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Topic: Steering rack seal kit (Read 1534 times) |
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mike
Junior Member
1996 Cosworth
Posts: 63
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Steering rack seal kit
« on: Oct 11th, 2007, 12:06pm » |
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Hi all,
I am still looking for a seal kit for my steering rack (zf servotronic).
Anyone know a supplier?
Cheers,
Mike
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Simmo
Administrator
I'm an OAP !
Posts: 5508
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #1 on: Oct 11th, 2007, 1:55pm » |
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Mike. If you read up on the site about replacing the seals I think you will find that it is generally regarded as impractical as the repair is likely to fail resulting in the need to replace the rack anyway. This may be why the kits are either hard to find or unavailable.
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pete from Hull
Senior Member
Non Scorpio at the moment, but still interested...
Posts: 1365
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #2 on: Oct 11th, 2007, 3:31pm » |
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I was told that when you replace the rack you are better off replacing it with a re-manufactured one as they can tend to be better than the original, it was explained that when they are remanufactured they are completely stripped down, all the mating surfaces are re-machined and fitted with steel bushes etc which tends to be stronger than the original alloy castings. There is a remanufacturing service somewhere on the web which explains it all and is very interesting reading, it points out that re-conditioned units are usually just cleaned up and checked for tollerances, rubbers, seals and gaiters are replaced they are given a coat of paint before being offerd for resale.
I plumped for a remanufactured one which cost me about £180, it has been on the car about a year now and never has been a problem. It was a doddle to fit and saved me a hefty amount of money on a oem unit.
Therefore I would recomend you fit a re-manufactured one.... fit and forget.
Got mine from Waterloo Engineering here in Hull...
http://www.waterloo-mt.co.uk/branch-network.html
hth
Pete
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robrs2
Junior Member
I'm a YaBB newbie!
Posts: 54
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #3 on: Oct 11th, 2007, 9:04pm » |
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Steering racks are classed as a safety item, therefore you can't buy seals anymore. Same thing goes for master cylinder and the like.
If your after a rack i have one.
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pete from Hull
Senior Member
Non Scorpio at the moment, but still interested...
Posts: 1365
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #5 on: Oct 11th, 2007, 10:32pm » |
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on Oct 11th, 2007, 10:02pm, Highlander wrote:| http://www.buypartsby.co.uk/steering-rack-display.php?txtmodel=Scorpio&txtmake=Ford&Submit=Next |
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There you go, that is a fantastic price, it's hardly worth even considering second hand units..... 
pete
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mike
Junior Member
1996 Cosworth
Posts: 63
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #6 on: Oct 12th, 2007, 1:57pm » |
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Wow! this looks like a conspiracy to make me buy a "remanufactured" rack! 
However, this is not an option for me:
Mine is LHD, so is not available from UK suppliers.
Shipping my rack back and forth across the channel for rebuilding is not an economical proposition.
A "rebuilt" rack in France costs 500+ euros. And I know very well how they get rebuilt: they only replace the seals which I can do myself thank you very much!
Just changing the seals is OK provided the piston part of the rack is in PERFECT condition: no distorsion, perfect mirror-like finish with zero scratches or wear marks. Otherwise no amount of "rebushing" will make them leak proof. Getting a rebuilt rack is like playing the lottery: you don't know if the core was in good condition to begin with. I have dismantled, miked and inspected my rack: it is as new and therefore I am not taking chances with a sloppily reassembled unit from unknown origin! The racks are case hardened and cannot be re-machined (well they can but not if you are going to resell the whole thing for a mere £87.51...)
By the way these ZF racks have no bushings made of "alloy castings" or the like: the rack rides on very durable nylon sleeves which need to be replaced only because you have to destroy them in order to remove the faulty seals. And the pinion/valve assembly rotates on a preloaded ball bearing and a needle bearing which hardly ever show any sign of wear or play (they have so little work to do).
The seal kits do exist (e.g. http://autosuppliers.co.uk/steering_products_catalogue.html part number AS11738 but alas they only supply to the trade  ). All the places I have contacted in France refuse to sell kits because of the enormous profit they make on selling you a “rebuilt” rack. Of course there is no law preventing the sale of seals: this is just urban legend. It would be totally impossible to enforce as you would have to ban the sale of all O rings (which is what master cylinder seals are)!
So once again  : can someone help me find a seal kit for my steering rack?
Cheers,
Mike
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robrs2
Junior Member
I'm a YaBB newbie!
Posts: 54
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #7 on: Oct 12th, 2007, 5:46pm » |
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I did have the same problem as you. I have a LHD Sierra cosworth, what it did was get a rhd rack strip it down and fitted the seals to the LHD rack. Job done
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Jonnycab
Senior Member
Former owner of 2.3 Ultima Facelift saloon
Posts: 3900
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #8 on: Oct 16th, 2007, 3:56pm » |
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Do you know a friendly garage/mechanic who would be willing to order the parts on your behalf from 'autosuppliers.co.uk' ? 
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mike
Junior Member
1996 Cosworth
Posts: 63
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Re: Steering rack seal kit
« Reply #9 on: Oct 18th, 2007, 9:32pm » |
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Hi Johnny,
on Oct 16th, 2007, 3:56pm, jonnycab wrote:| Do you know a friendly garage/mechanic who would be willing to order the parts on your behalf from 'autosuppliers.co.uk' ? |
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That's exactly what i am looking for!
Unfortunately in my neck of the woods if I say "autosuppliers.co.uk" all I get is blank stares (or worse...).
Actually, the autosuppliers people got me in touch with 3 places they supply in France: when I called them they essentially laughed me in the face as their business is in rebuilding racks and they don't want any Joe Blow (ie me  ) get the parts and do it themselves .
End result: I am still upsh*t creek! 
Cheers,
Mike
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