1988 911 Carrera - weird steering issue

[jared_s]

Originally Posted by ben parrish

Steering u-joint is the first place to look and service...then move to the rack. I had a slight "grab'" in my steering wheel and it took a little more effort turning left. The u-joint was a little dry but the rack was the culprit. The grease had dried out and become gummy in the bearings as well as the bellow and end cap had blown out and allowed dirt in there.; a full teardown and new grease and seals cured my issue.

Thank you, but it sounds like your issue was something else. May end up rebuilding or replacing the rack any way.

[jared_s]

Originally Posted by Arlo911

Hi Jared, I've had the same thing happen to me. In my case it was a ball from the steering shaft bearing that got intermittently lodged inside the steering shaft housing. But, there are a couple of other things that could cause this behavior, from a worn steering rack, to worn steering joints etc. Best to have someone check it out before you have an accident.

I found some more stuff that might be relevant.

From October of last year:

(There is a parts diagram in the thread and a suggestion of checking #23)

"I had an odd issue with my 77 911S years ago. When I would make hard right turns the steering would lock intermittantly as I softened the turn. A immediate sharper right again would loosen it up. It ended up being a part of column bearing left behind from a previous repair. The individual ball bearing would basically ride up the bearing race and get wedged."

"The smuggler box bearing starts to disintegrate (Rust) over time. The roller bearings come out of the race. The rest of the linkage usually lasts longer. When mine went my mechanic said “ it’s always the lower bearing”."

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/1075183-steering-issue.html