My 2017 Q5 started making steering noise a little over a year ago. Just sounded like a minor rub at first, but eventually turned on into more of a grinding noise. I traced the source of the noise to the rubber boot that the intermediate steering shaft passes through. Tried lubing it and it got slightly better, but clearly wasn't fixed.

So I figured the bearing in that boot was shot and ordered a new intermediate shaft as well as new fasteners. Got it up on ramps today to do the swap.

Turns out the shaft was completely rusted solid, totally unable to telescope as designed. Looks like the plastic/rubber housing around the shaft failed first, and as the corrosion continued it pressed outward on the now split housing. The growing outward pressure probably stressed the bearing and led to the noise getting worse over time. I think i read somewhere that heat from the nearby exhaust pipe accelerates failure of the plastic housing.

Unfortunate side effect of losing the ability to telescope - made it a bear to get this thing out. Both ends of the shaft loosened up fine, but there wasnt enough play to slip it off the end of either the upper or lower steering shaft. Adjusting the steering column all the way down helped, but ultimately I had to use one of the old bolts and a separate hex nut to pry the clamp open a bit. Opening the clamp gave it just enough freedom that I could slip it off the lower shaft. From there, getting it the rest of the way out wasnt too bad, but I did end up cutting away the old boots so I could slide it out from below.

Old rusted shaft below, with boots cut off. Second photo shows my makeshift spreader used to open up the lower clamp. One of the two pivots on that u joint was pretty shot. Not frozen but not smooth at all. But it could have been a consequence of me banging on it trying to get it free.




Anyway, just posting as an FYI for anyone looking to do the same repair in the future or hearing the same symptoms. This didn't take any real specialized tools. 10mm triple square bit, torque wrench, and some way to get the front of the car off the ground. Found an oem shaft for about 50% of full price. Aftermarket probably would have been fine but couldn't find enough reviews or testimonials to put me at ease, and the price was right on this one.

 

Replaced this shaft in my 2014 about 3 years ago, so same timeframe. My issue was just the lower universal joint, not the telescope.

I was just so glad my electronic steering rack was fine.

 

While replacing my SQ5 stock downpipes with JHM downstream catted baffled X pipes I noticed the intermediate steering shaft rubber seal had become dislodged. It is a tight fit and a bit fiddly to get the seal to reseat correctly. I recalled this post and realized how easy it is to dislodge this seal when removing cats. I soaked the slip joint with Krown yellow moisture displacing lubricating penetrant then reseated the seal from below. I would recommend when performing work in this area to recheck the seating of this critical seal.

Dislodged Seal after cat removal:


Reseated Seal after the exhaust work was complete: