dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

As the subject says, I'm wondering if the rack on my 97SE is the cause of my loose steering. I've replaced both inner and outer tie rods, all front suspension bushings (except the rubber parts in the shocks), the struts themselves, had 3 sets of tires, and multiple alignments. I've even had the rack pinion tension readjusted per the TSB.

The major symptom is that road bumps really tend to feed back through the steering wheel and move it. One way to look at it is: in my Max, you can't take your hands off the wheel or else any tiny road bump will push it off line. Other cars I've driven (new Accord, my gf's Eclipse, even my Dads Park Avenue) don't do this. I know that my Max didn't either 70k ago.

So it comes down to the rack, agree? How do I check it? How much more difficult is rebuilding it vs. swapping with a reman?

Dave

njmaxseltd

iTrader: (19)

Straight line tracking is controlled by your suspension geometry, not the steering rack. If the rack was loose, you'd have excessive play in the steering wheel and you'd feel it if you moved your tires back and forth with your hands.

Honda's have a double wishbone setup, don't compair it to your Max.
The Park Ave has cushy tires and a luxury car feel, completely different ball game.
The Eclipse - Not sure what thats running.....

What tires are you running? 17" rims, 18" rims? What tire pressure?

Bumps do tent to push my steering slightly as well, pretty normal for the basic suspension setup our cars are equipped with. Things get much smoother when I throw on my stock 16" wheels with a M+S all season tire. An agressive Z rated tire makes the car follow road irregularities.

dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

I should be more clear - "loose" isn't the best word. It's more like a "low resistance to turning". There is no slop in the linkage as far as I can tell. When driving straight down the highway, any small bumps in the road feed back through the wheel with sufficient force to turn the steering wheel unless my hands hold it still. It's very lively. I want more resistance in the wheel, so that it only turns when I turn it. When holding the wheel lightly you can feel a huge difference in feedback from the road when I compare it to the Eclipse, Park Ave, and Accord. The fact those cars are so different, and I remember the Max being different in the past, reinforces my belief something is wrong. This issue should be independent of suspension design since I'm only talking about small steering angles. The bottom line is the car didn't used to be this way, and I have to be very careful to have steady hands and mind crosswinds and bumps. Regarding tires, I have the stock 16" alloys and currently Dunlop A2s at 35/32psi (fr/rear). In the past I had used Z-rated Dunlop SP 5000s with the same effects.

I re-read the steering rack pinion tension test procedure, and even though it's a lot of work to detach the link to the column, I want to repeat the test and be certain it's correct. It was done in the fall but now I feel the need to perform the test myself. Unfortunately that should take a full day of my time. It's half the work of replacing the rack itself.

The alignment shop that had the car yesterday (following the bushing and tie rod work) said they found a minor leak at the PSP, and they put in some Lucas PS leak stop fluid. I'll give that a few days to see if that does anything for the feel as well.

Dave

njmaxseltd

iTrader: (19)

Whats your suspension set up?

dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

Tokico Blues, Suspension Techniques springs (just 1/2" lowering). When I first felt this kind of behavior back at 90k, I put in the Tokicos since it seemed to be bump related - it made no difference. Alignment is per factory spec. I have ES bushing in the swaybar and control arms. All-season high performance tires. The car is a daily driver and is set up as such.

Thanks for all the 'instant' help.

Dave

ziya20

I had the same problem which was improved quite significantly after installing a front strut tower bar.

dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

I have an FSTB and RSTB.

Dave

dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

Bump:

Would a slowly leaking pressure-side power steering pump hose affect the function of the rack? (As in, maybe air gets in or something?)

Is replacing this hose difficult? It would seem I could unbolt it, let the fluid drain, install the new one, start the car, fill the reservoir and move the rack back and forth until it's refilled with fluid.

Dave

lewtion1

iTrader: (1)

Thank god you posted this. I have pretty much the same problem. if you do find a solution, please post and let us know.

James