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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / April 2007Steering Wheel Off after Racket and Pinion Changed
So I had an uncle replace the steering racket and pinion on my 1999 Ford Taurus SE V6 (83,000). Now my steering wheel (SW) is pointing at 1 o'clock when the wheels are straight. The wheel aliment seems fine, but like I said, the SW is off. I am planning to get new tires in a few months, so I figured I could get a wheel alignment at the same time. MY COLLECTIVE QUESTION: Is the off SW a big problem? Should I get it fixed ASAP? As long as my wheel alignment is straight, does a crooked SW matter? And will a wheel alignment, or the professional people that do the work, fix this problem? I am sure I have other questions, but I am not sure how to word them. The steering wheel being off is only a relative indexing problem. It is not a massive problem. No symmetry has been compromised. It is somewhat like buttoning you shirt up wrong. This often happens when people are careless about indexing the steering wheel, or other steering parts. The fix is easy, but there is no earth shattering problem if you never fix it. > So I had an uncle replace the steering racket and pinion on my 1999 > Ford Taurus SE V6 (83,000). Now my steering wheel (SW) is pointing at [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > I am sure I have other questions, but I am not sure how to word them. > The steering wheel being off is only a relative indexing problem. > It is not a massive problem. No symmetry has been compromised. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > The fix is easy, but there is no earth shattering problem if you never fix > it. When I posted the above, I assumed that the car had been aligned after having the rack and pinion unit replaced. If it has not been aligned, then - as others have posted - it needs to be checked. I have seen lots of people pull pitman arms, steering units, steering wheels and not mark them...get them back on out of index. Often it is an annoying situation but not serious. As I said before, it is easy to fix. But check that alignment. If the wheel is clocked off just 'right', it can interfere with the signal light return and cause the return switch to fatigue and stop working. It can usually be adjusted on it's own without effecting the 'alignment'. Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view! Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590 (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page) > So I had an uncle replace the steering racket and pinion on my 1999 > Ford Taurus SE V6 (83,000). Now my steering wheel (SW) is pointing at [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > I am sure I have other questions, but I am not sure how to word them. What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod ends. When you do that, you change the toe agjustment. When you put them back on you can get them close, but not exactly where they need to be. The only way to do that is to get the car aligned. > What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. > When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod > ends. When you do that, you change the toe agjustment. When you put > them back on you can get them close, but not exactly where they need > to be. The only way to do that is to get the car aligned. I do my own alignment all the time and can easily replace a tie rod end and get it back exact using a tape measure. My Jeep only has toe in for alignment and I get perfect tire wear. I have changed 'all' the front end parts in the last 10 years. Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view! Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590 (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page) >> What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. >> When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590 > (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page) but just swapping the rack could mean the OP now needs an alignment, and they're not capable of doing one at home. FWIW, last time I did the tie rods on the wife's car, I tried doing the "count the threads" trick to get close enough... but it didn't work, and after comparing the tie rods, I know why - the new tie rods weren't the same length overall, so going "8 turns in" didn't negate the need for an alignment. We align my race car in the driveway, but it's a real production... Ray >>> What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. >>> When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > > Ray Good point. The fact that the steering is now out of line could indicate the rack didn't get back in the exact same spot also. Mike >>> What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. >>> When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > > Ray Just FWIW I use the seam on the tire for my measurements, not the parts themselves for the reason you note. Mike >>>> What you need to understand is that the car needs to be aligned now. >>>> When you replace the rack, you need to take off the outter tie rod [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > > Mike we found that the best way for the driveway was a scribe and a jack stand - spin the wheel and scribe the tire around the center - that way when you roll the car back and forth you have somewhere you can measure... yah they never got toe set right or it would be strait or body could twisted...i would not call him a good alighnment man..did he test drive it after he was done????  SignatureScrapper http://www.automotiveforums.com >So I had an uncle replace the steering racket and pinion on my 1999 >Ford Taurus SE V6 (83,000). Now my steering wheel (SW) is pointing at [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > >I am sure I have other questions, but I am not sure how to word them. The steering column has a master spline that prevents it from being installed "out of clock". The steering wheel alignment must be set as part of the wheel alignment after rack replacement. Wheel alignment on that car should be a 4 corner where all wheels are setup. It is sometimes calle a thrust angle alignment. It is not a problem other than the trun signal cancel will not work correctly and I don't like the car going straigh when it ought to be turning right. That, you can get used to after a while. If the wheels were not aligned after the rack installation, it needs to be done ASAP. Lugnut |
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