Worn Steering Gear?

[ttreat]

I noticed some swaying of my 91 Turbo that doesn't seem natural. Last night I jacked the front end up and noticed that there seems to be play in the steering gear. I can wiggle each wheel as if I had a really bad ball joint or bad wheel bearing but the play is in the steering gear (about 1/8"-3/16"). It also seems to be leaking power steering fluid on the passenger side. Is there a way to remove the steering gear without removing the ball joints? Does anyone have any other tips on replacing this gear (rack & pinion)?

[JekylandHyde]

The P/S is only effective at low mphs (under 30 I believe), so that should not affect any swaying.

I have been playing the MR2 game a very long time and I have never heard of a worn out "steering gear."

Swaying is typically signs of wearing or blowns struts; tires inflated at different psi's, poor alignment and/or loose bolts on the strut housing.

I'm not saying your diagnosis is incorrect, merely suggesting other places to look to verify.

[ttreat]

My diagnosis may not be correct. There may be other components that need replacing. I just bought this car and it is my first MR2. However, if I grab the front tires on each side, I can wiggle them back and forth. There seems to be no movement in the tie rod ends, little to no movement in the top of the strut mounts, but 3/16" movement in the stearing rack and pinion. I don't want to replace parts that are not worn out but I can't imagine this car being stable with this much play in the steering gear. The car has 193K miles on it.

[JekylandHyde]

Well I am road racing my car with over 200,000 miles ... actually, I will be up your way this weekend doing the Giant's Despair Hill Climb Race in Laurel Run (near Wilkes Barre).

Are you wiggling the steering with the car on the ground or jacked up?
Is the car on or off? Our cars have an electrical asst P/S and I am not sure how it responds when the car is off. Just a thought.

I would hate to see you waste time and money fixing things that aren't broke.

[el niño]

this may sound stupid, but did you upgrade rims lately? when I did in my car it started going all over the place, I changed to the original rims and everything was fine.

[ttreat]

I tried it with the front jacked up and the car not running. With the car sitting on the ground I cannot move the wheels but I can get a lot of freeplay in the steering wheel, running and not running. I am going to try getting a rack from a local junkyard. They have one and will guarantee it for 30 days for $125.