2000 TXT steering play....time to update?

[DaveTM]

DOH!!

To summarize.....
#1—Remove drivers side boot

#1—Disconnect the tie rod on the rack from pinion
#2—Loosen boot band clamp
#3—Spin the wheel until old rack comes out….pay attention to which side the teeth are located
#4—Spin the tie rod out of rack and install it on new rack.
#5—Have Mrs “X” hold the tensioner in and spin new rack into place.
#6—“Button” (no zipping) everything up.
#7—Adjust steering wheel as needed.

I know there are two #1's....but.....you know.........I am from SW Pa.

[Cobra,1]

Dave if you have play in tie rods they will need replacing reguardless as they are worn. Known bad parts.
May want to replace them first then see if play still exsist before replacing rack.
Not saying rack may still be part of problem, however worn tie rods(that we already know are a problem and cause-play, slop in steering)may solve problem with steering entirely.
Replace known worn parts first. Then troubleshoot further if needed.
Similar to repairing a bad wire opposed to replacing entire wire harness.

Just my opinion on trouble shooting problems 😊

[Sideways]

If you need them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyIZ4DsDhf0&t=7s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJnFYBsB4pg

[DaveTM]

Almost embarrassed to admit this....well, not really.....I am an armature on this stuff. (amateur?)

As I stated above my tie rod ends had play in them. So today I took a close look at 'em and found out why. When I put the Jakes front lift on, I had to change tie rods, and also tie rod ends as my factory tie rod ends were a small thread into the tie rods.

I recall making about a million caster\camber and toe\in\out adjustments until it drove properly. However......what I obviously forgot about was the rather "short" crown nut. When the crown nut was tightened up all the way......it was well past the carter pin hole. So.....obviously the crown nut kept getting loose and the steering more sloppy.

So, I was faced with searching for longer crown nuts.....or doing what I did which was remove the tie rod end, and drill a carter pin hole that would hold the crown nut.

Pic below. BTW.....now you know why I ask a billion questions about stuff.

[Cobra,1]

Nice catch Dave👍 Beats replacing rack.
No experience with lift kits but will ask. You may need to call maker for this info.

Does the lift kit arms use the same tie rod taper,tie rods ( since yours fit into steering arms further then they did in stock arms)as stock tie rods have? Sorry retired auto tech coming out in me😁

Just thinking outside the box since I too am trying to learn carts.
Also a washer can be added under castle nut to realign cotter pin holes.
The old 6 of one , half dozen of other solution lol.
Glad you found problem😊

[DaveTM]

[QUOTE=Cobra,1;1636517]
Does the lift kit arms use the same tie rod taper,tie rods ( since yours fit into steering arms further then they did in stock arms)as stock tie rods have? /QUOTE]

Lemme see if my answer makes any sense to you.

The Jakes LT kit comes with two new tie rods. What is suppose to happen is your suppose to use your existing tie rod ends on the new tie rods.

However....(always a however)......on my cart, the existing tie rod end thread were smaller than what was needed for the new tie rods. So, I then ordered and installed new tie rod ends.....but for the castle nut that is used to bolt the tie rod end to the steering link (wheel side) I used the old castle nut.

[BBBHC]

Originally Posted by DaveTM

Almost embarrassed to admit this....well, not really.....I am an armature on this stuff. (amateur?)

I recall making about a million caster\camber and toe\in\out adjustments until it drove properly. However......what I obviously forgot about was the rather "short" crown nut. When the crown nut was tightened up all the way......it was well past the carter pin hole. So.....obviously the crown nut kept getting loose and the steering more sloppy.

So, I was faced with searching for longer crown nuts.....or doing what I did which was remove the tie rod end, and drill a carter pin hole that would hold the crown nut.

I ran into this problem on my CC DS. My Lady had gotten excited about the project and ordered new tie rod ends from EBAY. I assumed, because of the price, that they were just cheap and poor QA where they were manufactured. I used a few washers to make up the space to make it so the cotter pins would keep the castle nuts in place.

[DaveTM]

Actually....the drilling of the tie rod went very smoothly and easy. It took longer to remove the tie rod end than it did to drill the hole. The steel on the tie rod ends are not heat treated.

[DaveTM]

BTW....took it out for a spin and it's like a new cart!! No more wandering!!

[rib33024]

Originally Posted by DaveTM

BTW....took it out for a spin and it's like a new cart!! No more wandering!!