[chenwick]

Hi,

I have a 1996 Nissan Altima. When driving straight, I will sometimes hear a metallic sound which seems to coincide with the revolutions of the wheels. The sound, which isn't very loud appears to be coming from the front passenger side. Also, when I make a sharp left turn for example when I am pulling out of my driveway I will hear a much louder metallic sound. These sounds are not consistent throughout the entire revolution. It sounds as though it hits one spot and scrapes and then goes away until the next revolution. The sounds being made while driving straight first started occurring very rarely about a year ago when I had new brakes installed and my rotors cut. Coincidentally, the first set of pads they had used made this sound at a higher level back then. The next day I brought my car back showing them the problem and they said they would take a look. After a day with it, they just said that the original pads that they had put on were defective. Drove the car for a few weeks and the sound would intermittently reappear. A few months later I had the front right control arm replaced because the bushing had gone. Just the other day I took it to another mechanic to have the tires replaced and the brakes checked to see if they were still good . They said that there were 3-5,000 miles left on them. After I left with the car I noticed that the sound had gone away and the steering wheel was easier to turn. After about 30 minutes of driving the sound came back, and later that night the steering became stiffer (daytime temp ~40, night~15). If anyone has any thoughts of what may be causing this I would greatly appreciate them.

[TxGreaseMonkey]

Sounds like you have a Lateral Run Out (LRO) problem. When you had the rotors "cut," they turned them to the axis of their lathe, not the axis of your spindle. Many shops just automatically turn disks--I don't. To correct the problem, look for an outfit that uses a ProCut machine. It is OEM approved and prevents LRO, by turning the disk to the axis of your spindle. It's a very impressive machine.

If it's not LRO, then check the condition of your CV joints.