Hello
I have a 2009 FX35. (105k miles) For the last 6 months or so, the car "shudders" and 50% of time makes a howling sound when doing a tight turn left or right at slow speeds. No other symptoms when driving normally. It only happens at slow speeds and a tight turn either all the way right or left.

I finally took it to the dealership to get it diagnosed. They called towards the end of the day yesterday, and still couldn't figure it out. They wanted another $199 for additional diagnostic time. I wasn't happy but just have to get it taken care of! I am waiting for the call...

The guy said their best guess so far is rear differential or the drive line is "getting bound up" but that was their guess at that point and not official.

I will post back when I get the call. Hopefully this can show up in a search for somebody having a similar problem in the future.

In the mean time, any guesses or similar problems with your Infinity??

That howling noise at/near the locks might indicate a problem with the P/S Pump. Does it do this only underway, or also when stopped? Does the car have rear steering (RAS), and do you feel the shudder more in the wheel or in the seat of your pants?

Howling only seems to happen when moving, but not even all the time. I haven't noticed it at a complete stop. It does not have rear steering (didn't even know that was an option on older fx35s)
Shudder is more in the front end, I don't really notice it in the wheel itself.

When I talked to the dealership yesterday, they said they only notice the symptoms when driving the vehicle, they can't really see anything causing the problem when it is up on the rack. I am hoping they call back any time now, they've been at it a day & 1/2!! I am really surprised that factory trained Infinity technicians are having a hard time with this. Not sure what to do if they call back and still have no definite answer, then I'm out $400 & no answers.

FSM shows RAS being an option on your ride, but if the problem feels like it's in the front end then most likely it is. Since you don't feel it in the wheel, it probably isn't a P/S or wheel-and-tire issue. That leaves things like front CV's and the transfer case. Stuff like that can be awfully hard to diagnose up in the air, because a lot of times it will only happen when the drivetrain is loaded up. I'd be using the Chassis Ears to locate the source of the howl, that would at least give them a tree to bark up. Hopefully those guys are good, I'm crossing my fingers for you.

Thanks! I'll post back when I get some answers.

So here's the diagnosis

$4600.00 Repair :-( Not sure what to do...gonna get some bids from independent places for sure.

Issue
FOUND THAT NOISE AND VIBRATION WAS COMING FROM THE TRANSER CASE. USED CHASSIS EARS TO VERIFY. FOUND ITB09-064A THAT APPLIES TO CUSTOMERS CONCERN

Recommendation
START WITH REPLACING THE ELECTRIC COUPLING PER THE BULLETIN AND RECHECK

I was afraid of that. Except for CV's, nothing that could be causing that was cheap.

My neighborhood repair shop (the two techs are former Toyota/Lexus techs) didn't want to quote it, they recommended the dealership.
Not sure why...too complicated of a repair (?). "Electric coupling' doesn't sound like it should be THAT much. (??) But I don't know anything.

Interestingly I found a post from 2011 that talked about this: (forgive me if I am not supposed to post links)
https://www.infinitiscene.com/threads/b ... ase.37763/

Interesting (and no, there's nothing wrong with links to other sites). I'm a Nissan guy, not Infiniti. I've never heard of those TSB's or this problem, but I'll have to check it out in detail when I have more time. Must be something very peculiar about those cases and couplings.

This is sad and ridiculous.

The shop filling your FUD. Fear, Uncertaintay, and Doubt. That's what they do, and you just have to look at their estimate to verify what I am saying 50% of the time.

The other 50% of the time they are right.

First, there is nothing special about your Infiniti. It's really built very basic. But like BMW they alway quote too much and leave you to think the sky is falling so they can rake in the big bucks.

In this case, I bet you can fix your problem one of several ways:

1) Go "Hillbilly"... If you have not yet flushed out your power steering reservoir do so. There is several ways to do this. With two people, you can purge old fluild by disconnecting the return like at the reservoir and drain into a catch-can. Then start the engine and let the pump enpty the old fluid into the catch-can while you poor fresh fluid into the system... mixed with a bottle of Lucas Power Steering Fix. Note: If you see fluil leaking out of your rack-and-pinion power steering arm, then use Lucas Power Steering with Stop Leak. (Or whatever they are calling it these days.)

80% if the time this will fix all your noise and leaks.

Note: If you have some steering slop in the wheel, you can fix this by tightening the adjustment bolt +1/8 turn on the rack and pinion from under you car -- after you remove the oil skid cover -- or not. I can't remember if this is necessary.

Note: It's also easy to replace your rack and pinion bushings. (See YouTube on this.) And by doing so this will fix andy wheel bounce you may have when you tires bounce over bumps in the road. And FYI, don't let any mechanic tell you you need to remove the rack-and-pinion to replace these bushings. I.e., they are not press fit!

Note: Once you learn how to purge your old power steering oil, at 100K miles, it's time to purge your transmission fluid the same way and avoid the WRONG way of doing it the dealer/stealer or other shop who uses a vacuum pump. This is dangerous for cars with lots of miles, but it is SUPER IMPORTANT to do. (Do a seach on this forum for tips on how to do this by searching my other posts.)

Lastly, Infiniti quoted me $450 to replace the cheap transfer case fluids, and differential fluid, whick is nothing more than pulling the drain plug and refilling just like any other oil change. However, they love to over-bill.

Infiniti makes a high quality produce that CAN BE easy to maintain, or at least as easy to maintain as any other car. Your Stealer just wants you to think you are driving a Japanese-Mercedes.

There is also no reason a transfer case should have problems at 100,000 miles. However, since it took 10+ years to put 100,000 miles onl your car (15+ in other cases) then why not change the oil now!