Steering issue

[Rhodius]

I have a 2008 CX-9 Grand Touring currently at 119K miles. Driving on the interstate at speed around 50-60 mph on bends, it feels as if the nose is not going in the direction of my steering wheel so I need to adjust the steering a bit. At first this caused a bit of alarm since the car does not feel like going where I wanted it to go in a bend, but this is only very slightly, i've let it go until now. It feels as if the wheels have become a bit loose and needs to be tightened.
Anybody knows what could have caused this? Unfortunately my dealer is quite away from interstate or anywhere they can do above 45 mph as well as bends, so they might not be able to test this out. Back several months ago I replaced all 4 tires at the same time I asked for an alignment done, this was at a tire only shop, its as if since then this started to happen. Perhaps it was an issue before but I didn't notice and only became more pronounced since alignment was done? As I said above, it feels as if the tires that were replaced weren't tightened enough that they became loose in a bend.

At the same time I posted about ball joints replacements, not sure if these two are related (cause-effect). These were told by dealer, which I questioned, since I had two bad experiences prior with same dealer.

 

[10Molavi]

They could be related. I would get an opinion from an independent shop, ideally one referred by friends. I am not sure why at that mileage you are still going to the dealer, but then I know Mazda parts are not common, so maybe that is the reasoning.

 

[voldsom]

A simple check that can cause a big difference is to check your wheel lug-nut torque. Make sure they are all the same and in the proper range (85-95 lb-ft). It's interesting that you got an alignment done and now it seems to have an issue. You could take it to another alignment/suspension shop to get their opinion too.

 

[just_phil]

Do you feel any clicks in the steering wheel if you turn it about 90 degrees left and right while the car is NOT in motion? I've had a very faint click for the last few months, and i think it's my inner tie rod on the driver side. I've also felt that the car wanders on the highway

The reason I think it the inner, and not the outer, is that I was lying under the car with my hand on the tie rod and had someone turn the wheel left and right. There was no movement in the outer tie rod, but I could feel the click on the inner tie row. The best way to check this is with the wheel off the ground, look on youtube and you'll see how it's done. Should be the same on any car. The parts (for one side) are about $130, and the labor is probably about an hour. I've got all the parts, but haven't had a chance to do it yet, due to the weather.

 

[Rhodius]

Thanks for your input. I took it to the tire shop where I had all 4 tires replaced last fall and alignment done. They said alignment looks good and no issue with the ball-joints. They also said there's a bit of play but has not become a safety and/or replacement issue. So then I went back and the dealer why they told me its a replacement and safety issue, the guy said according to PA inspection, which is all up to anybody's interpretation, they think it's a safety issue. So anyway, I'm gonna drive it for another while. The tire shop tightened the nuts and rechecked the tire pressures, so if they were issues, hopefully this resolved that. I'll let you guys know.

 

[voldsom]

Thanks for the update @Rhodius. Look forward to seeing if the visit fixed your problem.