Hi All. I hope I don't get hammered by the forum police for this but there seems to be a ton of knowledgeable blokes around here.

I have a 2005 Toyota Highlander with about 60k miles. When I turn right, it makes a loud 'knock' sound in the front somewhere. I suspect that perhaps it's the Ball Joint or CV Joint and was wondering how much it might cost to have this repaired. Also, how do I check this under the vehicle to verify?

Also, when I brake semi-hard from high-speed (getting off freeway) the steering wheel jumps. It's like a constant 'bump bump bump bump'. Could this be a warped brake rotor do you think?

Thanks for any experience you could provide. I would like to get this fixed if possible, before I try to sell the car.

I had a similiar problem on my 97 accord. WHen I turned all the way to the left, my car made a knocking sound. But I'm pretty sure, that I tore the boot, and that had to be replaced.

Another time, my ball joint went bad at 150k, and that made a squeaking noise when the cars suspension went over rough roads, bumps, etc.

My knowledge on cars isn't too great, but I hope that helps.

edit- also, I had warped rotors as well on my accord, and that caused the steering wheel to vibrate violently when braking on the freeway or slowing quickly.

It was awhile ago, but I want to say the boot and bearing were both really expensive to fix, around a grand or so.


Also, FYI, I saw a cd in the 9.99 computer games section at target that was like "auto mechanic" or something. You tell it whats wrong and its supposed to diagnose the issue. I remember it had a BUNCH of Toyota models listed, I know 4runner was, not sure about highlander, but it covers 90-2008 and comes with an upgrade once 09-10 models come out.