Steering Rack Question, For those knowledgeable about steering racks. Options

[richee3]

This is probably a stupid question. The answer seems fairly obvious to me, but I want to run it by you guys and check anyway. I ran a quick search through the threads, but didn't see anything useful. My car has 172k on it now, and it feels like it's been on some rough roads in the past. I had a '96 before this with tighter steering, my stepmom's '09 Camry obviously feels loads better, and one of my friends just bought a 2000 Celica GT-S that feels much sharper than my car. The age and wear of my car compared to the other 3 cars I mentioned says that it's obviously much older and shouldn't feel the same anyway, but it's not feeling a little worse, it feels a LOT worse. The steering is still responsive, just not tight, if that makes any sense to anyone. My dad doesn't take care of his truck at all ('97 GMC Sierra, 195K miles) and the feeling in his truck and my car is very similar. It feels like the steering is just looser than it should be. This car, from the day I've had it, has a tendency to pull whichever direction the road slants to.

As some of you know, I will be swapping a 3S-GTE into my car very soon, and I got a quote from my local Toyota dealership, and a rebuilt steering rack is only $300. I can get a brand new one for $900, but that's quite a bit of money. It seems like a good time to swap the new steering rack in, while I have the motor pulled.

My question is, is it really a worn out steering rack that I'm feeling? I have no doubt that this car was abused before I got it. It's likely seen some rough roads, since all 4 struts were profoundly blown when I bought the car with 93,000 miles on it. Would I be wasting my money to put a rebuilt steering rack in the car when I put the new motor in? Would that make anything feel any better? I just don't want to get a lot of suspension work done to the car to make it handle better if I can't steer the thing anyway.

Thanks for your input, guys.

[blu94gt]

I'd check your alignment, that can change how responsive a car feels. Any car will pull with the direction the road slants, that's pretty normal.

Steering racks can wear though, but you would most likely feel a dead zone in the steering wheel. Like you would have a bit of play that you could just move the wheel back and forth and the car wouldn't do anything. If you do feel like changing the rack though, there is no better time than when you're doing the motor swap.

[samir0189]

I x2 what he^ had to say.

Had a minivan that the r+p was going out on, the wheel had 1/4 turn play on both left and right turning. It was extremely dangerous, had to do so much of a turn before the car would react.

An alignment does help the overall feel of the steering. Mine felt tons better after an alignment.

I dont think you should replace it.

[blu94gt]

I forgot to add, check your tie rod ends. Tie rods can wear and cause steering unresponsiveness and alignment problems, and are a much easier/cheaper fix.

It will be loose like this video:
like this

It may not be so dramatically loose, but you get the idea. Jack the car up and wiggle the knuckle back and forth and see if you feel/see/hear any play. I recommend keeping the wheel and tire on, makes it harder to see but you get more leverage to move it.

This post has been edited by blu94gt: Dec 2, 2009 - 10:33 AM

[richee3]

Blu- There is no dead spot in the steering. The whole thing feels kinda numb, and slower to respond than it should be, but it's still responsive. I've had the tires aligned twice on this car (once after lowering it, and again after I raised it bad up- I curbed it and threw it back off.) It's entirely possible that I need to have it aligned again, but I've had it done twice in three years, and I'm tired of paying for it, but I'll go get it checked out. It's likely off anyway, since I am having the same odd wear that you are in the rear. This car has never felt as good as my ST did, which makes me think it was worn long before I got it. When I said the car likes to pull the way that the road slants, I meant it likes to do it more than it should.

I don't know if it's the steering rack or not, but it definitely feels like something is worn. It doesn't exactly feel like it's completely worn out, it just feels like it's on it's way out. I was thinking if it was the steering rack, I can get a rebuilt rack pretty cheap, and it would be easy to replace while I've got the motor out. Whatever the issue may be, I would like to get it lined out while I've got the motor out. No sense in having a fast car if I can't turn at all.

Samir- this is nowhere near that extreme. My car isn't exactly loose, just not as tight as it should be. It feels, in a word, numb. It still turns when I turn the wheel, it just feels very slightly delayed. The feeling is similar to my dad's truck, which I know has a worn steering rack.

I will take my car to a tire shop later this week and get everything checked out. I'll have them check the tie rod ends and the steering rack to see if anything has any play. I'll go ahead and have them do the alignment while I'm there. I just didn't know if somebody might know what the feeling is or how to fix it. I don't expect my car to feel brand new, but I'd like it to feel a little more crisp than it does now. Thanks for your input. Any other suggestions?

[samir0189]

Maybe it is in the beginning stages of developing a dead spot then. It doesnt just happen, it gradually takes its time and wears to the point where you're moving the steering and nothing is happening.

Also, tires itself have a lot to do with steering response, and also they can be the reason for the pulling to the side.

[richee3]

Funny you should say that, I've got the crappiest tires you can ever find on my car. I only put them on since I was getting ready to sell the car, but now I'm keeping it and I'm stuck with these bad boys. They have absolutely zero traction in the rain. It's downright dangerous. I'm sure they are contributing to this problem, but I've been feeling this for a while. I kinda feel like I'm whining because my car doesn't feel new, but at the same time, once I get a 3S in the car, I'd like to know I can still turn. Going fast in a straight line is no fun. Like I said, I'll just take it to my tire shop tomorrow or next week and let them check it out in person. It's virtually impossible to diagnose this stuff over the internet.

[samir0189]

that could be half the cause right there, i had some bfg kdw2s as my last tires, they would constantly pull, i got the car aligned over and over, and my steering response sucked, BUT the grip was

With my new michelins, no pulling (and i didnt realign!) and completely different vehicle feeling all together, steering response 100% better.

[SwissFerdi]

Well if the sidewall of your tire is really really soft, then I could see how it could contribute to a 'deader' feeling. My tires pull according to road surface just because they catch in every little rut, etc.