oldskoolrx-7

i have a 83 gsl and i tend to have alot of play when i steer i can move my steering wheel a couple degrees and it wont steer the car to that direction im moving it..i was wondering if it is hard to fix this problem? is it that the gears or whatnot are eaten up and how can i fix this?

Mr BiG G

that is probably a worn steering box
it could be ur tie rods, have them checked for excessive play....but i think it's most probably ur steering box that either needs to be adjusted or replaced...i'm not sure if u can rebuild it....i have the exact same car and the exact same problem i was gonna go wit the cp racing rack and pinion route but i think i'll pass

Hadoken

Theres a way to adjust it under the hood...Check my past posts or search for steering ****....

christaylor

First, is it power or manual steering? In both cases, there should be an adjuster on the top of the box itself. Tighten that down and see if it reduces play any. If it does, and you bottom it out with play still in the system, there's one more way to tighten it without changing boxes. Take the adjuster screw out. If it has a washer, put it back in without the washer and tighten down. If it doesn't have any play, bitchin'. If it still does, it's box changing time.

Changing boxes is a PITA, and I hear manual is easier than power. I changed the manual box in my car, and it was an fffing bitch. Had to take the radiator, battery, A/C (AND mount!) and a bunch of other stuff out to get the whole thing out. Not to mention the wheel, column surround, signal stalks, etc. out.

Good luck, hopefully the adjuster gets the play out!

bouis

Don't listen to these guys. There's a writeup on mazspeed.com that tells you how to do the adjustment like the FSM says to, but without pulling the box from the car (major PITA).

If you cut ANY corners your adjustment won't last.

christaylor

Your title needs to be ammended to say "Dumbass fuckstick".

That, or you need glasses.

Hugs & Kisses,
Chris

bouis

Yeah, yeah, whatever, don't bother with the other two adjustments and see where you end up. [Like this guy!]

First, you adjust the big nut on the steering column tube by the firewall. Then you adjust the big nut on top of the steering box, then you mess with the screw... otherwise you'll ruin your fine adjustment and it really will be "new box time".