rack and pinion

[stik'nfish]

im restoring a 1971 opel gt and wanted to know how to replace the rack and pinion. the boots are split and im at a loss as to where to have the unit rebuilt, or, if there is a replacement readily available that i can buy to put in. i am still in the tear down stages of the resotoration, but will be needing some replacement parts to make the car safe to drive for my daughter. also, other than a weber 32./36 carb, which is hard to find, is there a carburetor that can replace the solex. i'm trying to stay stock on the motor for my childs sake

[namba209]

There is replacement rubber available from Opel GT Source, they have an on line catalog, you can check it out at www.opelgtsource.com They have the steering rack boots and the rubber pieces available that go between the main front suspension beam and the steering rack, along with a lot of other parts needed for restoration. As for the Carbs available, the most desirous are the Webers. There may be members on the list that have a spare they may be willing to part with. HTH.

[Willy_g77]

i already have a set of nos rubber boots.. but lets say i were to replace my whole rack and pinoin.. does the old one just un-bolt and the new one bolt back up? what is all required??? and any special tools?? thanks in advance

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Willy_g77 i already have a set of nos rubber boots.. but lets say i were to replace my whole rack and pinoin.. does the old one just un-bolt and the new one bolt back up? what is all required??? and any special tools?? thanks in advance

New racks are not available. However at some point Gil at OGTS was planning on having the critical end bushings and thrust bushing reproduced. Don't know if they have been made yet though.

Bob

[GTJIM]

There is a listing for rebuilt Opel racks on eBay at the moment ........

[Willy_g77]

yeah thats the one im talking about... I just want to know how much work i'm looking to do if I win this.

[bozkm]

I had mine rebuilt at a place in Denver. They did an awesome job, but cost 200 bones. To move, you have to remove where tie rods go in, fairly easy with a hammer if you don't rip the rubber boots, and removing the bolt where the steering wheel rod bolts, 1 bolt. Now the hard part, at least for me. Removing the 4 bolts that hold it to the front end. The bottom two are easy, but I don't think you can get the top two out...the belly pan is in the way. My front end was out, so it was easy.

[garrymc]

This is what I had to do to repair my rack bushing...
http://www.opelgt.com/forums/3b-steering-linkage-column-gear-box/2507-steering-rack-metal-bushings.html

The rack is pretty simple. Maybe someone will know if OGTS has the new bushings in stock.

Garry

[davegt27]

I had mine rebuilt at a place in Denver. They did an awesome job, but cost 200 bones. To move, you have to remove where tie rods go in, fairly easy with a hammer if you don't rip the rubber boots, and removing the bolt where the steering wheel rod bolts, 1 bolt. Now the hard part, at least for me. Removing the 4 bolts that hold it to the front end. The bottom two are easy, but I don't think you can get the top two out...the belly pan is in the way. My front end was out, so it was easy.

bozkm could you tell me where in Denver you took your rack?

i had one rebuilt years ago but that was in TX

thanks
Davegt27

[bosco]

I found that the rack came out fairly easily although I might have had the radiator out at the time.....and with new grease, proper pressure on the rack via the adjusting screw and new rubber bushings it felt like a brand new piece. Alot of the slop I had been noticing was actually attributable to a worn flexible coupling under the dash (Gil @ OGTS had that part also).

[bozkm]

The place is called Raven Steering. 1-303-777-6640. The guy that did mine was Robert.

Hope this helps.