C5 X7 HDi240: Steering wheel judder, even at 0 mph :-)

[marsalek]

Dear colleagues,

when I only a bit abruptly turn the steering wheel, it gets judder/vibration until the desired position of the wheels is reached. I thought it were the CV joints, but found in the meantime out, that this behaivour is reproducible even if standing still. I.e. no drivetrain issue. So when the steering wheel is moved, the engine RPM goes down for a fraction of a second (noticeable by ear, not seen on the rev. counter) and when the front wheels reach the wanted position, the steering wheel is calm again. When moving the steering wheel slowly, this problem does not occur. Maybe this occurs mostly at steering angles around + or -45°.

I want to check, if the aux. belt is still OK or too long that the tensioner cannot keep it under tension. Or, by th way, do I have an electric power steering or is there still a servo-pump powered by the aux. belt? Or does it run on LDS and the electric hydraulic pump? I am still to new to that car. VF7**************[VIN obfuscated, can be read by forum staff]

Thanks a lot for all tipps&tricks!
Karel

[Jay-Bruce]

First and most obvious one is check the fluid level, lower the car to lowest height, and remove the LDS tank, check fluid is visible at somewhere between the A & B levels in the diagram below:



Credit Marc "GiveMeABreak" for the diagram above.

If the fluid level is OK, the steering issue could be air in the system, try raising the suspension to it's max, rotating the wheel side to side, without stopping at the ends, back to centre with the wheel, lowering to lowest, repeat the steering full left to full right without stopping, and repeat this a few times.

If the "citroen aerobics" outlined above doesn't solve your steering issue, it could be power steering pump related as you say, or if the car has an electric pump, it could be a steering angle sensor issue.