Steering Rack

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MarcusAurelius

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Two weeks ago I replaced both of my inner and outer tie rod ends. When I purchased the inner tie rods from NAPA, they both came with small packets of grease. Where was I supposed to apply this grease?

Were these intended for the steering rack? If not, should I have greased the gears on the steering rack and what grease should I have used?

When I pulled the boots, there was pools of what looked almost like motor oil dripping off of the steering rack. Was this just grease that liquefied over time? Is this normal?

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asahi4runner said:
Pool of oil doesn't sound good. The grease are for you to pack it inside the boot before you install the rod in
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The grease is put on the inside of the boot?? :confused: Do you mean where it pops into place on the rack?

"Pool of oil" was a bit harsh, there's some on the inside of the accordian style boot, and a couple drips from the rack when I pull back the boot, but nothing that really seems to stick out as problematic for a car with 113K on it. I just figured it was lubrication for the gears, but being a bit of a noob still, I just wanted to know if this was typical and if it is necessary to regrease or anything.
 
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Yeah that's what I meant. I have just replace my not too long ago and I didn't relube anything and my my still doing okay its been 15000 miles since.
 
MarcusAurelius said:
but being a bit of a noob still, I just wanted to know if this was typical and if it is necessary to regrease or anything.
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you're not allowed to be a "noob" when you've done a 2uz timing belt job :rockon:

and yeah, that should be greased well. I had that boot blow and fixed it a while back with some new grease
 
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zopperman said:
you're not allowed to be a "noob" when you've done a 2uz timing belt job :rockon:

and yeah, that should be greased well. I had that boot blow and fixed it a while back with some new grease
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I think I'll always be a "noob" in my mind, there's always more I can learn! (even after replacing the timing belt, serpentine belt, water pump, spark plugs, CV axels, Inner and outer tie rods and LBJ's) haha half of the stuff probably wasn't even needed yet, but the fun is all in the journey, not the destination :biggrin1:

What type of grease do you recommend for the rack?
 
It couldn't hurt to put a little grease on the gears when reassembling it since you have it apart. Its probably a similar grease to what goes in ball joints and driveshafts. Its mostly to just lube the gears lightly I would assume.
 
MarcusAurelius said:
I think I'll always be a "noob" in my mind, there's always more I can learn! (even after replacing the timing belt, serpentine belt, water pump, spark plugs, CV axels, Inner and outer tie rods and LBJ's) haha half of the stuff probably wasn't even needed yet, but the fun is all in the journey, not the destination :biggrin1:

What type of grease do you recommend for the rack?
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sorry, thought i replied to this a while back. I use M1 synthetic grease for pretty much everything except brakes
 
zopperman said:
BTW did you replace just the LBJ or the whole LCA?

one of mine is leaking and I'm thinking i'll just replace the damn arm
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I didn't need to replace the whole LCA. The balljoint replacement was actually more simple than I anticipated (besides being too strong for my own good and nearly destroying the threads on a $250 press kit). You can rent a balljoint press set for free from Advanced Auto, Auto Zone, etc. but every one that I tried in the area had the same kit that lacked the correct size cup adapter.

The cup that was included in the rental kit was only about a quarter inch or so too small and therefore would not allow me to press it out. I ended up having to buy a massive kit from NAPA which was way overpriced because I had my car apart and needed to get to work on Monday (a recurring theme).

People talk about putting a lot of force behind the breaker bar with cheater pipe, but I put more than I needed to and nearly wrecked the press. I found that it helped to apply pressure to the press and periodically whack the corner of the press with a 5lb sledge to loosen it up. Mine was really stuck on there so it took a while but finally came out with a huge crack.

I'm not sure how hard replacing the LCA would be, I started to mark the position of all the LCA bushings but when I saw how much the whole assembly cost for something that I really didn't need I changed my mind and stuck to only the LBJ.
 
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MarcusAurelius said:
I didn't need to replace the whole LCA. The balljoint replacement was actually more simple than I anticipated (besides being too strong for my own good and nearly destroying the threads on a $250 press kit). You can rent a balljoint press set for free from Advanced Auto, Auto Zone, etc. but every one that I tried in the area had the same kit that lacked the correct size cup adapter.

The cup that was included in the rental kit was only about a quarter inch or so too small and therefore would not allow me to press it out. I ended up having to buy a massive kit from NAPA which was way overpriced because I had my car apart and needed to get to work on Monday (a recurring theme).

People talk about putting a lot of force behind the breaker bar with cheater pipe, but I put more than I needed to and nearly wrecked the press. I found that it helped to apply pressure to the press and periodically whack the corner of the press with a 5lb sledge to loosen it up. Mine was really stuck on there so it took a while but finally came out with a huge crack.
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:twitch:

sounds like its easier just to replace the arm or to have a shop do the pressing for me
 
zopperman said:
:twitch:

sounds like its easier just to replace the arm or to have a shop do the pressing for me
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Probably easier, but certainly more expensive (particularly for the new LCA). Honestly I don't know why I seem to attract all these freak accident/situations. Most tutorials say its a breeze to swap out so maybe you will find it to be easy.
 
MarcusAurelius said:
Probably easier, but certainly more expensive (particularly for the new LCA). Honestly I don't know why I seem to attract all these freak accident/situations. Most tutorials say its a breeze to swap out so maybe you will find it to be easy.
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Who knows. I may just ride it out till it snaps like it did on my 3rd gen...

Both my LCAs are on their way out, one BJ boot is definitely torn. I shot some grease in there for now, i don't have the coin to replace them. I have a seized cam on one, the bushings are wearing to where it starts to move.... me and [MENTION=72341]NJshadow93[/MENTION] are going to have an LCA party

:party:
 
zopperman said:
Who knows. I may just ride it out till it snaps like it did on my 3rd gen...

Both my LCAs are on their way out, one BJ boot is definitely torn. I shot some grease in there for now, i don't have the coin to replace them. I have a seized cam on one, the bushings are wearing to where it starts to move.... me and [MENTION=72341]NJshadow93[/MENTION] are going to have an LCA party

:party:
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Nice! :cheers: Yea if your LCAs are in need of replacement it only makes sense to do it all together. For me, I couldn't justify paying the extra $200/ea for the arms I didn't really need. Money is always the limiting factor.
 
MarcusAurelius said:
Nice! :cheers: Yea if your LCAs are in need of replacement it only makes sense to do it all together. For me, I couldn't justify paying the extra $200/ea for the arms I didn't really need. Money is always the limiting factor.
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:lalala:

pfff here in philly it grows on tree :bigok:

but yeah i dont think i have the skills or time to mess with a press and doing the bj's themselves or finding a damn shop to press it in
 
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