Tech – Does Baby Need a New Pair of Boots?

From Moss Motoring 1983

Like so many mechanical parts, rack-and-pinion steering requires two things to work efficiently: The presence of oil and the absence of water and dirt. Given these two conditions, a steering assembly should last hundreds of thousands of miles. However, periodic attention is necessary to a very vital part of the steering: The rack boots (or seals, or bellows, or gaiters, or whatever you call those collapsible rubber things on each end of the rack). If these are split and leaking oil, the life of the rack-and-pinion is diminished every time you drive the car, especially if you drive on wet or dusty roads.

While the boots themselves are relatively inexpensive, many owners put off replacing the bad ones because a) it is a dirty job, and b) they know it will upset their steering alignment. The simple answers to these objections are a) but someone has to do it, and b) not necessarily. If your alignment is correct and your steering wheel is centered (see accompanying article), following the procedure outlined below will get you your new boots fitted without the need for realignment.

1. Jack up the front of the car and position two jack stands under the chassis.

2. Center the steering wheel in the dead ahead position.

3. Place two strips of masking tape on the front tire treads, measure between them and mark them with two lines an exact distance apart.

4. Remove one wheel.

5. Loosen the tie rod adjuster lock nut.

6. Loosen the tie rod end securing nut several turns.

7. Place a hydraulic jack under the tie rod end nut and raise it about one-half inch.

8. With a brass drift and a big hammer, beat down on the steering arm to separate the tie rod end from the steering arm. (NOTE: Steps 7 & 8 not necessary if you have an air-hammer to vibrate the tie rod end loose).

9. Unscrew the tie rod end, noting how many turns it takes to get it off, then unscrew the lock nut.

10. Undo the clamps on the old boot, remove the boot.

11. Clean off all the dirt and old oil or grease.

12. Install the new boot; don’t tighten the small clamp yet.

13. Replace the lock nut on the tie rod, then screw the tie rod end back the number of turns it took to get it off.

14. Reassemble the tie rod end to the steering arm.

15. Replace the wheel.

16 .Check that the steering wheel is still centered exactly as it was when you started.

17. Measure between the tape marks. Adjust the tie rod in or out of the end until the measurement is exactly what you started with.

18. Tighten the tie rod lock nut, then the small boot clamp.

19, Repeat for the other side.

20. Fill the steering rack with the correct lubricant, per your shop manual. Note that if 90wt oil is called for, using grease will not do! The rack boots are supposed to pump the oil from side to side and they cannot move grease around.