A Car Whining While Turning – Power Steering System Failure

Outside of the suspension system, the power steering system is another common cause of noise when turning. The power steering system is responsible for making turning the steering wheel much easier. Typically, they are either hydraulic or electric. Usually, a problem with the power steering system will sound more like a whine than a clunk or a clank. The most obvious symptom besides whining will be increased resistance to turning the steering wheel. 

Most of the time, this is from low power steering fluid. Low power steering fluid is usually the result of a leak, though some does naturally evaporate over time. This is fairly easy to check, as the power steering reservoir is usually very accessible under the hood. 

You may also experience problems with power steering if the power steering pump starts to fail, too. Power steering pumps are notorious for early failure, especially on older cars. If the pump fails the fluid will fail to circulate properly, leading to a lot of noise and whining. If you notice a whining coming from your car when turning, your best bet is to look at the power steering system for a potential leak or for pump failure. 

Cause #6 for Why My Car Thuds While Turning – Shocks & Struts

While some people consider these as part of the suspension system, we decided to single out shocks and struts as potential sources of noise when turning. Shocks and struts help absorb the various bumps and imperfections on the road. This gives the driver as smooth a ride as possible. With bad or blown shocks or struts, the car will ride much harsher and fail to adequately absorb bumps. You might also notice excessive noise when turning and leaking fluid. 

Importantly, shocks and struts are considered wear and tear components. Usually, they are recommended to be replaced every 8-12 years or 80,000-120,000 miles. If you know your shocks and struts are old and you experience problems with vibrations and noise, they are a good place to start your investigation after the suspension and power steering systems. 

Cause #7 for Why A Vehicle Makes a Clunking Sound While Turning – Wheels & Tires

For our final cause of why a car makes noise when turning, we suggest looking at the wheels and tires. This one is pretty broad, but the wheels and tires are ground zero for vibrations or noises when driving. They are responsible for laying down the engine’s power to the road, and they are having problems you’ll quickly notice.

Luckily, tires and wheels are fairly easy to inspect, often without even getting on a lift. Some of the most common culprits of noise from wheels and tires are a loose bumper or fender rubbing on the tires as they turn, a car being too low to the ground causing clearance issues, loose lug nuts, extremely low tire pressure, unbalanced tires, or the alignment being severely out of whack. 

Most of these (except balancing and alignment) can be spotted fairly easily by eye, making them much easier to diagnose. It probably goes without saying, but your tires and wheels are extremely important, and it’s paramount to make sure they are always in solid condition. 

Why Your Car Makes Noise When Turning Summary

While it is definitely frustrating dealing with a car making noise when turning, usually it’s not the end of the world. Typically, these are problems that occur on higher mileage and older vehicles, or those dealing with heavy rust issues, but they can also affect newer vehicles, too. 

The most common cause of noise is going to be the suspension system, specifically the tie rods, sway bar end links and bushings, and the ball joints. Besides those, it could be a number of other systems, including the power steering, shocks and struts, or even the wheels and tires. It’s important to address any issues with your car making noise when turning as soon as you realize it is a problem. Failure to timely and adequately correct handling issues can lead to serious injury or even death in the event of a serious crash. 

Why Your Car Makes Noise When Turning FAQ