Sloppy steering

[Mark McDonald <tomswift@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I didn't know this was going to turn into one of those subjects folks
lined up on one side or the other on . . .

I think part of the problem is, I am very picky.  I doubt many people
who drove my car would notice any problem with the steering.  So I think
some of you may be imagining a bigger problem than I really have.  For
some folks, "sloppy" is spilling the mashed potatoes and peas on the
floor; for me, it's when one of my peas bumps up against the mashed
potatoes and gets a little gravy on it.  :)

I never discounted the effect of time on the condition of a car.  If
that is what it seems like I said, then I must've misspoken or I was
misinterpreted.  However, you can't simply discount mileage and say it's
"irrelevent."  I would also say that the way you drive is a major
factor, too.  I tend to be very easy on my cars.  I don't take railroad
tracks at speed, corner hard, etc.

In my limited experience, I can't recall any of the 25 or so cars I've
owned ever needing new bushings or other front end components, except
one that needed a new idler arm.  Most of the people I know who have had
those kinds of things replaced had high mileage cars (like 200,000+) and
tended to drive them hard-- or they had cars that had set up for a long
period of time.  (My convertible is neither of those-- it's a relatively
low mileage car that has been driven fairly regularly, but not a lot.)
I don't know, this could be only my experience.  Apparently, I've been
lucky.

I suspected the steering box first because the first time I noticed
these symptoms was when it was replaced.  Since then, it's gotten worse,
but it started with the new steering box.  To me, logically, this points
to the steering box and not the dozen or so things it might be.  I'm not
saying it's NOT those other things, just that it makes no sense for me
to start suspecting everything on the assumption that my car has set up
for a long time, therefore it needs to have everything replaced.  That
is a very expensive route.

I think I agree with Chris H. in Atlanta, who said:

You may have a bum steering box.  Or its connection
with the center link may have been damaged during
assembly.  But don't completely discount problems with
the rest of the steering and front suspension.

Having driven your car, Chris, I can say it really benefitted from what
you did.  I wish I could've driven it beforehand to see how it compares
to the way my convertible drives today.

Again, thanks to everybody-- I'm going to look beyond the steering box
now.

Mark

Dave & Tracy wrote:

> I would have to agree with Christopher on his diagnostics on this.
> Let me explain. Last year I had the problem with my Imperial having
> sloppy steering and what I would call "white lining".  That is when
> you're on a straight road and the tyre hits the white line in the
> centre of the road it will throw the steering out.  I thought at the
> time that it was a tie rod end.  I was right, but also wrong.  Not
> only was one of the outer tie rod ends worn, but also the inner tie
> rod end on the opposite side was as well, as well as the drag link
> bushing.  As for your car with 73,000 miles on it,  that is
> irrelevant, its due to the time that the car is laid up, i.e. not
> driven.  Time itself is the biggest killer of the man made materials
> that are added to the vehicle, such as bushings (for the last two
> years on the run I have had to replace the sway bar/torsion bar bushes
> due to inferior materials and wear). Even the grease which is packed
> in the tie rod ends (how many people replace the grease nipples to
> ensure that they have not become clogged and dried out over time).
> The new steering box that you had fitted five years ago, although
> could have been the main cause at the time, will only highlight any
> weaker areas on the steering system and also will put more stress and
> wear on joints and bushes.  A good example, when replacing clutch
> discs in transmissions, you don't replace the ones you think are OK.
> I have myself a lot of knowledge on this with building a lot of
> hydrastatic machinery. Just out of interest, did you replace the
> steering box hydraulic hoses when you fitted the new steering box, the
> reason being if not the old hoses could have been breaking down
> internally and debris inside any hydraulic system causes havoc.
> RegardsDave60 LeBaron