How to tighten steering?
 

I am trying to find some information on how to tighten up the steering on my FD. When I try to change lanes on the highway I have to turn the wheel to the 2'oclock position. In my BMW when I turn the wheel even a half position its starts to turn into the next lane. It feels like there is a lot of play in the steering wheel.

I also noticed that the wheel is not centered. When driving in a straight line the wheel is already at the 1'oclock position.

Any help to tighten it up and center the wheel?

Sounds like you need an alignment.

Also check all your suspension bushings.

You have other issues. You need to check your front suspension parts, inner/outer Tie rods would be a good starting point.

Your front suspension and/or steering components may be badly worn or damaged and the car could be unsafe to drive.

I have it really bad on mine, I already have the bushings. I'm thinking it could be my inner/outer tie rods which I'll replace when I do a full suspension overhaul. Like suggestions have stated though, look at the front suspension and get an alignment.

I notice that my steering wheel needs to be turned to the 3 o clock or 9 o clock position to turn. There is also a lag when turning...nits more noticeable with a a nardi or miata steering wheel due to the smaller diameter. Ill check my tie rod ends but I know for a fact my swaybar end link is bent on the passengers side.

Check the steering rack bushings as well. A good way to check the suspension is have someone turn the wheel while you hold the hubs with a firm grip and try to see if there is any play and where.

Do the sway bar end links have any effect on the wheel play? Sorry if it's a stupid question, but I want to make sure for when I do my suspension overhaul. So steering wheel play could come from steering rack bushings, inner/outer tie rods, possible alignment issue? Also if you get aftermarket outer tie rods is there any aftermarket inners, or do the stock inners work just fine with aftermarket ones?

Had the same problem -- bolts on the banjo-style clamps on the steering had worked loose, actually had lost one bolt entirely. Remove the undertray, rack is just at the far front of the undertray. Bolts are easy to see. Shown here in a pic (not mine) that I kept for reference.
Mine got so bad, you could literally turn the wheel with almost no resulting turn of the tires.
Zero cost to repair, held fine for years.

Attachment 654391

Get the car to a good alignment shop or a rotary specific shop. that is not normal at all.

Yeah It's sad for me, I can corner faster in my Acura TL because the play is so bad it gets scary going into the turn with that much play. I'm just going to redo my suspension and when it's done hopefully everything turns out well.

FWIW: Doesn't sound like it's directly related to the OP's issue, but since there's talk about going through suspension bits, know that the tie-rods ends can be worn without the obvious indicators... https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...gnment-601593/

I'm still betting that it's these bolts on the banjo style clamps for the steering rack.
When they get loose, they continue to loosen making the steering lag/slip until you can barely turn. Simple to check. Not my pic and a RHD, But you can see the bolts clearly.

Attachment 654363

Its worth looking at... Ill check em out tomorrow can they be accessed under the car?

You have to drop the undertray -- they are just at the front of where the tray starts. Then reach up and you can tighten them up -- straighten the steering wheel before you tighten them.

ppritchard ,

Thanks for posting the picture. I am having a hard tome figuring out which bolt you are referring too. Is it the bolts on the top of those u clamps. Would you mind circling them in Paint or something?

Thanks,
Jon

Yes, it is the only bolts you can see in the photo -- they go up from the bottom with nuts on the top side. Easy to see when you have the undertray down. Mine had worked loose and one bolt was missing.

Well I went under my car today to look if the clamps could be lose and everything was tight. However I did discover my driver side steering rack boot was torn. There was a couple of leaks after going under my car that I will have to look at now, but would the torn boot effect the slop I get in the steering wheel? I'll post a few pictures and let me know what you guys think.

http://imageshack.com/a/img208/3136/edob.jpg
http://imageshack.com/a/img843/2855/3sq0.jpg

I don't know how to really tell if the inner tie rod or outer is bad, but appearance wise the inner looked good and the outer looks okay besides the grime on it. The boot was leaking all over the place, so I am wondering if there is more to do then just replacing the boot. My passenger side boot looks good, but should I replace it when I replace the driver side, guess it couldn't hurt.

^^
You need to have the car on jack stands to test the inner tie rod. Once in the air, you will need to grab the wheel at the 3 and 9 o'clock position and push it side to side to test for play. There should be NO back & forth play. You can also test for ball joint slack by grabbing the wheel at the 6 and 12 o'clock position.

Hope this helps

ripped boots mean that the inner tie rod ends are exposed to the elements and can wear at a high rate which could be the problem. if it is the inner rod ends replace them and the boots as well.

Since I'm redoing my suspension soon I was thinking I might as well buy new inner and outer tie rods. What do you guys think about these aftermarket ones, or would you guys stay oem. I saw Petit selling just 1 inner tie rod for like 90 bucks. Here's just 2 quick links of aftermarket ones, but not really sure if I should pull the trigger. Also I remember Rishie selling boots, but when I went to his website autornd.com I couldn't find them, looks like he has a new layout.
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http://www.summitracing.com/parts/bc...zda/model/rx-7

Thanks for the help guys.

Oem

Roger PM'd me another area to look.

"My car had a similar issue where it was "vague or loose" at centre. That is, I could turn the steering wheel an inch or two before the wheels would turn.
In my case I eventually found the problem and was able to fix it with the use of some JB Weld!

There is a type of "knuckle joint" at the top of the steering shaft/column which is covered by a rubber boot. It is located near the firewall. You will need to roll the rubber boot back to expose the "steering knuckle joint". The knuckle joint allows the steering shaft to go from horisontal through the firewall and down on an angle to the steering rack.
The knuckle joint is attached to the steering shaft by a type of "pin" which goes all the way through the steering shaft. The problem is the "pin" gets worn and a small gap occurs which means when you turn the steering wheel, the knuckle joint turns but the steering shaft does not. Simple fix is to put some JB Welb around the pin (on both sides) to "fill in the gap". Result: No more steering play!!"

Rogers description is spot on with what is going on with my car. I will try and take a look this weekend.

That actually sounds like mine too, my car is up in the air atm so I may have to take a look. I can basically move my steering wheel 1-2 inches side to side without the wheels moving, that's how much play my steering has. It might be something like that, but couldn't you just buy a new pin? I'll see what I can find.