How sloppy is YOUR steering?

[mterrens]

Lately I have been lamenting what I BELIEVE is excess slack (slop?  play?) in my Coupe’s steering.  While sitting at a standstill I can turn the wheel 38 degrees (yes I measured it) before there’s any resistance - without really moving the wheels at all.  I don’t feel unsafe driving the car but there’s probably a lot more wheel-turning than there should be when driving it straight down the road.
Bill C has written a tutorial on rebuilding the steering rack (it’s all about the bushings) but there are other things to try –
How much play is there in your wheel?  What have you done about it (if anything?)  What was the cause of your sloppiness?  The steering rack?   The joints of the steering column?  Something else?
I have started a webpage to keep track of this project.
http://www.honda600coupe.com/Sloppy_Steering/
Steve

[feltonminicycle]

It's usually the steering rack bushings. When you turn the steering wheel look down by the floor where the pinion sticks through. You will see the pinion moving side to side instead of just the way it should - no sloppy sideways movement.
You can remove the rack without removing the engine. Remove the cooling fan and unscrew the tie rod ends. It looks tight in there and I have heard some people drop the 2 back sub frame mounts & remove shifter at the engine for access. I don't recall ever having to do that.
Miles

--- In
2cylinderhondas@yahoogroups.com
, Steven Michelsen wrote:
> Lately I have been lamenting what I BELIEVE is excess slack (slop? play?)
> in my Coupe's steering. While sitting at a standstill I can turn the wheel
> 38 degrees (yes I measured it) before there's any resistance - without
> really moving the wheels at all. I don't feel unsafe driving the car but
> there's probably a lot more wheel-turning than there should be when driving
> it straight down the road.
> Bill C has written a tutorial on rebuilding the steering rack
> (it's all about the bushings) but there are other things to try -
> How much play is there in your wheel? What have you done about it (if
> anything?) What was the cause of your sloppiness? The steering rack? The
> joints of the steering column? Something else?
> I have started a webpage to keep track of this project.
http://www.honda600coupe.com/Sloppy_Steering/
> Steve

[Greg]

Replace the useless rubber bushes with brass bushes - you may need to visit a machine shop to make em; I did and the steering has been perfect for years since.

--- In
2cylinderhondas@yahoogroups.com
, "feltonminicycle" wrote:
> It's usually the steering rack bushings. When you turn the steering wheel look down by the floor where the pinion sticks through. You will see the pinion moving side to side instead of just the way it should - no sloppy sideways movement.
> You can remove the rack without removing the engine. Remove the cooling fan and unscrew the tie rod ends. It looks tight in there and I have heard some people drop the 2 back sub frame mounts & remove shifter at the engine for access. I don't recall ever having to do that.
> Miles
> --- In
2cylinderhondas@yahoogroups.com
, Steven Michelsen wrote:
> > Lately I have been lamenting what I BELIEVE is excess slack (slop? play?)
> > in my Coupe's steering. While sitting at a standstill I can turn the wheel
> > 38 degrees (yes I measured it) before there's any resistance - without
> > really moving the wheels at all. I don't feel unsafe driving the car but
> > there's probably a lot more wheel-turning than there should be when driving
> > it straight down the road.
> > Bill C has written a tutorial on rebuilding the steering rack
> > > (it's all about the bushings) but there are other things to try -
> > How much play is there in your wheel? What have you done about it (if
> > anything?) What was the cause of your sloppiness? The steering rack? The
> > joints of the steering column? Something else?
> > I have started a webpage to keep track of this project.
http://www.honda600coupe.com/Sloppy_Steering/
> > Steve