Thread: Steering Relay

wait....

you got a series relay box out easily.......


theres something wrong with that in and of itself...

FFS advise your mechanic that the relay box has a bloody huge "Not kidding going to tear your arm off and impale you in the chest with the shaft and head plate" class spring in it.

make a frame to secure the head with, place it in at least a 10t press and undo the head bolts in the press.

I have seen what happens when the mechanic says "Its ok Im only going to loosen them a little and then put it in the press" and loosens off a couple and the last 2 snap..

the term broken fingers in a workshop means you have a clutch plate problem. In an ER room it means no more mechanicing for you for at least 3 weeks.

Thanks Dave,

Actually the mechanic warned me about that so he does know that . I don't think the relay itself is a problem as I can't spot any play in it so I probably won't pull it apart. The problem is how it sits in the chassis. And yes I was expecting real problems getting it out after what I had read but I got it out by hand with just a little levering with a screwdriver. I think that is the problem, either the chassis has rusted more than it looks or there is some sort of sleeve missing.

TimJ.

Hi Tim,
This may seem an obvious question but when I removed the stearing relay on my 77 game last weekend there is a plate on the bottom of the chassis held with 4 bolts, this is an interfearance fit, maby without this it is allowing the relay to move a bit. or maby there is rust in the relay tube or a fracture, there is alot of force pushed through it with the big game tyres.
Regards

Brendan

Hi Brendan,

That plate is there but I suppose it may not be tight enough. I will have to check tomorrow if it is tight around the relay. I actually stuck the relay in from the bottom (upside down) just to see if it was tight and it was quite sloppy so I think it is definitely a problem with the chassis hole. Things I have read suggest that they should be a pretty tight fit and this has a couple of mm of movement.

TimJ.

Hi Tim,
Hmm sounds like one of those typical land rover problems, maby try a brand new relay if you can lay your hands on one. many years ago my stearing went out of alignment, I thought it was the top stearing arm, but when I pulled it all apart last weekend I noticed the bottom arm had a twist in the splines so will replace it just to be sure. so I learnt what may seem to be the problem may not be the actual cause.
lol live and lean.
Regards and best of luck with the fix

The relay unit is held solid by the bolts at the top, and the plate mentioned on the bottom. The ears on the top have been known to break off the chassis, but if this were the case you would have found it by now. If there has been movement there has probably been wear on both the plate bolted to the chassis and the bottom plate of the relay that it is supposed to keep in place. This means that a new plate will not fix the problem, and you need to replace the bottom plate of the relay as well. I would be inclined rather than to do this, to make a replacement plate (a simple turning job) to fit the relay - turning it if it is out of round.

John

My vote is for a worn or more likely stretched bottom collar. Mine (76 SW has a light weight pressed steel collar from memory that I could imagine streching. I currently have it off actually if you want to have a look or measurements. I'll get some photo's of it for you if your interested.

I would also imaging that if the bottom is that loose however that the top mounts might be a bit flogged as well. A new collar made from a bit of 5mm steel plate would probably be the easiest replacement for the bottom particularly if you don't have access to a lathe to turn one.

I have made a special tool (ST No XXX) for pulling apart the relay if you are northside of Brisbane at all and need to go further.

Cheers
Lakey

Well I found a new plate and a new steering relay. Got the plate today and should have the relay tomorrow. Couldn't see the point of mucking around as I have no access to metal lathes and the new plate was still loose on the old steering relay. Hopefully that will fix it all.

TimJ.