Locating a new/recon`steering rack.

[Snowcat]

Hi,

Does anyone know where I can buy a new or reconditioned steering rack for an S1 ? Having contacted several replacement rack suppliers none of them hold any stock or apparently any components to recondition a faulty unit.

There are plenty of used racks available from £50 upwards but they aren`t guaranteed to be any better than my existing failing one which has the common easier to turn left than right issue.

Thanks.

[MARKTHOMASBRAND]

Could just be that the universal joint needs lubricating

Clicky here

[Snowcat]

Thankyou for the link to warpcOil`s informative post, I had checked that and many others previously about problematic EPS issues.

How I wish my car`s problem was down to a dry UJ , after several attempts to diagnose the left/right imbalance including cleaning the lower UJ with WD40 then applying motorcycle chain oil along with removing/soldering the two plastic connectors under the air box, cleaned all earthing points, checked the mechanical left to right steering action with front wheels off the ground, cleaned the two rack electrical connectors it seems it`s the rack that`s failing.

I`ve recently contacted an experienced RX8 specialist in Lincolnshire about obtaining a replacement EPS wiring harness as they are also known to fail (although I`ve checked electrical continuity between all the connectors) and he advised the problem is with the electric motor mechanism and a known fault which can only be rectified by replacing the rack.

The steering imbalance has only appeared after the car was sat outside for several months over the winter which led me to believe the problem was down to an electrical problem but after the above work there has been no improvement so it must be a failing rack ?

[350matt]

that can happen
especially if the car has been left not driven for any length of time
try this firm
https://www.power-steering.co.uk/power- ... ditioning/
or
http://www.westernpowersteering.co.uk/h ... rocess.htm

[Snowcat]

Thanks for the links, I contacted Western Power Steering yesterday and was told they don`t supply or repair racks for an 8 and Power Steering.co.uk said they didn`t know if they could help but promised to ring me back......I`m still waiting.

Maybe my only option is a secondhand rack but looking at the work involved to change one I`d really rather I only had to do it once hence the request for a new or recon unit.

[warpc0il]

There was a company that offered refurbish racks for the 8 on an exchange basis.

There had been a thread on here about their services and I recall two or three members used them with success.
We'd even talked to them about OC discount and/or becoming a trader.

However, that must have been back in the days when server resources were limited and threads in general discussion sections were purged by housekeeping routines, after going quiet for too long.

We've lost quite a lot of useful stuff over the years...

[Jester*]

I used https://www.power-steering.co.uk/power- ... ditioning/ to recondition a steering rack on my Mazda 3 MPS.

I bought a second hand one and sent it to them, then when it came back booked it in and got it swapped by my go to garage.

The complete cost of this which included all the postage,second hand rack,refurbishment and fitting came to less than buying a new rack from Mazda.

[350matt]

thing is your MPS rack will have been a conventional hydraulic rack
as the rexi rack is a linear electric device its pretty rarefied

so its possible none of the usual rack recon places will want to touch it

[Craig M]

Hi Snowcat, try this place :

Here's the details of the company I used back in December '19
Really easy to deal with and good communication.
The guy I dealt with was called Paul.

Initial outlay was £446 incl VAT & delivery & return.
You get £150 refunded when you send them your faulty rack, so £296 for reconditioned rack with 2 year warranty.

ATP Electronic Developments Ltd
Cannock Wood Industrial Estate
Cannock Wood Street
Cannock
Staffordshire
WS12 0PL
England

[Jester*]

thing is your MPS rack will have been a conventional hydraulic rack
as the rexi rack is a linear electric device its pretty rarefied

so its possible none of the usual rack recon places will want to touch it

That I did not know. Everyday is a school day!

[Snowcat]

Thanks for the recommendation of ATP in Cannock.

Unfortunately after already contacting Craig last Monday he advised that the subcontractor they used to use to recon` RX8 racks is no longer offering a service on that particular rack.

Having contacted half a dozen steering rack specialists in the UK no one seems able to offer any sort of options on an 8 rack so secondhand/used is becoming the only alternative.

I`m tempted to buy a cheap used rack and pull apart the torque sensor mechanism to establish how the sliding pins/sleeve operate and take some electrical resistance measurements. My guess is the pins/sleeve operate as a potentiometer varying the electrical resistance depending on steering wheel position which is transferred to the EPS control module which then controls the amount of power sent to the main electric motor (left or right). I wonder if it is worth checking between pins A + B & B + C on the torque sensor connector presently fitted to my car with the steering wheel at centre position then check again with the wheel at 90 degrees left and right ?

It would be logical that my steering imbalance is caused by "incorrect" signals being sent from the torque sensor due to poor electrical and/or mechanical internal condition of the unit which would also explain why the issue started after the car was left on the drive for several months over winter in the cold and damp ?

P.S Just had a reply from my local Mazda dealership who are able to offer a brand new rack for the sum of £1078 plus VAT.

[warpc0il]

I think someone has already done that investigation and most of the answers should still be here, if it wasn't too long ago.

Have a trawl through this lot >>>> search.php?keywords=torque+sensor
It may save you some effort.

[Snowcat]

Thanks Dave, I`ve now spent considerable time researching the cause of my car`s particular steering imbalance and previously found the post you`re possibly thinking of. It`s listed as "Steering Issue" from August 2012 and posted by your good self sourced from an original post (and photo`s) by PeteH. Apologies for not providing a link.

As my car isn`t showing a fault code I believe the issue shown in the post of corrosion/gunk getting into the sleeve and pin mechanism may be causing the imbalance. The theory to check electrical resistance with the steering wheel centre/left & right may confirm this although whatever the results the rack will still need to be removed to either strip and clean the mechanical part of the torque sensor or replace it completely.

Or would it be possible to in situ remove the 3 securing bolts and pull the upper section upwards just enough to enable a WD40 application tube to be inserted and lubricate the plastic sleeve/pins which slides on the metal central column. There`s a post on a USA RX8 forum that claims lots of aerosol lubricant repeatedly blasted under the rubber dust protector greatly improved the left/right imbalance the OP was experiencing, although the o ring/oil seal at the top of the torque sensor mech` must have been pretty tired to allow the oil to penetrate the internals.

If I can confirm by electrical testing there`s an obvious potential difference between the steering wheel at 90 degrees left and right this would substantiate the theory of sticking sleeve/pins so following rack removal and stripping & cleaning (and then balanced readings) the issue may be corrected without the need for a used and unknown replacement rack.

[meaningking]

I bought a S1 reconsideration rack from:

https://completegroup.uk.com

I got it end of last year. I spoke to Jordan in there he was helpful. I am not sure if they had more in stock however.

You would buy one cheap and send it to them to recondition if they had none. It only took them a few days work on mine.

[Snowcat]

Eureka ! Thankyou meaningking, you`re the man.

Just spoken to the helpful Nathan at Completegroup who advised a reconditioned RX8 rack (without tie rods) with a 2 year guarantee can be delivered for £250 + VAT and shipping by Wednesday next week. There`s also the expected £125 surcharge until the old rack is returned. But exactly the information I was looking for and certainly less expensive than Mazda

It`s good to know there`s at least one source of reconditioned racks for the 8 still available.

Once the new rack is fitted I`ll update on the hopefully balanced steering.

[30405]

I think we may have to add this source to a FAQ so it doesn't get lost.

[warpc0il]

Better still Snowcat can do a review of the service, once the transaction is completed and the refurbished rack fitted, and we can add that to the "Specialists" section.

With a pointer in the existing FAQ thread.

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

[meaningking]

The rack I got off them worked out great. Delivered on time and they returned the £125 surcharge no hassle. I even had a mechanic comment how nice the steering is on my car. I found it interesting he noticed as he knew his stuff.

[Torque23]

Eureka ! Thankyou meaningking, you`re the man.

Just spoken to the helpful Nathan at Completegroup who advised a reconditioned RX8 rack (without tie rods) with a 2 year guarantee can be delivered for £250 + VAT and shipping by Wednesday next week. There`s also the expected £125 surcharge until the old rack is returned. But exactly the information I was looking for and certainly less expensive than Mazda

It`s good to know there`s at least one source of reconditioned racks for the 8 still available.

Once the new rack is fitted I`ll update on the hopefully balanced steering.

Did your new rack work out fine and fixed the issue?