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Good thought. I don’t think I have records of them being changed although the rack was rebuilt <10 years ago.
That said, it seems to be pulling a lot less today. Possibly the bushings are settling back into place? It may just need an alignment now, but it’s driving far better than last night.
Hi Yellow,
I would think pulling if related to a change at the rack has to do with the car wanting to center the forces created by the toe-in equally between the wheels. Did you disconnect any of the inner or outer tierod ends? If the steering isn't straight did you disconnect the racks connection to the steering wheel? Conceivably the rack may not be seated in the same position laterally in its mounts but this, I would think, would be a minor change. The exact center position of the rack can be locked through a little threaded port in the rack. A tool that looks like a screw with a point on the end of the thread is used to lock the rack at center. If locked at the center and the steering wheel is at the center when this is done the relationship between the rack and the steering wheel is correct and then the tie rods can be adjusted during an alignment to split the toe setting equally between the left and right wheels.
Andy
The bushings take a beating. Mine were 5yrs old or so and the alignment tech couldn’t complete the setup because they were shot. Successive adjustments kept shifting the rack.
My symptoms were more poor handling rather than pulling one way.
The bushings take a beating. Mine were 5yrs old or so and the alignment tech couldn’t complete the setup because they were shot. Successive adjustments kept shifting the rack.
My symptoms were more poor handling rather than pulling one way.
The bushings are inexpensive.
I also seem to recall there are stiffer aftermarket options as well.
The standard procedure is to replace the capscrews when removing the clamps because they have a sealant on them so they do not come loose. A torque wrench should be used when clamping things down because the clam load has to be tight enough to fully seat the clamps but not too tight because the screws go into a very soft aluminum frame and can strip easily.
Otherwise, the bushings are compressed as the screws are tightened and it is very hard to tell when the screws are properly seated from wrench feel alone.
If someone doesn't use a torque wrench they may under-torque the fasteners resulting in the rack not being held fully captive or over tighten them risking a stripped subframe.
In my case, I was experiencing galling sounds when I tightened the screws and so put anti-seize on the shanks and threads of the screws. It seems to not have interfered with the adhesive on the fastener threads because over the last ten years or so things have not loosened.
If one is observant one can see when the clamp ends just pull up against the frame when tightening things up. This is an indication that the fasteners are very close to the point where the torque value will be reached.
03-17-2023, 10:24 AM
Pulling to the left after steering brace install
