Steering Play

[mozzy]

baisicly i get defected for steering play in my ae71, is there a way to tighten it up,

 

thanks

moz

[LittleRedSpirit]

id say firstly make sure your tie rods and ends are smooth and not too worn, then check the steering rack. You should be able to check the play in the rack by grabbing one of the rods and puling it left right. I had a shocker of a rack in my 71 when i bought it. Its a pain to change too. You will need to wd40 the clamp on the end of the steering column and then beat it off. I used a dumbell on mine with a hammer. There are also 2 clamp positions on the rack itself. Good luck. Any more ideas anyone?

[styler]

well find out which section of the linkage is worn out and replace.

[slapper]

well find out which section of the linkage is worn out and replace.

 

Get underneath, grab stuff and start shaking it - if it's got that much play in it, you should be able to tell which bits are loose.

 

Start with tie-rod ends ... if one's worn, chances are both will be.

Wobble down to your local parts retailler on your pushy and buy the necessary ends (prolly $30 or so each).

Clean and mark up where the existing tie-rod ends screw onto the rack ends - you'll need this to make sure you set the new ones as near as possible to the correct position (after this is all done, you're going to need a wheel align, but you may as well start close to where it needs to be to make the drive to the workshop easier).

 

Make a note of your steering wheel position when driving straight and do one tie-rod end at a time. After you do each end, go for a drive - if your steering wheel is not where it was before you replaced bits, adjust the position of the tie-rod (you don't need to disconnect everything and screw the tie-rod end itself in or out - the steering rack ends rotate ... get a spanner to the steering rack end and twist in or out as required). Once you've got your steering wheel back to the right place (ie. you have the same alignment you had before), you can move on to the other tie-rod end.

 

If you've done both tie-rod ends and free play still exists, it's probably steering rack ends - this is a pain in the arse job and best left to the professionals ... although you can save a coupla bucks by buying the rack-ends somewhere else (I paid $60 a pair from some rooster on ebay - although that didn't include the boots that cover them so maybe it wasn't actually any cheaper). Take your car to a workshop that does wheel aligns and get them to replace the ends ... you may as well get a wheel alignment at the same time.

 

If after all that, you still have a clunk in your steering (although there shouldn't be any discernible free-play), it's probably the steering rack guide that needs adjusting (big 24mm recessed socket on the right-hand side of the rack with a lock-nut).

 

If all that sounds like too much pain and suffering ... take it to a workshop for the lot, labour for replacing tie-rod ends shouldn't cost too much ... and if it needs the rack-ends as well, you're already there :kiwi:

 

Hope that helps,

Slapper

[towe001]

Wobble down

Bhaha

thats funny

:kiwi:

[mozzy]

car is gutted now getting ready for frift days, no need to fix this i will replace the whole front end one day,

 

thanks for all ur help tho guys now i know for next time..

 

Bhaha

thats funny

:y:

[Raven]

Either way, you're gonna have to fix it since its now your hektik-tofu-takumi-drift car, so you actually have good feel when sliding the car so it handles well.