Help please

[mikesp]

Hello all, hope you might be able to provide some info on the following soon-needed repairs

Had the 400SE checked over stem to stern today and came up with a reasonable list of jobs to do, the most urgent of which are

1) Power steering rack leak on off-side from the gaiter. Am I right in thinking the rack
will need rebuilding. Searching the forum seems to say Power Steering Services in
London can do a recon for a very reasonable price. open to other suggestions though.

2) UJ on the steering column and the bulkhead bush are worn. Had a look on Wedge Pages
for the bush conversion but what is the UJ from?

3) Nearside bottom ball-joint worn. Anyone any idea what car TVR used this from? Ford
something-or-other?

4) Outer diff seals (behind discs) leaking and getting on inner pads. Can this be done
with diff left in or will it need to be removed.

Other than these items the running-on problem when braking mentioned in my previous post was cured by simply re-fitting the pipe on the back of the stepper motor housing which is linked to the workings of the fuel pump I think. Marvelous stuff brake cleaner, found the leak no problem. And the gearbox has a few leaks and will need removing for repair sometime in the future.

So on the whole I'm a happy chappie. Just the weather resistance to check now........

I love this car. Why did I wait so long??

[Wedg1e]

mikesp said:

1) Power steering rack leak on off-side from the gaiter. Am I right in thinking the rack
will need rebuilding.

No, the rack doesn't need rebuilding. The gaiters can be changed with the rack in situ. You may struggle to find the exact gaiter for that rack but you can get generic aftermarket ones that work with varying degrees of success. It's an MOT failure if a gaiter is leaking, to say nothing of the damage that water ingress will do.

mikesp said:

2) UJ on the steering column and the bulkhead bush are worn. Had a look on Wedge Pages
for the bush conversion but what is the UJ from?

Depends on the steering column; if it's the SD1 column (probably not on a 400SE) it'll be a TR7-esque UJ. Otherwise it'll be a Mk3 Granada column in which case, try a Ford part.

mikesp said:

3) Nearside bottom ball-joint worn. Anyone any idea what car TVR used this from? Ford
something-or-other?

Cortina Mk 4/5, probably the Mk 3 as well... but not Granada, although you can bodge Granada Mk2 items to fit. Cortina joints are readily available so you may as well use the right ones.

mikesp said:

4) Outer diff seals (behind discs) leaking and getting on inner pads. Can this be done
with diff left in or will it need to be removed.

Can be done in situ but probably easier with the diff on the floor. You can overhaul the rear brakes while you're at it

mikesp said:

And the gearbox has a few leaks and will need removing for repair sometime in the future.

Quite probably either a pointless exercise or not cost-effective. The usual leaks are from the rear (drive flange) seal or due to a worn O-ring around the selector shaft. A 'box that's been apart before may leak from the joint faces between the front and rear cases and the centre plate... especially if the monkey who did it didn't replace the gaskets.
The rear seal can be changed in situ but the O-ring needs a total stripdown and will last, oh, minutes before it starts leaking again.
Just keep topping the oil up, the leaks help to rust-proof the chassis Seriously: leave it till the clutch needs replacing. Mine's been leaking for at least 9 years...

[adam quantrill]

Or change to a thicker oil, such as Castrol SMX-S.

Don't chuck the old steering UJ, these can be refurbished, and are getting rare!!

[blaineuk]

if there if fluid coming out of the gaiter, then the seals must be gone in the rack, so the rack needs a rebuid.

[mikesp]

Wedg1e said:

mikesp said:

1) Power steering rack leak on off-side from the gaiter. Am I right in thinking the rack
will need rebuilding.

No, the rack doesn't need rebuilding. The gaiters can be changed with the rack in situ. You may struggle to find the exact gaiter for that rack but you can get generic aftermarket ones that work with varying degrees of success. It's an MOT failure if a gaiter is leaking, to say nothing of the damage that water ingress will do.

mikesp said:

2) UJ on the steering column and the bulkhead bush are worn. Had a look on Wedge Pages
for the bush conversion but what is the UJ from?

Depends on the steering column; if it's the SD1 column (probably not on a 400SE) it'll be a TR7-esque UJ. Otherwise it'll be a Mk3 Granada column in which case, try a Ford part.

mikesp said:

3) Nearside bottom ball-joint worn. Anyone any idea what car TVR used this from? Ford
something-or-other?

Cortina Mk 4/5, probably the Mk 3 as well... but not Granada, although you can bodge Granada Mk2 items to fit. Cortina joints are readily available so you may as well use the right ones.

mikesp said:

4) Outer diff seals (behind discs) leaking and getting on inner pads. Can this be done
with diff left in or will it need to be removed.

Can be done in situ but probably easier with the diff on the floor. You can overhaul the rear brakes while you're at it

mikesp said:

And the gearbox has a few leaks and will need removing for repair sometime in the future.

Quite probably either a pointless exercise or not cost-effective. The usual leaks are from the rear (drive flange) seal or due to a worn O-ring around the selector shaft. A 'box that's been apart before may leak from the joint faces between the front and rear cases and the centre plate... especially if the monkey who did it didn't replace the gaskets.
The rear seal can be changed in situ but the O-ring needs a total stripdown and will last, oh, minutes before it starts leaking again.
Just keep topping the oil up, the leaks help to rust-proof the chassis Seriously: leave it till the clutch needs replacing. Mine's been leaking for at least 9 years...

Thanks for the help. Think I'll leave the gearbox alone then until it has to come out.

[mikesp]

adam quantrill said:

Or change to a thicker oil, such as Castrol SMX-S.

Don't chuck the old steering UJ, these can be refurbished, and are getting rare!!

If I was clever I'd put all the quotes in one reply. Oh well....Thanks for the info. Good thinking on the oil. Will it affect the gearchange action? Any idea who might rebuild the UJ. Are there companies who specialise in that type of repair? Thought these steering joints were use and chuck.

[mikesp]

blaineuk said:

if there if fluid coming out of the gaiter, then the seals must be gone in the rack, so the rack needs a rebuid.

Thought that would be the case. Got a quote from Power Steering Services in Greenwich for £130 + VAT and they do a 48hr turnaround. Sounds like a deal?

[jmorgan]

Mine was around 70 squids a few years ago.

[mikesp]

jmorgan said:

Mine was around 70 squids a few years ago.

Who was that with please

[blaineuk]

it all depends on what condition the rack is in, my old one is still in the garage, needs a full rebuild including rechroming of the ram, very expensive.

[mikesp]

blaineuk said:

it all depends on what condition the rack is in, my old one is still in the garage, needs a full rebuild including rechroming of the ram, very expensive.

No wear can be felt on the bearings ie up and down movement. Hope it's just the seal. Have a receipt for new rack from 2001 for £570!!!!!! Must have been a new one then at that price. If not that was an expensive rebuild!

[jmorgan]

Swansea....... ish......

Sorry, done through the garage that sort the mechanicals. I would have to check the receipt but think its just listed as a rebuild and the labour etc. Had a few things done on that one.

[Wedg1e]

blaineuk said:

if there if fluid coming out of the gaiter, then the seals must be gone in the rack, so the rack needs a rebuid.

Fair point, I was thinking it was leaking grease (which is often virtually liquid anyway), it'd be worth checking which it is.

[grahamw48]

The Wedge uses Cortina 3/4/5 wishbones, all of which were the same. Stub-axle on the Wedge is Granada MK2...presumably to get the bigger brakes and 5 studs.

If the steering rack originates from a Cortina, then it will have been from the 2.3 V6 model, as that was the only one offered with PAS.

I'm wondering if any part of the steering shaft came from a Cortina, as the UJ may be more available from that source too.

Here is the Cortina front subframe from which some of the Wedge bits were borrowed. The Granada one was similar, but bigger.

Edited by grahamw48 on Friday 4th December 23:39

[Wedg1e]

grahamw48 said:

Here is the Cortina front subframe from which some of the Wedge bits were borrowed. The Granada one was similar, but bigger.

Yeah, your tracking's out there mate. Tell you what, I'll give you a tenner for scrap

[grahamw48]

Ha ha

I'm well acquainted with those subframes, after re-building one on my kitchen floor in happier bachelor days.

[mikesp]

grahamw48 said:

The Wedge uses Cortina 3/4/5 wishbones, all of which were the same. Stub-axle on the Wedge is Granada MK2...presumably to get the bigger brakes and 5 studs.

If the steering rack originates from a Cortina, then it will have been from the 2.3 V6 model, as that was the only one offered with PAS.

I'm wondering if any part of the steering shaft came from a Cortina, as the UJ may be more available from that source too.

Here is the Cortina front subframe from which some of the Wedge bits were borrowed. The Granada one was similar, but bigger.

Edited by grahamw48 on Friday 4th December 23:39

Great.Thanks for the info