Steering Racks

[xsbank]

I think mine leaks/is toast. Which ones are you lot buying? The rebuilt ones go from 220 to 1600!!! What's the difference? Gullible buyers? What's the best one for the price and should I replace the tie rod ends just because? I have read the 7652 posts about racks but I still want input. Should I start a poll?

[Rasta Monsta]

Order a seal kit from R e n n b a y and see how that goes first. Or, if you are feeling lazy, people have had luck with Autozone rebuilt units.

[Volhv]

The seal kit is probably the best way to go.
I got the one for the 944, but have not had the time to do it yet. But I did reseal the rack on my Acura Integra, about 70 000 kms ago, and it hasn't leaked a drop. The end seals were so rigid, I was actually squirting fluid on one of the tires.

[John_AZ]

Power steering post # 7658

Convert to manual.

Here is what pro Bruce Arnn says about unskilled owners trying to reseal a rack.
Steering Rack

Replace the tie rod ends if the rubber boots are cracked or get damaged during the job.

What year/model Porsche are we talking about?

John

[hkowalczyk]

I just got one from Autozone. Rebuilt with new boots and inner tie rod ends for about $190 + shipping + tax = $230 . Not much savings even if you rebuild it yourself. Can't be any worse than the original!

-Henri

[VOTS89]

Autozone gets their reman power steering units from ATSCO Products in Phoenix, AZ. I used to work for ATSCO, I ran their QA department for almost 6 years.

We use to get most of the seals/rebuild parts from Freudenberg NOK. I can't remember the spec but the rack shaft has to have a certain micro-inch finish so the new seal will seat and not leak. You need a centerless grinder to get it right. AND too smooth of a finish will also leak.

IMO, some things are best left to the experts and this is one of them. I'm not saying it can't be done but the probability is not good.

Bruce

[Chucked]

I too went with the rebuilt rack. Life is too short to hassle with something than complicated.

[xsbank]

I have an 86 N/A. I am not going to reseal the rack, especially as I found the balance pipe loose and the hole full of grunge so I think it died an Arafat, eating stuff that was bad for it. I also think it might be ruined if its full of crap and therefore useless as a core.
I can't get a rack from Autozone as they will not ship to Canada. I will try and go to ATSCO's site directly. I will also be in Dallas in a week and might try and get one locally there and hump it back on the plane. Another option would be to de-power the rack and stuff it full of grease....

[VOTS89]

Don't assume your rack has no value as a core, clean it up a little and turn it in. In remanufacturing, cores are bought from core suppliers/junk yards and most of them are in poor condition. If you really want to pick one up in Texas, call ahead and order it over the phone so it will be sitting there when you get there.

Bruce

[armandodiaz]

Plain and simple.....
Autozone all the way... lifetime warranty.

If you purchase the reseal kit, you run the risk of doing all that work and still end up with a leak.

[xsbank]

There is no Autozone in Canada and they won't ship here either. The warranty is good until it fails, then you take it out and send it off and wait while they walk around it and mutter, then they decide whether or not to give you another and the car is down for 5 weeks. Plus installation time plus another alignment! I want a good quality rebuild but I don't want to pay 1300 for a rebuilt ZF.

[Tcrate]

Jorgen Manufacturing in Ann Arbor Michigan will rebuild the rack for you. I have been through their shop, they have done upwards of 300+ Porsche 944, amongst other makes and model racks at the point in time I was there three months ago. I dont have a lot of time on mine but their shop was impressive and they keep good records of their work. Just another option. They turned in around within a couple of days and had it back to me within a week of getting it to them. They may have one on the shelf but not sure.
I dont have any vested interest in their shop but just an option for anyone interested.

[kdjones2000]

Having done both now, I think that i have a pretty good assessment of the "Rebuild vs. Buy from AZ" argument.

1) Reseal: Like mentioned above, the shaft needs to be ultra clean in order to work correctly. In addition there is a real PITA seal located inside of the pressure head cavity that needs to be removed. I tried to follow some of the directions out there to do this, but it is REALLY difficult to crush that seal into itself enough to be able to remove it. I know my way around this type of stuff, but there was no way that I could reasonably get that seal out without scratching the sealing surfaces inside of the cavity. The net result was that that rebuilt rack leaked like a sieve, and I lost almost a quart of fluid just going down and back up my driveway.

2) Rebuilt: I purchased the rebuilt rack from AZ and put it in. Some of the hydraulic lines on the unit were bent where they shouldn't have been, and required me to fix them. After installing it I found that my steering was actually quite a bit worse than the original rack I had replaced. The rack was actually fighting me when I tried to turn the wheel, although I could overpower it. I eventually took it out and opened up the pressure head on it and found that whomever rebuilt it had messed up one of the o-ring/seals upon reinstallation, resulting in the o-ring breaking apart into many pieces and getting stuck inside of the fluid channels in the head part.

So, with 2 strikes against me, I made lemonade out of 2 lemons: I took the good PS head from my reseal attempt and married it with the AZ rebuilt body. I put that in the car and so far so good

So what is there to learn from all of this? Well if I were to do this again I would definitely go with the AZ rebuilt rack, but I would take it apart to make sure that some yahoo hasn't messed up the rebuild before I put it back on my car.

I know that this doesn't answer xsbanks question fully, but may provide some background of what you might expect.

Cheers, Keith

[xsbank]

Interesting comments kd, I still am not sure what to do with it but I think I will take a poke at removing it tomorrow and having a good close look at it before I decide what to do. If its out I can clean it up and might just take it to Dallas to see if I can trade it in on an Autozone one. Depends upon whether the gang in Homeland Security think it looks like a weapon or not! I think the rebuild way is the correct path as I don't want to wait a couple of weeks for the rebuild kit, then if I pooch it, I'll have to wait another two weeks for the rebuilt rack. Ergo bingo the snow will be flying again and it will have to go back in the garage for the winter.

[djnolan]

If it is not leaking too bad, you might try the flush and White Shepard approach and hope it seals itself. Although remote, I have seen it work in a rack that is not too old.

It involves flushing out the old fluid and replacing with a high quality synthetic ATF like deep purple. Then add a double dose of white shepherd crank case sealer and drive the heck out of it and hope it reseals.

Flushing is done by running the engine, siphoning off fluid from the resorvoir with a turkey baster or suction bulb, and adding fresh fluid. Keep repeating until the fluid looks clean. Then add a double dose of white shepherd and drive it. Keep the steering wheel moving so as to make the white shepherd penetrate the rack end seals.

The combination of sealer and thicker fluid COULD go a long way towards curing your leak problem. It may take a few weeks to fully seal.

While you are at it take it to the car wash and spray it off and look for easy to fix leaks like leaking hoses. Lots of time you can tighten clamps, or add barrel clamps to where the original crimped connections are leaking.

[xsbank]

The problem with using a sealer is that while the process is taking place, you liberally decorate the bottom of your car with ATF which eats bushings and engine mounts. Then if it doesn't work you have to change the rack anyway and also some of the rubber. If it did work, after cleaning up the car underneath (otherwise I would drip on your driveway when I deliver the case of beer) I would sing your praises to the heavens.

Sadly, my rack is leaking from the seals under both boots so I'm sure its toast. Funny about the failure, I recently changed the fluid and replaced the reservoir for a new filter and a new filler seal, plus the new-style delivery hose and all was well then. Now it has about 1000 km on it since, then it fails. The fluid is the correct ATF... Maybe I flushed something evil into it. Oh well, off to sacrifice some Guinness to the Porsche Gods.

[djnolan]

If it started leaking after flushing it is probably because of increased pressure in the rack, causing the rack end seals to leak more. At this point what do you have to loose with a little white shepherd? The underside is already coated. I am down to half dollar size drops on the driveway from desert plate sized puddles.

[djnolan]

It just depends on how perfect you want the car to be. For something relatively simple like a power steering system, it has proven to be one of the most difficult areas of the car to get a good clean and lasting repair.

Part of it is caused by 25+ year old parts. But the design is prone to developing leaks due to the dozen or more hose connections. Barrel and crimp on clamps do not age as gracefully as spring clamps so you could replace these with spring clamps. Spring clamps gently tighten on their own as the hose shrinks so the hose lasts longer and there are fewer leaks. Most newer cars use them now. Spring clamps are difficult to find at an auto parts store so you may have to visit your local recycler.

If you are going to fully rehab the system in addition to the rack, you have to change out the pump or at least rebuild it, and the reservoir needs replaced as this is where the filter is and dirt is the worst enemy of the seals. You also need to replace all of the rubber lines as they are crumbling at this point. Some of the rubber lines such as the cooling loop are very expensive, but can be made from ATF hose using clamps since the ps system is relatively low pressure (for daily driver use, maybe not track use, though). Again spring clamps are highly recommended so you don't damage the hoses by over-tightening barrel clamps.

You could spend near a grand on all of these parts if you buy them stock. Any of the rebuilt parts (versus new) such as the pump or the rack are bound to have machining flaws and may start to leak sooner than you would hope.

You probably won't get it perfect, but what is a little experiment with sealant, and a few car washes tracking down and correcting leaks compared with the above?

I am open to other ideas!