What causes loose stearing

[mjh304]

I've got an '87 with, as far as I know, all stock stearing parts. The stearing has been getting very very loose over the years, and I was wondering what I could replace to help it out. Any bushings in there or linkages I could change??? Thanks for any ideas...high speeds are getting scary now!

 

[HISSIN50]

for more info try a search in here.

have you jacked it up and supported the front end on jackstands and checked it all out for signs of slop or wear? main things that come to mind are the rack itself, inner/outer tie rods, rag joint, etc.

in addition, if you are not too sure, i might have a shop check it out for you. many times they do free checks.
**officially i would advise not to drive the car in this condition, as it is unsafe.**
good luck.

 

[autoXr1]

Ditto.

Test: If you can wiggle the steering wheel (with a finger) a few degrees before it "catches", especially when it is parked (steering lock off), then it is inside the rack. If the steering wheel still feels firm when you have it in park, then it's likely you've got worn bushings. Then that means looking at the rag joint, the rack bushings, the control arm bushings, etc. Given the age of the vehicle ('87) it's likely it could benefit from new bushings anyhow. You have replacement shocks/struts, so those bushings should have been replaced during installation.

PST and Energy Suspension have bushing kits.
AGR makes a nice high-performance rack.
Flaming River makes a nice steering shaft.
Or...you can simply replace with OEM parts and you can get those from most of the major autoparts stores.

 

[NCStang86]

Its more than likely the rag joint from what u described. If that is not it check out the inner tie rods.Mine were wore out and my steering was pretty sloppy.

 

[HISSIN50]

great info from AutoX.
ill add that for the price, if it is inners, i think it is more efficient to simply get a new/reman'd rack (which includes the inners most of the time). toss new outers on when doing so (or in any case - if inners wore, outers are likely not far behind. one must get an alignment after doing each, so i would do it all at once).

good luck.