Alright my sister in law has a 94 civic dx, and it is really hard to turn for some reason now its been like this since she got the car and hasnt got worse or better in the last 4 yrs stayed the same. i have had 5 diferent civics all 91 or older and none of them have been this hard to turn. im thinking it might be in the rack but i really dont know where to start, all the tie rods and ball joints are good bushings also, im at a loss. any help would be nice. its running on stock 13' tires. thanks again TOren

 

there is a little adjuster bolt for the rack, maybe it's too tight.

 

Is it on the front die of the rack, maybe i havent seen it yet thanks ill try it.

 

dont go screwing with the rack, trust me, if you screw up the bearing preload, you could damage that rack for good. is it power steering or not? you may pop the end cap off of the bottom of the rack (were you would adjust the preload, like drew was talkin about) and check for rust or debris in the pinion shaft. other than that, I may say just get a new rack. if the tires are inflated to the right psi, and there is no other parts damaged (i.e., tie rod ends, ball joints etc.) then you probably have something wrong inside of the rack. Is everything stock?

 

Steering is one of those things where you can't usually say, "hard steering = specific bad part"... its more of checking EVERYTHING! Personally, start with a 'dry park test'

Lift the front wheels in the air (back ones on ground)
Support with jacks on front (make sure its safe to get under the car)
Have a buddy in the driver seat while you're under the car
Have your buddy turn the wheel back and forth
You listen for any binding, clunking, etc

Another one to try is:
While the car is on the ground, grab a suspension peice and tr to shake it... move on with EVERY part. See if anythign moves, generally move = bad

Parts that usually fail:
Ball joints are the major one
A bad steering coupler (between the steering shaft and steering rack arm)
Steering shaft bearing (might, doubt it)

Its really all about checking, checking, and re-checking everything.
OH, before I forget, if the car has had an accident the whole steering shaft may be bent.. it doesnt take a lot either

Rich

 

SJ makes a good point, steering is a really hard thing to diagnose by not checking. in other words, you may not be able to describe what a mechanic needs to be told. sometimes I just gotta feel/hear it for myself.