hi all i ve got a 2001 y reg focus1.6 zetec and over the last week it has starting making a noise when car not moving or when a go slow only when turning right it makes a creaking noise and once engine has heated up it turns into i slight knocking noise, i ve taking it to 3 garages and 1 said a need a new steering rack £330 fitted!!! 1 said they cant see anything wrong with it steering rack not lose or damaged in anyway and that it might be dryed up inside the rack? the other did nt have a clue and said they never herd it before. i ve checked endless sites online and found sum1 who sounds like they had similer problem and it turned out to be the stabiliser bars joints a think. has any1 ever had this problem and no what it is, sick of getting messed around at garages, thanks!!!

Hi mate. sounds like it could be similar to the problem I had on my 53 plate TDCi - as you mentioned it was the stabiliser bar(s) which made a creaking kind of sound when turning / manouvering at slow speeds, usually only in one direction like yours.

Spoke to a mate who does a bit of car maintenance & he said that sometimes the ball joint sockets at the ends of the link bars can get a bit dry - I sprayed in some WD40 & some penetrating oil (forcing back the rubber surrounds the best I could) & that cured it for a while. It came back a few weeks later & I put something else on it this time (I can't remember what it was though, just something a friend had in his van), and it hasn't made a sound since, for at least 2 - 3 months now.

Suggest you maybe try squeezing in some WD40 or similar & see if that stops the noise, before shelling out a fortune on the steering. Even replacing both bars would be a lot less than £330 I would guess.

Good luck...!!