kasin Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 Hi Yesterday evening I had a Ford Mondeo drive out into the road ahead of me in very low speed. I hit the Mondeo with my right front wheel and the wing was broken just a bit on the front right side and the two rear rivets was torn off. There is also some scrapes on the rim. Other than this I cannot see any other damage - other than the sentering of the wheel now is off. To go straight I have to have the steering wheel at 35 - 45 degrees to the right. The car seems to go straight if I do this, but because the wing is flapping in the wind, I haven driven the car far. What could have happened to the steering? Is it possible for the steering column to jump in the splines due to the impact and me holding the wheel? Or could the rack have been damaged internally? All the everything else seems ok - at least when I do the inspection. Kristoffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SM25T Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 Bent the steering arm on the upright. It is soft metal, designed to bend, to protect other parts. It is where the tie rod from the steering rack is fixed with a ball joint. Otherwise you may have damaged a wishbone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted July 18, 2021 Area Representative Share Posted July 18, 2021 Sounds to me that you have bent a track rod end or a steering arm. Need to get it looked at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAndrewE Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 Yes, agree something is bent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR400D Posted July 18, 2021 Share Posted July 18, 2021 Highly likely as above. Your right front wheel has been pushed in at the front and bent the steering arm or (less likely) rod end. So now you right front toes in heavily and you have to apply some right lock to equalise the toe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kasin Posted July 19, 2021 Author Share Posted July 19, 2021 Hi againI have now inspected the front of the car a bit more. There is no external signs of anything being bent, however I cannot say anything for certain. When the steering wheel is centered the wheels, both the left and the right are turning to the left. So there is a change on the left wheel as well as the right. Kristoffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrightpayne Posted July 19, 2021 Share Posted July 19, 2021 I would look at the rack bridge (bit of the chassis the rack bolts to) for signs of distortion. I would get a piece of card and mark the angle of where the bridge is folded down to join the chassis side rail then compare to the other side.Also check the rack clamps and bolts - has there been any movement? The nuts / washers underneath usually leave witness marks when they are tightened - have the nuts / washers moved or slid slightly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrightpayne Posted July 19, 2021 Share Posted July 19, 2021 Also, put a straight edge across the chassis below the rack bridge and measure up to the bridge either side. Measurements should be pretty close to equal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldAndrewE Posted July 19, 2021 Share Posted July 19, 2021 Kristoffer, I do not know how the steering rack is located on your model, is it possible that the rack has moved sideways? On my 1985 car the rack tube is just held by the clamping force of the rack mounting blocks.The column will not have moved on the splines unless it was very loose in the first place. Also if the rack was damaged internally I think you would be able to feel it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kasin Posted July 19, 2021 Author Share Posted July 19, 2021 Hi againI have now been out on a drive with the car. Other than the steering wheel being turned a bit compared to before, everything seems ok. The car goes straight without any steering inputs on the straights, and does not pull in any direction - not even under hard braking or acceleration. I will take the tips from you guys and will have a hard look at the rack and the clamps there - to see if there has been any movement. This will just have to take some time as I am home with two young children. Kristoffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kasin Posted July 27, 2021 Author Share Posted July 27, 2021 I have now tried to center the steering wheel by rotating the rack in the universal joint. The first time I rotated it four teeth, but after having a drive that was too much. The driving was a lot better, as it now was just slightly off to the other side. 25 minutes later I had it apart again, and rotated it one tooth back. That did the job, and the steering wheel was as before the crash. To mee it seems as the rack jumped on the splines in the crash. The bolts in the U-joint wasnt very tight - but I really made sure they are tight now. The steering was one of the few parts of the car that I havent worked on yet - so a new experience. This meant that I could use the car the last couple of days, and will be able to drive the car to the workshop to get the other damages appraised. I will of course have a alignment as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aerobod - near CYYC Posted July 27, 2021 Share Posted July 27, 2021 Kristoffer, I would say it is impossible for the splines on the rack to "jump" teeth unless the splines are too worn to be serviceable, even if the clamp bolts are only finger tight. I think you need to keep searching for the source of the problem including measurement of the chassis and suspension to ensure everything is square and confirmation the steering rack hasn't somehow moved sideways and none of the components in it are bent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR400D Posted July 27, 2021 Share Posted July 27, 2021 James is right IMO. If the UJ has moved round, and in my experience they're too tight to do that even unbolted, the least you need is a very close inspection of the spindle and a new UJ. If it HAD moved on the spindle I'd expect to see signs of damage to the splines too. Is the lock equal on both sides? Ie does the rack now move out equally each side when on full lock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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