1996 Chevrolet Astro Steering Problems

“I just got home & was backing around to where I park when the brake pedal started vibrating. I did manage to park. The next day the vibrating stopped when a grating noise was made. Suddenly the brake pedal came way up. It does have some brakes but they are hard to depress. Suddenly my power steering is gone. There was no indication of problems with either beforehand. This van just passed inspection in mid-august, and has always been taken care of.”

“The oil cooler lines leaked oil onto the engine which caused it to smoke. The oil cooler lines have been replaced three times within the last 30,000 miles. There was noise in the front end due to a worn right front outer tie rod and when damp or cold out, a hard shift would be present when making turns.”

“We were driving west on I-80 near gary, in after midnight. 2 of our 4 children are belted in the back, when all of a sudden, we have no steering - the wheel is spinned freely. We drifted at 65 MPH and crashed into the guardrail. Thankfully there was a guardrail, as about 100 yards further west, 2 lanes of traffic are merging from the right, there was no guardrail, and a very steep ditch (as the tow truck operator later pointed out to us.) 100 yards previous, we had gone over an overpass with little shoulder - we surely would have been rear-ended, had we crashed there. …”

“A metallic noise was heard from front of vehicle. Steering would not function properly. Consumer found the steering mechanism had come undone, that the bolt and nut had come unscrewed and the steering arm unconnected from the steering mechanism. Dealer however, found broken idler steering arm and loose upper ball joints, dealer also stated that a front end alignment was needed. Manufacturer notified.”

“While driving 65 MPH the front passenger side of vehicle dropped, causing driver to loose control of vehicle. Vehicle bounced across 3 lanes of traffic, child hit his head on side of vehicle. Dealer determined the tie rod broke on passenger side.”