TroyT
04-22-2021, 01:23 PM
This is the 13th year since the car has been on the road!
Every spring before the driving season begins, I look over the car including suspension pieces, etc. I discovered that one of the steering rack bellows (boot) on the driver side was torn. Over time it has rubbed and stretched against the 2"x3" frame member behind the rack. I realized this is too close to the frame member and the rack should be moved forward as confirmed by Mark Reynolds at Breeze Automotive. I see that the offset bushings I installed during the build were inserted in the front of the rack between the mounting tabs and not inserted from the back of the rack to push the rack forward and away from the vertical frame members. :eek:
My plan was to replace the torn boot, but now this has morphed into removing the rack to reinstall it correctly. I have the offset solid bushings I bought from Forte years ago. In doing this, how much will this change the front-end alignment? I presume I will need a front-end alignment after doing this work. The bushings are positioned so that the rack is at its highest point. This was when I had Fox spindles and brakes and have upgraded to the "95 SN95 spindles and brakes a few years ago. Thanks for any suggestions you may have to make this an easy fix.
Every spring before the driving season begins, I look over the car including suspension pieces, etc. I discovered that one of the steering rack bellows (boot) on the driver side was torn. Over time it has rubbed and stretched against the 2"x3" frame member behind the rack. I realized this is too close to the frame member and the rack should be moved forward as confirmed by Mark Reynolds at Breeze Automotive. I see that the offset bushings I installed during the build were inserted in the front of the rack between the mounting tabs and not inserted from the back of the rack to push the rack forward and away from the vertical frame members. :eek:
My plan was to replace the torn boot, but now this has morphed into removing the rack to reinstall it correctly. I have the offset solid bushings I bought from Forte years ago. In doing this, how much will this change the front-end alignment? I presume I will need a front-end alignment after doing this work. The bushings are positioned so that the rack is at its highest point. This was when I had Fox spindles and brakes and have upgraded to the "95 SN95 spindles and brakes a few years ago. Thanks for any suggestions you may have to make this an easy fix.