Hey guys,

Ive got a 94 DelSol with over 230k miles on the clock and the steering is really loose at highway speeds. The car is an Si model so it has power steering but its all over the road whether I have the p/s belt on or off. Ive also changed all the bushings, ball joints, and tie rods. All this troubleshooting leads me to conclude that the steering rack needs to be replaced.

Ive done some research and can't decide between switching to a manual rack from a civic or an integra one. You would think this would be a no-brainer since the Integra has a tighter steering ratio than what I have now and the civics manual rack is worse.

However, the car is pushing close to 400hp and has a decent amount of torque steer. The question is, will the rack with the tighter ratio(Integra) make things better when Im trying to keep it straight on the highway? Or will the rack with more turns L2L(Lock to lock) be more forgiving and therefore the better choice?

I may be way off but it seems like a legitimate question to me so let me know what you guys think. Thanks in advance for the responses!

 

bump.

 

ttt. nobody knows?

 

well at a dead stop of course the power steering will feel better. But at higher speeds or in motion the Manuel rack would be better because it is tighter and not soft at all you can feel the road alot better.

 

also get your alignment checked asap. incorrect toe settings will cause the tires to fight against each other causing some instability at high way speeds

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by slvrcvc93 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well at a dead stop of course the power steering will feel better. But at higher speeds or in motion the Manuel rack would be better because it is tighter and not soft at all you can feel the road alot better. </TD></TR></TABLE>

that makes sense. i think this is why the car feels good in turns w/ the power steering off. its when im driving straight that it feels "all over the place."
i was ready to go pick up an integra rack tommorow but now im considering buying a rebuilt manual one....


<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GYChris &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">also get your alignment checked asap. incorrect toe settings will cause the tires to fight against each other causing some instability at high way speeds</TD></TR></TABLE>

i drove the car w/o an alignment for a month or so and i understand what you mean but everything is aligned at thet moment so that rules out the toe. ive been troubleshooting this for while and everything points to the rack.. but thats good to know, thanks

 

bump. anyone else?

 

Don't understand what you said about the alignment?

Are you saying it was aligned a month ago?

Have it checked out before you spend the money, do the labor and still have the problem...

I took the rack out of rota92's Si and put a CX rack in. I seem the remember you need to get the correct size rack clamp for the passenger side mount for a non power rack, it's smaller.


Modified by 1992Si at 8:02 PM 8/27/2008

 

yes, an alignment was done.. also have the computer printout so i know it was done right. im leaning towards the manual rack so ill have to find that clamp as well. thanks