About a inch play in the sterring wheel,mech says its normal???
 

he also said i would have to rebuild the box what ever that means. i had the same issye in my 93 stang and it was the steering colu,m bushing. is it different

Believe it or not, thats within the original factory specs.

These cars are famous for the play in the steering wheel.

If the play is the only symptom I dont think a rebuild is in order.

Yeah an inch of play is about right for these cars unfortunatly. Rebuilding it would help little if at all, just cost you a bunch of money.

After a couple weeks driving you won't even notice it.

And try to resist the urge to try to adjust the play too much with the set screw on the steering box. Overtightening it wont help and in the long run will only make the steering looser.

Ahhh oh well. Thanks guys

can it be shimmed? Like urethane in the bushing?

Nope, the free play is in the recirculating ball design of the steering box. Has a little play but was cheap for mazda and will last forever.

But Re-Speed has a cure that works great!

You have to remember that these are old shool cars built back before rack and pinion precision steering was the norm. Back when I bought my car it didnt feel like the steering was loosey goosey cause everything was that way. Nowadays everyone learns to drive in cars with razor sharp steering so when they drive a 1st gen is feels loose. Like Gamah says after a few weeks you get used to it, or buy a re-speed setup.

^

steering is still sharp, it just takes a little more effort to go straight.

it can't be any worse than my 1970 dastun 510, i got pulled over sooo many times cause cops thought i was drunk, in the end urethane in the bushing made it alright.
the RE speed kit:
how much? how involved? is it as far as taking out the entire steering system, or is it simply adding in components to the existing system?
also, is it legal for the spec-7 series?

^I don't know the rules for spec-7 but I highly doubt it. It replaces basically everything except the control arm and spindle/spring/shock assembly. The crossmember, knuckle arms, steering column are all different, and it adds a rear section to the control arm since the rack is located in front. It's all bolt on, costs like $1100 (although there are a few for sale in the parts section right now, mine included lol - because i'm taking the car off the road, not because it was bad or anything :)) and could be installed in a weekend.

It's called "wonder" steering. You wonder which way it's gonna go next.

And you can "tighten" the set screw in the steering box. It has a tendency tho to "loosen" back up after a while and you'll have to re-tighten it again. Did mine years ago and it's still doing good.

jerij

blue locktite

the screw doesnt actually loosen, it wears. the screw actually pushes down on the guts of the box to keep it from flopping around...

in the triumph world they buy a setscrew with a spring on it, i guess the spring does a better job?

:lol::lol::lol::icon_tup:

Oh man I'm not sure how many other people will catch the joke but that was brilliant.

how hard is it to tighten the screw and how do you get into the steering box?

what about the ilder arm bushing?

Idler arm bushings are notorious for going bad and could very well be a cause for any "wonder steer", but not the 1" play in the steering wheel, that is normal and as noted above, if everything else is in order, the car will handle just fine, very tight in the turns.

Moog makes a very nice aftermarket idler arm replacement, it replaces the bushings with a ball joint, is much preferred and costs less than the OEM equipment. You can get them from Rock Auto for the best deal I could find.

On the steering box, be sure to check the fluid level! Last time I had some steering box problems on a new GSL I had just acquired, I thought I'd take a look at the fluid level and found the box was half empty. Probably not a good condition to maintain those critical worm gears and other stuff inside the box!

For tightening, there is a procedure in the FSM but as noted above, DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN and be sure to have the front end jacked up when you do the adjustment, otherwise you will be stressing the gears unnecessarily.

Do just a little at a time, about 1/8 of a turn, then try it out before getting tempted to go further.

ill take a video of the wheel in a sec

http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i2...a/f173a701.mp4

http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i2...a/f173a701.mp4


http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i2...a/f173a701.mp4

That wheel actually looks fairly tight for an FB. I wouldn't even mess with it, though the Moog idler arm is always a good upgrade.

it is pretty tight i just hate that play.....

This is your only option, then:
http://mrcmfg.com/catalog/product_in...roducts_id=345

As mentioned above, don't tighten the stock steering beyond factory spec, as it will cause it to wear out quickly.

+1 to all of that. jack the car up, and fell how hard it is to turn the wheel, then adjust the steering a tad (1/8 turn is good) then turn the wheel again. you can probably do a little better than that video...

Agreed, from your video there does seem to be a little more play in the wheel than usual, even for a 30 year old car.

I just did the same test in your video on my 85 GSL with a new Moog idler, new outer tie rod ends, manual steering and a recent minor tightening adjustment to the steering box and my wheel shows about half the play you are seeing.

A little careful adjustment could make it better, just don't get greedy. It could be the play is there because the box really is worn and you won't be able to get it out.

And remember to check the fluid level in the steering box!

i still need to open and check the steering box for the fluid. what kind of fluid does it take?

Most important where is the box lol