I have seen three front end shop mechanics and NONE of them have any solution..they have all confirmed that there is no obvious front end issue anywhere….everything is tight…wheel bearings seem tight…control arms are tight…tie rods ok…steering control arms ok..no extra movement found at all..alignment is ok...
YET there is a consistent very light popping heard and felt thru the steering wheel…this is almost all the time…pops every two or three seconds….driving down a smooth street at 20 mph it is very obvious. After about 35 mph you can't hear it..covered by engine noise I guess…seems just a little more notable (sometimes) on initial movement of the vehicle..both going forward and stopping…this is very slightly felt thru the steering wheel...
Driving me crazy...

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350

U check the sway bar links? Mileage year? Jack up one one corner and get a long construction bar used to dig holes and insert between ground and wheel and try to lift wheel and see if u feel movement. Try other side. Also remove dust cap for bearings and check to see if the nut backed out. Some shops might b lazy to check the nut. Also check steering rack bushings. Hey homie what ranger u got? Give details man. Us stupid phone guys cannot see signatures. Yes these galaxy s5 phones and iphones are not smart phones to know what ranger u got.

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2010 Ranger XL Reg. Cab 4 cyl... 5 speed manual... W/reverse.

Mods: 5% tint on rear window, JVC KDHDR40 Headunit, Kicker KS-68 speakers, Kicker TCVT102 (10TCVT102) Sub, JVC DRVN KSAX3102 Amp, JVC DRVN KSAX3101D mono amp, Ford black rubber mat, White LED license plate lights. Added 6000k HID Fogs, 6000k Digital HID Heads.

This isn't gramhar skool so dont cry and whine about spelling.

Geeze….I got so caught up in the story I forgot the basics….it is a 1999 3.0, XLT with the two extra little back seat doors..flex fuel engine and about 110,000 miles.

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"Check steering rack bushings"? Humm.. I do not exactly know what to check…I grabbed the intermediate steering shaft and wiggled it and felt/heard a tiny bit of play somewhere down under the U joint ..but this may be normal ?…The Hibdon front end guy did the pry bar ck of both front wheels..no play…No one checked the bearing nuts…would have thought they would be ok after checking/shaking both front wheels for wiggle and finding none..
?? Driving me bats..

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350

So how do you ck the 'bushings" ?

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350

wazzzap oklahoma! lol, where you at? i'm in nwokc
i'm not sure on the "steering rack bushings". actually, i thought those were bolted onto the crossmember. anywho, all the bushings on the front end are known for noise like that. that includes the upper & lower control arm bushings, the swaybar bushings, the swaybar links/bushings...

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1999 xlt 2.5l 5-speed Supercab 159k
83 diesel 2.2l na
06 F250 6.0l psd
{click for lol}

Check the inner tie rods. I felt a pop in my steering wheel. Everything felt tight, bearing, etc. Ended up crawling under truck, tugged on the inner tie rod and sure enough. Pop! Replaced and it went away.

Could be the power steering pump/fluid

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1998 3.0 4x4 5spd man reg cab am, fm, cd/DVD.
new upper c-arms, lower ball j, inner and outer t-rods,new clutch, slave, u-joints, front cv (drive shaft), new rear springs, new head lights, new muffler, re-sealed rear sliding window, re-sealed t-brk lght. new iac, tps, ats, plugs & wires, new rad, t-stat, hoses. thrt body cleaned, throt cab mod, sea foamed, maf cleaned, all fluids changed. Inside: carbon fiber style bezel "8 ball" shifter knob.

Cv axles possibly.

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2017 Lightning Blue Mustang GT PP 430/402
CJ Pony Parts Lowering Springs | Texas Speed Longtubes | PMAS CAI | Lund Tuned | Borla S-Type Catback
2013 F150 FX4 5.0 - Sold
1998 Jeep Wrangler TJ 4.0 5spd - Sold
2001 Mustang Bullitt - Sold
2005 Level II - Sold
2001 Integra GSR - Sold
1999 XLT - May 2013 TOTM - Totaled

good idea^ idky i thought 2wd, but he didn't specify... 2 wd or 4wd, roger?

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1999 xlt 2.5l 5-speed Supercab 159k
83 diesel 2.2l na
06 F250 6.0l psd
{click for lol}

The two in back push it around…the ones in front just roll..

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Ok, my choices are: 1. Live with it…as (3) trained (I guess) front end mechanics (that get paid to find things wrong) found nothing…2. take it to another shop and try again…3. jack it up myself again and shake everything I can put my hands on…or all of the above…Ratts…I turned the radio up yesterday so I wouldn't hear it…
Roger over and out

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350

check out the sway bar links (pic below), they are usually about $20 a pair & you only need some wrenches or sockets. maybe a hacksaw to get the old ones off.
If they are loose in any way, they will make racket of some sort:

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1999 xlt 2.5l 5-speed Supercab 159k
83 diesel 2.2l na
06 F250 6.0l psd
{click for lol}

I believe I will just go buy a pair of the sway bar links…put them in and see if there is any change….I tried carefully re-checking the wheel bearings for looseness..found the passenger side a tiny bit off…tightened it but it made no improvement..
Rattssss...

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350

also, in the picture at the very top left corner you can see the swaybar's mount & bushing. if it is loose, you'll want to replace those too. just two bolts, about 13mm iirc?

also, get some pb blaster or other penetrating oil & spray all bolts before had to get them ready to come off.

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1999 xlt 2.5l 5-speed Supercab 159k
83 diesel 2.2l na
06 F250 6.0l psd
{click for lol}

Do you feel it in the steering wheel when going over slight bumps/cracks in the road, because that's how i felt it before I changed my inner tie rod on the drivers side. Did you check the inner tie rods? Just push and pull on them when your under the truck. That's how I found mine. Just a slight pop but it travels up thru the steering wheel

Ya know, I have pushed and pulled on about everything twice….so have the mechanics at two shops….cked wheel bearings again yesterday…there are ok…so…….I am going to visit another shop this morning…lots of maybe's but no for suers yet….I can feel the popping thru the steering wheel and just barely hear it..just going down a flat asphalt road you can here the occasional popping……and sometimes when I move forward from a stop sign I feel/hear it…but not always…the sway bar links look good and tight and do not move when I try to share them...
Ugahhaaaaaa…..

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2011 Ford Ranger, 6 cyl Flex, 2 door extended cab, auto, 4.0L engine, 43,000 miles.
vv0350