i searched in every steering problem thread but nobody has had this problem.

today when i was driving straight i noticed that my steering wheel was about 30 degrees to the right. normally it has been only about 2-5 degrees to the right. so i drive to work with the steering wheel all crooked. then after work as i turn out of the parking lot, the wheel is straight for a little bit as i drive down the street. then when i make a 90* right turn and go straight, the wheel is 30* again. later on i make a 90* left and go straight and the wheel is 30* to the left.

so wtf. i havent checked for loose stuff yet but i recently checked my suspension and stuff and everything was fine but ill check again. what should i check for and how do i check the steering rack/pinion. please ask any helpful questions that might trigger something and please throw out any suggestions, thanks a lot.

 

need some help on what to look for. any ideas on whats wrong?

 

 

steering wheel clockspring

 

what is a steering wheel clockspring. i searched it but there are no threads on it. thanks

 

I would inspect the tie rods,rack, and steering column. Raise the front of the car one side at a time and shake the wheels back and forth to check for play. If it is moving while driving, you could be on the verge of a catastrophic failure.

Will the steering wheel turn with the column locked?

 

wheel allignment lol?

 

its not exactly moving while im driving straight but yes it moves one way or the other depending on which way i turn. the steering wheel does locks up so no it does not turn.

 

i have absolutely no idea then. maybe u should take it to the nearest honda or sumthing so they can heck it out

 

i checked everything but the steering column. the tie rods both look fine and the boots are still intact. however, i noticed that two of the bolts holding the rack to the car came out, one was totally backed out and the other is totally gone. i have to replace the missing bolt tomorrow cuz every store's closed right now. are there any other parts that could be missing cuz i cant seem to find anything else. and once i replace the bolts, should everything be fine or should i drive it down the street then determine afterwards. thanks a lot for the help.

 

after you get the bolts in i would deff bring it somehwhere to double check the alignment

 

yea thats for sure. hopefully everything will be fine once i replace those bolts. im just worried if anything else could be a cause for the messed up steering.

 

well the bolts comming out of the rack woulda been my last guess. lol but its possible. but you might want to also recheck the tie rod ends because you might not have felt any play because the rack wasnt secured! other than that you should be good to go!

 

yea i didnt think about rechecking the tie rods. ill definitely do so, thanks a lot.

 

i replaced the bolts and drove it around the block. everything seems to be fine and the steering wheel straightens out again. the only problem now is the wheel is slightly crooked, so ill need an alignment. thanks for all the help.

 

yeah, sounds like your thrust angle is off, have them check your rear toe

 

VTEC_Du_Ma_Mai... wat was ur problem eventually ? cuz i also suffer from the same problem.... steering wheel will be off 2 1 side which ever i turn.... eg... if i turn left... the steering wheel would be off 2 the left side a bit... wanna know more details...

Cheers

 

coolin- make sure your rack, pump, tie rods etc. are tight and have minimal play, also you might need to change your bushings depending on how old your ride is.

 

coolin: right now my car drives fine except for the steering wheel being slightly crooked and the alignment pulling slightly to the right. so i think my conclusion is that the two bolts i found to be missing were the problem. so you should check for any loose bolts, loose rack and tie rods, and check the bushings to see if theyre worn, as 94DB8 suggested.

 

thanks for the info...will have a look at it...