If you’re wondering why your vehicle is making a scraping noise when turning right at low speed, its causes and fixes are covered in this very guide.
There are many reasons why your vehicle might be making maddening noise when turning.
But some of the most common reasons are the problems in the CV joints, wheel alignment, control arm bush, ball joints, and hub bearing assembly.
If you’re dealing with this issue for the first time and don’t know what might be causing it, this guide will answer your questions. Check it out!
Causes of the Scraping Noise When Turning Right at Low-Speed
Even though there are many reasons why your vehicle makes a scraping noise when turning right, below we’ve mentioned some of the most common ones and their possible fix.
Problem with the Wheel Alignment
Vehicles make a scraping noise when turning if the wheels aren’t aligned properly. If you’ve been riding the vehicle over bumpy, uneven roads for a while, chances are high that the wheel alignment has gone off.
The front wheels will be parallel to the rear wheels; that’s the ideal alignment. Usually, people require a measuring device or a ruler to check the alignment.
But if the misalignment is significant, you can tell by just looking from the front of the vehicle. When you see the rear or front wheels aren’t parallel to each other, then most probably that’s what is causing the terrible noise.
Is scraping noise the only symptom of wheel misalignment? Nope!
When the wheels are misaligned, along with the noise, the vehicle will pull to one side automatically.
The vehicle will vibrate even when moving at a slow speed. The steering wheel might not remain straight; it’ll keep moving.
Fix
Get the wheel alignment right; that’ll solve the problem. If you have experience and the needed tools, you can do the work yourself, saving you some cash.
But if you don’t have that, you better take your vehicle to a mechanic shop.
Once the mechanic has done all the work, do a visual inspection to see whether the alignment is right. For accuracy, you can use a measuring device or a ruler.
Worn-Out Control Arm Bushing
The rubber cups that are installed around the control arm are called the control arm bushing. This bushing’s responsibility is to prevent the vibration from transferring from one wheel to the other.
When these bushings wear out, the vehicle makes maddening noise while turning and going over bumps. Sometimes these rubbers have totally worn out, the vehicle vibrates badly, and so does the steering wheel.
Fix
You need to install new bushings. Anyone with the right tools and a little bit of mechanical knowledge can change control arm bushings.
Broken Ball Joints
If your car sounds like metal scraping when driving and it’s pulling at one side, the ball joints are probably to blame. Ball joints wear out or break easily if the vehicle is frequently ridden over uneven, bumpy, rocky terrains.
To ensure that the ball joints have worn out or not, you’ll have to jack up the vehicle. Then spin the wheel by hand in both ways, forward and backward.
Any abnormal movement, such as wheels vibrating or making noise, indicates there is something wrong with the ball joints
Fix
In some cases, worn-out ball joints can be replaced, but repairing won’t do any good if the condition is very bad. Replacing those will be a wise decision.
CV Joints Have Failed or Worn-Out
CV joints are what transmit power from the engine to the wheels. Therefore, they spin. And it’s also responsible for maintaining the axle’s position while rotating the wheels.
Failed or worn-out cv joints can cause irritating scraping noise when turning right or left. The sound can be heard at high and low speeds, but it’s hard to notice when the vehicle is straight.
However, if the problem is in the CV joints, the vehicle will also show some other symptoms, along with terrible scraping noise.
The CV boot might leak. One easy way to make sure the CV boot is leaking or not is to check the inner side of the wheels. If you find grease inside the wheels, that indicates the boot’s leaking.
Another symptom of worn-out or failed CV joints is your vehicle will vibrate both at low and high speeds. Worn-out CV joints are rare in new vehicles but widely seen in old vehicles.
Fix
If the CV joints have failed due to dirt and grime buildup, they can be cleaned and fixed. But if the joint is broken or has worn out, in that case, the best option is the replacement.
Replacing CV joints isn’t something anyone can do. It requires mechanical knowledge and experience. Hence, it’d be wise to take the vehicle to the mechanic shop.
Too Much Oil in Hub Bearing Assembly
In a vehicle, the hub bearing assembly is what connects the knuckle with the wheel.
This bearing assembly must be well-lubricated to ensure everything can operate smoothly.
But problems arise when the assembly has excess oil or lubricant. Excess lubricant or oil in the assembly for a long time can cause the parts inside to wear out faster than normal, leading to terrible scraping noise when you turn the wheels.
Apart from scraping noise, a worn-out hub-bearing assembly shows some other symptoms.
These are the wheel vibrating when moving, the vehicle pulling to one side upon hitting the brake, clunking or knocking noise, etc.
Fix
You’ll have to check the assembly to see if anything has worn out or not. The only option to repair a worn-out hub assembly is to replace it.
And if everything seems all right, remove the excess oil or lubricant from the assembly.
Conclusion
As mentioned in the article, there are more than dozens of other reasons why the vehicle might be making scraping noises. If you don’t have much experience in troubleshooting, it’d be wise to visit a mechanic shop.
With that said, wrapping this article up about scraping noise when turning right at low speed. I hope this guide helps you solve the problems.
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