Steering rack Vs Arb

[gas mart 1]

I think other wedgers may have had this problem as well...our steering rack ends are hitting the ARB on sharp turns... on both left and right turns, alll of the arb bushes were replaced last year for superfex is there an obvious fix for this ., .its on a 88 350i.
cheers
martin

[adam quantrill]

Are you on original ford, or rose jointed ARB drop links?

If the latter they maye be some leeway to adjust both ends upwards out of the way.

[gas mart 1]

Thanks Adam.. All original Ford.. apart from the bushes. The front springs and shocks were replaced by the previous owner....the shocks are AVO adjustable not sure if the springs are the same as the originals

[adam quantrill]

Well it should be OK then after all the same setup was used on 100000 cortinas.

Are you looking when it's jacked up? There is quite often some clashing on full lock, but when it's on its wheels it should be OK.

[gas mart 1]

It was noticeable when being driven … especially on left hand lock ..I took the arb out tonight , all looks fine .

[adam quantrill]

Is this a PAS or manual rack? PAS tends to be a bit harsher on the end stops especially as you have less "feel" for when it hits them.

[gas mart 1]

The rack is pas...… I know what you mean , its a definite stop at full lock , we had the rack reconditioned last year … its much tighter now ..removed all the play in it, but the rack generates an annoying buzzing noise which is transferred through the column to the steering wheel centre, sounds a bit like a dentist drill... I tried a different pump , which made no difference... Anyway....i think the other problem was down to the bushes being different in size to the original rubber Cortina bushes, i put the arb back in with a couple of heavy flat washers on top of the upper drop link bush , to raise the link eye ... this appears to have fixed it. We used the Wedge for work yesterday...done around 250 miles which was an absolute pleasure.

[adam quantrill]

Interesting so did you replace the bushes on the drop links then got the problem? Sounds like a reasonable adjustment, one for the FAQ.

[gas mart 1]

Its difficult to say for sure ,we only drove it to and from the Mot before i changed the bushes,...due to the rack needing repair, i did notice the original bushes were almost spherical in shape where as superflex replacements are cylindrical and flat each end.

[The Hatter]

The drop links are not standard Cortina, they are modified. TVR lopped the top off (originally threaded bar) and replaced it with a hoop to fit the top bush.

I had the steering rack fouling issue; I removed the drop links and found one was around 1/4" longer than the other. I had them lengthened slightly (to the same length!) and they no longer hit the steering rack. God knows how it went through 20+ years of MOTs like that!

There's also no retaining features on the roll bar to stop it moving side to side, which makes the rack issue worse.