26 replies to this topic

[ls2lxhatch]

Wilkinson Suspension Centre
81 Beechboro Rd
Bayswater 6053
(08) 9370 2646

Parts are available and it is an easy job if you have the right tools ( C-Wrenches ). However Wilkinson will do the job for a fair price.

Edited by ls2lxhatch, 22 November 2011 - 06:22 PM.

[fuzzypumper]

Its not a powersteering rack, so its not a sealed system.
Its always gonna have oil in the boot.
But yes you can get Superpro, NOLTEC and original ones.
The original designed one is on the left and Noltec one on the right.

Attached Files

•  P1040426 (Medium).JPG   86.21K   17 downloads

[rodomo]

This bloke is having some made too.
Steering Rack Bearings (Part No: 7156338) Guiding Price: $25.00 – 30.00 set
These items are probably the most anticipated items at the moment! They were common for all steering racks LC – UC, as well as some early Commodore Steering Racks, and these have not been available for years!

http://www.gmh-toran...__fromsearch__1

[EunUCh]

i got some made years ago by a machine shop,,got him to make 3 out of some green lookin nylon stuff(lubron i think),even had the 3
milled oil releif slots down the outsides for oil travel,,fitted perfect,,dont like the look of the ones in pic,,one on left looks como and flimsy,one on right
has a hex hole for a round shaft to slide in,spend a few extra bucks and get some made to the orig. shape,that side of rack cops a bit of a
flogging and needs a good support,,a mix of gear oil and Moreys helps too.

[ls2lxhatch]

It seems that it is common practice to rebuild the racks with grease instead of oil.

[EunUCh]

piccy of ones i got made,,dimensions are for those who want to make or get someone to make
yeah,,manual says use oil,,beats me why anyone would use grease
L..23mm
I/D 25.74 1.013in
O/D 31.14 1.225in
slots 9mm @120deg

[ls2lxhatch]

Apparently grease is used in many modern manual racks. It has a few advantages over oil.

Edited by ls2lxhatch, 23 November 2011 - 01:48 PM.

[76lxhatch]

A lot of the workshop manuals call the SAE140 lubricant a 'semi-liquid grease' or something along those lines - if its made to an SAE standard it doesn't really matter whether you call it oil or grease, its the same result

[ls2lxhatch]

A lot of the workshop manuals call the SAE140 lubricant a 'semi-liquid grease' or something along those lines - if its made to an SAE standard it doesn't really matter whether you call it oil or grease, its the same result

The rack I had rebuilt has grease, it is not liquid at all.

I was surprised to find grease so I called another company that rebuilds Torana racks and was told they don't use oil either instead they pack them with multi-purpose grease.

[76lxhatch]

^ Interesting, I guess it would be good for taking up a bit of slop in an old rack and certainly wouldn't leak as easily. Can't imagine actually fully packing a rack though? Seems like that would add a fair amount of resistance

edit: it just occurred to me that I find a lot of these racks near bone dry and they don't seem to sustain a lot of damage so in that respect grease would definitely last better - still can't see them being packed though

140 is LSD diff oil isn't it?

Usually 85/140 is used a heavy duty diff oil option in both standard and LSD varieties. I've used this in a pinch in these steering racks before and it seems to work OK.

Edited by 76lxhatch, 24 November 2011 - 05:24 AM.

[ls2lxhatch]

There is a lot of grease in the gearbox area and the rack teeth. The rack ends where replaced with non-adjustable greased rack ends. A moly grease appears to have been used on the rack ends. I think you would want to check the grease in the rack ends at the same time you check the ball joints and rod ends.

I have heard of grease nipples being fitted to Torana racks. However if there is too much grease in the rack then air will not be able to transfer through the rack body as one boot is crushed and the other expanded. Some greased BMW racks have an external tube between the boots for air transfer.

[hanra]

Its a big no no to use grease in Mini racks. Heavy diff oil has always been what we use.

[ls2lxhatch]

Which component in a Mini rack will fail with grease that won't fail with oil?

[hanra]

A lot of guys who were reco'ing them were finding the grease dried out.

[ls2lxhatch]

I guess they used the wrong grease.

There is no shortage manual racks made in the last 20 years that use grease.

[hanra]

I guess the BMC engineers got it wrong then?

[76lxhatch]

There is a lot of grease in the gearbox area and the rack teeth. The rack ends where replaced with non-adjustable greased rack ends. A moly grease appears to have been used on the rack ends. I think you would want to check the grease in the rack ends at the same time you check the ball joints and rod ends.

I have heard of grease nipples being fitted to Torana racks. However if there is too much grease in the rack then air will not be able to transfer through the rack body as one boot is crushed and the other expanded. Some greased BMW racks have an external tube between the boots for air transfer.

That makes more sense

[EunUCh]

Could be just me but if GMH manual says use sae140 which is nothing more than heavy gear oil
then why not use it,if the boots are in good nik it shouldnt leak and the ball/socket arrangment which
lives in the rack boot will be pretty well constantly lubed and it will last longer,only about a stubbies worth
goes in,if you want grease in it,mix up some gear oil with moly grease until the right weight is acheived.

[ls2lxhatch]

The question is "Why do the majority of steering rack reconditioners use grease?".

I have called three companies that recondition Torana steering racks and they all use grease. I am yet to find a company that uses oil. It seems that if you want oil you have to rebuild the rack yourself.

Wilkinsons. WA
Steering Solutions. NSW
Steering Rebuilds Australia. VIC

Edited by ls2lxhatch, 25 November 2011 - 11:39 AM.

[76lxhatch]

The answer will be in the replacement rack ends they use as you mentioned above