MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

So I've been fixing up a beater 1999 Integra GS, and one of the issues I'm having is some play in the steering wheel. The wheel has about 1/2 inch or so of play at its perimeter before the wheels start turning.

So far I've tried:

My tie rod ends, both inner and outer on both sides, are good.

The bolt underneath the airbag is tight.

I had a shake-down today (getting the car aligned) and nothing came up.

I also tried adjusting the rack (used a chisel to loosen the 40mm locknut, hand tighten the adjustment bolt, then back it off 1/4 turn) but that made zero difference in the steering wheel play. The steering is a bit stiffer though, which is nice.

Is there anything else I can do that doesn't require pulling the rack? Like maybe the U-joint in the steering column? I've done lots of searching and people usually mention stuff like ball joints, tie rods, etc. but none of that is the problem here.

Thanks guys!

B_Swapped93

did you replace the inner/outer tie rods or do they just "look good", has the car been aligned yet...sounds like NO so 99% of the time that's the cause. Also if you did replace the tierods you 100% need to get an alignment.

MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

I had the car aligned today (I had replaced the trailing arm bushings, added anti-seize to all rear suspension bolts and torqued to spec, and replaced passenger side inner and outer tie rods so it definitely needed alignment) and no problems came up when they did it. The slight wobble in the steering wheel just bothers me.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Integras aren't known for their razor sharp steering. Especially if you've driven a newer car.

Did this problem just start? Or has it always been there with the car?

MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

It was like that when I bought the car, and I didn't complain because it was a $1200 Craigslist beater. I'm used to a 2005 Civic that has zero play in the wheel and pretty much no road feel due to the electronic P/S.

Xian

Steering rack bushings tight and in decent shape?

B serious

iTrader: (1)

Steering couplings tight?

egsleepercivic

There is an adjustment on the Rack the you can get a special wrench tool to adjust the rack, not sure if this will help with your issue though

MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

Apologies for the necropost my friends, but I figured I'd post up the solution to this problem in case anyone else ever encounters it.

So, to recap what I tried.

Confirmed that tie-rod ends were in good working order.

I removed the airbag to make sure the wheel was bolted on securely, and that was not the issue.

I adjusted the rack (using a chisel to loosen the lock nut, actually worked very well) and that didn't solve the problem either.

At this point, I assumed that my rack itself was wearing out and I didn't feel like replacing it. Until, that is, I was crawling around under the dash looking for something else and saw the cover for the steering column. I pulled it off and saw this:



Both of those 10mm bolts holding the U-joints together were very loose, I tightened them up and it drove like a new car. Absolutely zero play in the wheel, whereas before it had 5 - 10 degrees of play before actually turning the wheels.

For whatever reason, I wasn't able to find any information on these U-joints and just assumed that it wasn't the problem. Ended up being a 30 second fix. I hope this benefits someone else later on.

aw614

thanks, I'll have to check mine, I always thought my 2000s steering felt a bit looser than the steering on my 97 yet had lower miles.

I dont have my car on me right now, was there any difficulty taking off the plastic cover? I recall seeing it when I was replacing the pedal stopper pads for the switches.

MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

Not really, it's a hard plastic tube with a slit down one side and a metal c-clip that slips on it to hold it on. Taking it off is easy, putting it back on is harder.

erikiksaz1

I'm curious if this tightens up the response of the car.

Even though my checklist is about the same as yours, making sudden lane changes always feels less safe than it should. It's almost like my car's driving on rubber bands. I always thought it was the bushings.

MotorMouth93

iTrader: (1)

It's worth a shot, but I seriously doubt it will do anything in your case. This was a case of the steering wheel end of the steering column and the steering rack end of the steering column being able to rotate independently of each other for a few degrees.