1998 Buick Century Custom Steering 56k miles

[Gito]

My friend inherited a 1998 Buick Century Custom (56k miles) from his grandfather and also inherited a problem with the steering.

He took the car to BMas alignment shop and explained the symptoms

Symptoms: Vehicle hard to drive, swerves and pulls left and right

BM alignment shop diagnosed the car with a bad Rack and Pinion and told my friend that there was some seepage on the rack and pinion

They checked all other parts including ball joints and shocks and they were OK.

Wondering if this is a legit diagnoses.
This is the estimate for repair: $602.00 with parts and labor

 

[901Memphis]

Sounds about right to me.

 

[NHGUY]

GM has always had issues with FWD racks.Started with their first FWD rack cars....the X Cars and the identical A-bodies.They are where the automotive term of "Morning sickness" came about.

 

[3800Series]

While they don't have a great resale value they are reliable cars and comfortable. I love my truck but when it comes to long trips I always take my Regal.

 

[gman2304]

With such low miles, I would get a second opinion.

 

[Gito]

Those second opinions get expensive...the estimate was 60 dollars

 

[Inspecktor]

It's probably more age related than mileage.

 

[heyu]

I bought a 97 Lumina LS a couple years ago and the steering was locking up with left hand turns , After researching i found GM had a recall on the rack and pinion ,and through researching my V.I.N number it was never repaired yet,,,My local dealer replaced the rack and pinion at their cost and YES on a car 16 yrs old at the time

 

[spk2000]

Better than Ford does. My sable had a recall that Ford said was good for 10 yrs or 150,000 miles. At 10.5 years and 80,000 miles they would not do anything for me. I should have alot of car buying years ahead of me still and this was not the 1st time Ford has burned me on what was a known problem. The likelihood of me buying another Ford is slim unless I get a really great buy. They could have just split parts or something to show good faith but Ford has proven to me they did not care one bit about me as a returning Ford customer that has owned many Fords and likely my last.

 

[kschachn]

That couldn't have been a recall then, maybe an extended warranty.

Originally Posted By: spk2000
Better than Ford does. My sable had a recall that Ford said was good for 10 yrs or 150,000 miles. At 10.5 years and 80,000 miles they would not do anything for me. I should have alot of car buying years ahead of me still and this was not the 1st time Ford has burned me on what was a known problem. The likelihood of me buying another Ford is slim unless I get a really great buy. They could have just split parts or something to show good faith but Ford has proven to me they did not care one bit about me as a returning Ford customer that has owned many Fords and likely my last.

 

[eljefino]

Could try flushing the PS. Might be a sticky valve in there. Cheap. Who knows.

 

[Papa Bear]

Detroit Axle rack & pinion

 

[Merkava_4]

My cost would be $368.89 + $50 for alignment.

 

[Gito]

Originally Posted By: gman2304
With such low miles, I would get a second opinion.


Friend drove the car to a tire shop and explained the problem.
Tire guy looked at the tires and told him that the tires were causing all of the problems.

He replaced the tires and problem solved...

Lesson learned...Second opinion was free at a tire shop

 

[Gito]

Friend did not mention that his tires were shot...
You figure BrakeyourpocketMasters would have mentioned something about the tires

 

[babyivan]

Originally Posted By: NHGUY
GM has always had issues with FWD racks.Started with their first FWD rack cars....the X Cars and the identical A-bodies.They are where the automotive term of "Morning sickness" came about.

My Ciera (A body) experiences a bit of this on really cold mornings. A couple left/right turns of the wheel before I hit the road is all I need to fix it. It's been like that since I got it. At first I tried various remedies and a complete flush of the system, but nothing really worked, so I just left it. It has never gotten worse, thankfully.

As for the OP:

A bad/worn out rack could cause some wander, but I would think other parts are in play, ball joints and such.

Get another opinion before spending $$$