steering rack change

[jcasey007]

It's just taken me a day and half to change the rack, what a nasty job!

It didn't start well as all three boilts holding the front tow hook to the chassis rounded off and had to be cut off.

It actually took 9 hours to get the old rack out, problems ranging from seized nuts and a complete failure to undo the presure pipes as you can't get a spanner on it. In the end I had to remove all the pressure pipes just to be able to got to the pipe to the pump.

In the end I 'modified' 2 x 18mm spanners, one I cut a slot in the ring end and the other I put a dog leg into it with my 10 ton press (and cut it in half to shorten it)

It's not often i'm reduced to tears but when the new rack got stuck, I might have had a manly weep under the car (or was it crap in my eye)

Anyway, It's mostly in apart from the anti-roll bar, I ran it up to chack for leaks and it's all good.

I just wish I could meet the person who designed the steering rack area in a dark alley one day.



Jim

 

[kevin p]

Hey Jim.
I like the manly weep bit.
I to feel like that sometimes, especially when theres a bit of my knuckle skin hanging from a sharp piece of metal after the spanner has slipped. lol.
Kev.

 

[colingel]

I remember this job.
My explorer was bought as a accident damage and steering rack was damaged.
Do I remember its just about impossible to get it to fit and I ended up seperating the rack and reassembling it in situ?

Do remember crying as well.

 

[janolsson]

gone are the days of blood, sweat and tears for me. Now its only sweat and tears as i've wussed out and found some work gloves that are thin enough to have feel on the front but have a neoprene type back to protect my knuckles. the curse of havin shovels for hands meant i was constantly shredding them.

 

[jcasey007]

finished the job

I'm happy to report the road test proved successful, now self centering and the clunk when going left to right is also gone.

I did find out along the way my drop links are different lengths (two different ebay suppliers ) so thats for another day.

I did have to get on with it at 06:00 this morning so not to eat into the saturday tough in the sub zero temp.

I also wear neoprean gloves but even the thick ones split (used half a box on the rack).

Still I now have a bull bar (from a series 1 Landrover discovery) so will be fabricating the mountings tomorrow. offering it up it will fit a treat

Later

Jim

 

[petetheengineer]

Its amazing i spent all day working on power steering starting with the breakers sourcing a cooler and pump then the joy of fitting them. I am fed up with the standar steering coolers i have got through 5 of the stupind things and ford dont sell them anymore. Today i found a nice mgb at the breakers that had a nice aftermarket 5 row oil cooler hopefully that will last a bit longer.

 

[jcasey007]

Pete, What happens to the coolers on your car?

Looking at mine it was the original one and had never been off.

you have me worried now.

 

[petetheengineer]

well they are so weak i have had two just blow and then cover the whole underside of my car. Two others have just started to leak and then i ruptured another when i was removing the pipes. There weakest point are where the fins are crimped on.

The aftermarket one i fitted is working really well and also increases the amount of fluid in the system which in turn keeps it cooler.
Form my point of view the original one from factory last for ages but when you replace with a secondhand one the pipe stresses are different and that causes them to weaken due to bieng ally.

 

[corkey]

yes, changing the steering rack is a nasty job, i personally have not done one on an Explorer , but i have looked at what it takes to do it,
when my rack was going bad i spoke with several members over here to ask them for any tips that would make the job easier, and the first thing they told me was to take off all the tie rods, both inner and outer,, that way you can move the rack around a bit to get access to the lines, once all the bolts are loose ,
also with the tie rods all off the engine does not have to be jacked up to get the rack out , it can be shimmied around till it comes out the one side,,

 

[jcasey007]

I could not even get the tie rods off mine untill the pipes were off). I also thought about jacking the engine up at one point but didn't as nobody said you needed to.

I also think that the Right hand Drive cars are harder to do. if you look at a lefty there is more room for the steering gear box to move around (or is it just wishfull thinking

 

[JonC]

Jim,

Are you just unlucky? You've had some of the sh.....est jobs from what I've read! Makes me feel positively spoilt with mine. That said, I've done the plugs so I'm with you on the dark alley meeting thing. How anybody could think that was ever a good idea....... As the saying goes, "The b.....d that designed this shodl be made to work on it!"

Hope there's light at the end of your tunnel.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[jcasey007]

I love my EX

thanks Jon

Acording to my wife it is all my own fault.

I do very high milage (for the UK that is) of about 45-55k a year and so need a reliable ride, My EX is now up to 141k so alot of the work I do on it may be seen as precautionary so she won't let me down. The only part on the drive train and suspension I have not replaced is the Autobox and the engine block.

The fact that I (usually) enjoy working on her is a bonus I guess, and of course getting to grips with a complex engine management system is always fun.

So this weekend without anything broken on the EX, I will finally get down to fitting the Bull Bar and 8" Cibies

cheers

Jim

 

[JonC]

Mmmmm......bull bar! I'd just finished convincing myself that mine didn't need one. looked fine without, would look silly with one - the Blueka sent me the link to the LMC Truck catalogue and now my life is in ruins! If I don't apply some seroius control I'll be living in the bloody truck because the house will be gone. Anyone else smell melting plastic......

 

[jcasey007]

not me I got my bull bar from ebay came off a landrover defender series one (in fact it was never fitted so is new) only £30.

I've designed the brackets so will get the welder out tomorrow

 

[JonC]

£30!!!??? Bloody hell! At least Dick Turpin had the decency to wear a mask!

 

[410Fortune]

I did a write up on this that might have helped you do it in a few hours, no cutting of anything needed

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142851

post #546, page 28 for me

 

[kevin p]

I got mine off ebay, and I was told they thought it was off a landrover too.

They had described it as chrome and when it arrived it had bits and bobs of paint and stuff on it. I was well chuffed when I started to clean it , it was stainless steel. I think I paid about £40 for it.

Well worth a look on ebay if you are handy with a welder.

 

[jcasey007]

thanks 410fortune

I did read your post before I started and it did give me hope to do it in half a day.

All I can think of is that the RHD is different in some small ways (i.e. pressure pipe runs)

in hindsight, if I had jacked up the engine I would have been able to cant over the rack easier to get a spanner on the pipes.

Live and learn!

cheers

jim