The car is an 83 300D w/188K showing.
My wife mentioned to me that when turning the front wheels she hears a creaking noise, kinda like an old wooden boat, coming from underneath the car. I don't hear very well but can feel something in the floor a bit when it's making the noise. I suspect bad lower ball joints. The car does have a tendancy to exhibit a very slight pull, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right. There is no vibration or excessive loose feeling while driving, even at high speeds. The upper section of the front suspension, some big aluminum looking casting, appears to have been replaced in recent times, i.e. it is clean and shiny. I can't really tell much about the lower ball joints. I've jacked up the car and tried wiggling the wheel with my hands at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock and can't feel any play, not sure if this is a valid test for a bad ball joint though. The creaking definitely only occurs when steering the wheels though.
Can anyone give me an idea what to start replacing first? If I need to do the ball joints, should I do the tierods and those "stabilizer" things that connect up to the firewall from the control arm?
Thanks for any advise.