Steering box help - how to index to straight? (1 Viewer)

[IdahoDoug]

Kind of an emergency situation for me. I helped a friend from our church with a steering issue on his Suburban as they don't have much money but do a great deal of good for others. His steering box started leaking like a sieve and they have to go to California for a funeral. Mechanic said $1200 for new box installed. Took him to the boneyard and we bought one for $108 and put it in this evening. Went great. But here's the hitch.

If you remove a steering box and reinstall it, you can "index" everything by marking with tape and put it all together again - no problem. But with a new steering box, the wheels are straight and the steering wheel are straight but the steering box "thinks" it's slightly off center one way. So, my question is this: If you're holding a recirculating ball power steering gear box, how do you know when the box "thinks" it's centered? I'm hoping the answer won't be that you have to have a pressure guage on the lines and run it to see where the pressure drops or something, 'cause this is shade tree stuff.

I noted that this 4WD Suburban gets worse MPG than our same year 80 series, and it's quite a bit shorter in height. Wouldn't want to feed that thing....(required 80 content).

Anybody got an idea?

Doug

 

[landtank]

It's been like 20 years since I touched one of those but IIRC I was able to turn the input shaft while th eunit was out of the vehicle to each extreme while counting the revolutions then going back half way. Like I said it's been a while and maybe not that simple anymore.

 

[RavenTai]

its a saginaw type box? as far as power assist the box thinks it is ballanced (no assist) when there is no load on the steering wheel input shaft, the center can be whereever you want it as far as power assist is concerned

to find the aproxomite middle count the revolotions as LandTank said, ushually the box has more travel than the knuckle or spindle, and the stops are on the knuckle or spindle, as long as you can hit both stopsbefore the box runs out of travel you are close enough to the center

I have never even see a Subaru steering box, so it may have some other things to worry about, but if it folows the saginaw style that should be close

 

[Rich]

The recirculating ball power steering gear boxes are usually manufactured to be tight when the wheels are straight and not so tight when the wheels are turned.

So, in the end, you need to find where the tight spot is, and then adjust everything as necessary so that the tires and steering wheel are straight ahead when the steering gear is turned to the "tight spot".

 

[IdahoDoug]

Thank you very much. Lock to lock turn counting was the order of the day. Worked perfectly.


DougM