Just recently I was going down a steep driveway and was making a very angled turn and I hear a big knock come from the front of the suspension. I continue to drive because everything seemed normal. About 1/4 mile from my house and I notice the car has trouble going up the driveway... I get out of the car and notice that my front right tire is no longer aligned. My driver side is perfectly straight and matches the steering wheel but my right tire does not adjust accordingly. As of right now my right tire is turned as if I'm going to make a right hand turn and my left is facing straight. Any ideas?

 

control arm popped out of the knuckle?

 

everything looked intact with the control arm. I did some research and figured out its the tie rod specifically the inner. It's somehow popped out of the steering column and dangles freely and is being held by the rubber housing. Plan on replacing it and seeing what happens.

 

Yep, broken tie rod end, you're lucky it didn't break while driving down the road.

 

I really am blessed for that. It snapped as I was entering my neighborhood and by the time I got to my driveway and hit it at an angle I knew something was wrong. Very lucky. I changed it out and all is good now just need an alignment.

 

You have to keep up on those steering and suspension components on any car. It's a matter of safety. Also pay attention for strange sounds when you go over bumps or when you turn the wheel... these usually indicate worn bushings or possibly ball joints or tie rods that have play and need to be replaced.

There are boots around the knuckles on tie rods and ball joints that can wear out and let debris in, which then contaminates and\or washes away the grease in the boot and causes accelerated wear of the joint. When they get too worn, they become loose and can pop out and cause your car to lose control or even cause the tire to smash against the frame or fenders.

Most states have safety inspections where they check for wear on these components but it's not too hard to do yourself by simply jacking the car up at each corner one at a time and trying to look for play in the wheels. You can also take a long crowbar and put it under the tire when it's about an inch or two off of the ground, pin the distant end against the ground behind\under the tire and lift up with the other end of the bar and look for play in the joints.