I'm in the middle of replacing the rack boots because they were torn open. Question I have is after I removed them I cleaned up both ends and was wondering if I should lubricate the rack gear or just leave it alone? I noticed when I wiped the ends, especially the drivers side where the gear was showing, there looked to be some grease on there but not much.

 

leave it alone. there doesn't to be nor should there be a lot of grease. you should not have wiped it off at all.
The boots are there to keep dust and dirt out, not to keep anything in.

 

Cool. I wiped it off because it was a little dirty from the tears in the boot. I figured it be best to remove the dirt because it's not leaking and I don't want a leak down the road.

 

I just jacked my 92 Maximau up this AM and took the front wheels off to prepare to replace the front struts. I noticed that the power steering rack boots on both sides are completely torn. What is the best way to replace them? Do you disconnect the track rod end, unscrew the end and slip the boot off after taking the clamps off? Then reverse? What do the boots cost? Are they available from parts stores?

 

how much are these rack dustboots?
i see alot prices that seem ok but
i think thats per side

 

i just got some from a popular auction site...
$18 for the pair and free s+h,nice!

 

What brand?

Not to burst your bubble but I wouldn't be too excited unless they're Moog or some other high-end brand. You're excited now but you won't be too happy a few months in when they split right back open and you have to replace them again and screw with your tie rod ends and getting another alignment and whatnot. I speak from experience

 

what brand boots do you have on your max? Where did you get them and how much were they if you don't mind me asking?

 

I don't even remember the brand. I bought the cheapest ones on Rock Auto. Probably Mevotech.

Moog is really the only way to go. It's 3x as much as Mevotech and other brands but well worth it.

This really goes for virtually all suspension parts. When I restored my Civic I went with some $100 complete eBay kit with ball joints, tie rod ends, control arms etc. Now less than 3000 miles later it's all crapped out, squeaky, all boots and joints busted, and I'm redoing it with ALL Moog parts which cost me 4x as much, but it'll last for another 300k miles.

Moog really blows everything else out of the water. I've learned it's worth it to just save up front to buy all Moog than to buy crap and re-do it all.

Beck Arnley is pretty good too but I prefer Moog by a decent stretch.

 

Got some from napa for $20 bucks a piece, at around 180K miles, currently at 249K miles and they are still in good shape. I believe it was moog though.

 

So, can you do the boots with the steering rack in the car? Do you just pop the tie rod ends, unscrew them from the steering grear rods and undo the clamps for the boots? How had is it to get to the interior clamps?

 

oh yeah,big woop wanna fight about it?

ive considered that but since i havent put much of any money into
suspension or the car for that matter, im going cheap on dust boots.
ive already read alot about some really cheap suspension stuff

 

 

Well I replaced both boots yesterday, but I couldn't put the wire clamps on - just not enough room to use two hands and impossible with one hand. I ended up using nylon zip locks at least temporarillary. Any suggestions as to how to put the wire clamps on? Any other clamps work?

 

How does the dealership service guys do it? They have a special tool?

 

my cheap o ones came with zipties but i used some zipties of mine

also they seemed kinda small on the big end so it took forever to

slip them on the rack side with greasy hands, but i had the challenge accepted face on

i started to try to remove one sides tie rod from the knuckle before i

remembered to just unscrew it apart in the middle since you have to anyhoo to get the small side on

just used tape to mark the threads for alignment mines was off any way

these cheap rack dust boots are thin on the creases when streched you can almost see light shine through them

 

The dealer supplied boots are better than that. I did get my wire clamps on the big ends but not without some difficulty. I broke both of the wires that came with the original boot kits by twisting them too tight. Watch for that. I ordered three new wires from the dealer after trying to find stainless steel wire of the approximate diameter to use as a substitute.

I devised a method of doing the job that wasn't too hard which I will describe here. I will also attach a photo of the tools I fabricated for the job. First I bought a 7" long 5/8" diameter clothes line hook with three nuts that fit the threads on the end. Then I cut a three inch piece of aluminum bar 1/4" x 1". I drilled a 5/8" hole in the middle of the bar to use as a handle on the hook. Finally I made a hook on the ends of the two wires that I broke from the kit and straightened them out.

When the new wires arrived, I used a really large socket held in my vise to wind the new wires around to get them in the approximate shape they need to be when put on the boots.

I then got under the car with my light, the new wires, the hooks, an inspection mirror and a screw driver and went to it. I first fitted the new wire around the tie rod and worked it over the boot from the small end to finally get it in place on the large end. The loops were on either side of the boot and I used the wire hooks I made to grab the two loops and pull them down to where I could slip the clothes line hook over both loops. I then pulled the lop ends tight and used the screw driver and the inspection mirror to work the wires in place over the right place on the boot.

Keeping the tension on the wire ends I began to twist the wire ends using the screw driver to keep the wires in place on the boot. I was more careful in not turning the wired too much this time. When the wire was real sunug on the boot I stopped turning and removed the tool. The final step was to bend the twisted wire ends down to lay along the PS unit.

Repeat on the other side. Get out from under the car and remove the jack stands, etc.

A dirty job which would have been easier if the car had been on a lift and you had three hands.