Thread: 98 110 steering box spline movement

Not sure if you're using a phone or something to post with, but a couple of full stops and new lines would make your posts a lot clearer.

Just to summarise as your description seems to change slightly each time.
- You've got a slightly leaking seal on the steering box input shaft
- You've got side to side movement on the output shaft (the one with the pitman arm)

Not sure about your reference to a pump kit since you haven't mentioned any issues with the pump. I assume you meant a kit for the steering box (not the pump).

Kits for the box are definitely available (heaps on ebay when I had quick look), and there is a good tutorial here somewhere on how to do the job.

I've never had the steering box apart, but there shouldn't be any sideways movement in the output shaft, and it would make it very hard for seal to do its job.
You could have a go at changing the seals, but seems like the bearing or bush that's supporting that shaft needs some attention. Exactly what that is you probably won't know until you get it apart. I'm pretty sure that some boxes have bearings that run on the shaft itself, so if the shaft it wearing its not a simple fix.

If you can't afford to have it off the road for long, I'd be keeping an eye out for a good used steering box that you could use as a backup if you get it apart and find its stuffed - rather than end up off the road for a while or having to fork out large $$$ to buy one in a hurry.

Steve

as steveg posted

There are NO steering boxes with bearings on the shaft ( pitman) nor is there a bush in a rebuild kit. so if it is sloppy its a new box. Having said that since they are a power steering box, and that the oil inside is always under pressure. and that ( assumption) that if a box is so full of crap that this bush / shaft will wear. it is hard to believe that the lower seal had not already given up the ghost and drained the crappy oil out. IE and enforced oil change.

i had a look at the tutorial. Same as what i do but i tend to do them with the box still in the car. if you are on some one else’s drive, pop the circlip and crank her up while wiggling the steering some times the seal will pop off. NB do not do this in your own drive way.

There is. And this is a tricky one as some kits come with it and some not. but defiantly the rover care 3 bolts have it. its a large doughnut washer thing. that is last on the shaft before the pitman. it fills the void between the pitman and dust cover. bloody brilliant bit of kit to my thinking.

There are aluminium inserts in the valve block, ie that seal to the hose fittings. Always a bit of a problem if the hoses have been off and on a few times