Safety announcement: Check your steering mechanism’s safety, especially if a little sloppy.

[Namerow]

Looking forward to some pix of your results (we all profit from the success of others).

[AK260]

Well I decided to take off the entire steering and suspension at the front and discovered some chocolate bolts ...


... and movement in the splines on the steering column itself. A virtually unused one ordered off fleebay but won’t see it until July despite $79 postage - USPS is sloooow! The UJ felt utterly solid - so I think what I was seeing with a head torch on was a bit of an optical illusion. Having said that I bought a spare shaft to play with in the work bench so that I can replace it at my leisure at a later stage. My hands will be very full in the next few weeks.

While taking the whole thing apart, I discovered totally ruined and seized ball joints - one of which I cannot move with my bare hands or without tools.



My shocks turned out to be shockingly bad - rather like this pun. Here’s a video diary I’m starting about it all, so feel free to make fun of me ;) I don’t take myself too seriously and can quite happily laugh at myself.

I’m just shy of £1000 lighter tonight after a call to MSA and a browse of RockAuto. But money very well spent and much needed, let’s see how that lot improve the car’s handling and steering.

[Captain Obvious]

Boing boing boing boing.    I see that the cabin fever has really started to take hold.

So I've taken a steering column apart down to it's molecular level, so if you have questions about that, let me know. I may have pics.

[AK260]

Thank you sir! I may well have to take you up on that. Depending on how good the other one turns out to be I may well have to make a good one out of two.

I tried taking off the snap ring / clip thing but it broke. I suspect I need to compress the shaft before it lets go.

For now I have my hands very full with mushy fuel line replacement, suspension bits, front bearings, removing surface rust / curing / painting and a plethora of other small but necessary jobs.

[Captain Obvious]

I found it easy to remove the clip, but yes... You should unload it first. Doesn't take a lot of force.

(Alone) I found the easiest way was to place the column against the ground and grab the column housing (outside) with one hand and press down against the ground, thereby compressing the spring a little. Been a while since I've been in there, but I probably braced the whole thing against a hip or something? Anyway, at that point you can remove the clip as soon as it's unloaded. Of course, if you have a helper with a second pair of hands, it's even easier.

Some pics because we all like pics:

[AK260]

Thank you sir. I will do what you suggested the next time I have her out of the car.

[gnosez]

Whether it's at the track, prepping for the next race or at the end of the year, there's always at least one nut or bolt that was loose that would have made for a very bad day. The number of wire-tied, double nutted and new nuts and bolts increases every year. Every bolt/nut has a paint mark to verify it was torqued and a similar reference mark to show if it moved. The plug wires are individually zip tied to the distributor cap and the dipstick has a spring to keep it in place. Everyone of these things came loose at one point. Peace of mind.....

[AK260]

So chaps and chapesses. What started as a small investigation, rapidly descended into taking the entire front end off and starting again with new parts or reconditioning.

 

Suffice it to say that I’ve been propping up the US economy through RockAuto and MSA purchases.

 

 

I have also purchased what appears to be a totally unused - get this - “RHD” steering column from the US, advertised incorrectly as a 280zx column.

 

 

It’s being sent on the backs of USPS snails - bought end of May, due 17th July!!!! And $70 for the privilege!!! I fear i’ve been had on postage but got a great deal on the column. Next, I will be robbed by the UK revenue services who add 30% to everything including the postage - oh and a £12 processing fee just to kick you again in the nuts!

 

The abridged version is below but if you want the full version there are pages of it here on my build thread ...

 

https://zclub.net/community/index.php?threads/from-smoker-to-sssssmokin’.23533/

 

Found some absolute horrors like wrong grade bolts in the suspension, wrong way up bolts, totally busted brake lines (which explains why they went spongy) made of pure copper, split soft brake pipes dating back to 2003, COMPLETELY seized ball joints, split steering rack gaiters and a failed Tokico blue strut (so far) at the front but we are very slowly getting there. Incidentally that strut was put in new by the PO who did 800 miles and the car has done under 10k in my ownership - so something was definitely wrong there.

 

I made my own gland nut removal tool out of an old bracket that worked a treat for getting the old ones off and getting the Konis tightened up.

 

 

 

 

Also went for the MSA compression rod solution. Not sure if this will make the car too harsh but I’m hoping it will exorcise the steering wobble under hard braking that no amount of wheel alignment has cured yet.

 

 

Exorcised a tonne of surface rust and coated with POR15 nasty but magic potion!!

 

 

 

 

Threw in some Koyo front bearings while I had the hubs off anyway and installed virtually new brake splash guards but sadly had to cut them to fit my Toyota callipers.

 

 

 

 

Oh and I remade all the front brake lines using cupronickel ...

 

 

 

 

The plan is to finish up the front end this week and get onto the rear. New adjustable Konis going in all round with existing lowering springs(I like the spring rates and ride height). I’m sure the rear will be very straight forward - hmmm, let’s dwell on that for a moment!!!

 

The weather was lashing it down today but I feel I prevailed and remained dry during the monsoon that ensued!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Zed Head]

3 minutes ago, AK260 said:

Also went for the MSA compression rod solution. Not sure if this will make the car too harsh but I’m hoping it will exorcise the steering wobble under hard braking that no amount of wheel alignment has cured yet.

You might swap your rear wheels for the fronts while you have things apart.  See if the wobble follows the wheels.  Of course, then you won't know if it's the TC rod upgrade or the wheels.  Maybe take a for a test then swap if it's still there.

[AK260]

That’s great advice - thanks dude. Not sure why that hadn’t occurred to me before! [emoji106][emoji106]