Power Steering Rack
Removing the steering rack is pretty simple. Porsche 944 power steering racks are absolutely notorious for leaks. Mine was leaking so bad, my undercarriage was completely soaked in ATF. The ATF on the exhaust would actually cause massive amounts of smoke for a few minutes after startup. Since I was wearing gloves while unbolting the power steering rack, I have very few pictures. I will use the pictures from the Porsche 944 service manual, as they do a good job explaining the procedure.
In the future I will add information regarding rebuilding the power steering rack, as mine needs a rebuild.
Before you remove the rack, you will need to remove the sway bar.
Removal
Here you can see the power steering rack in place. Note the amount of ATF that has accumulated all over my chassis.
Disconnect ground wire on front axle cross member.
Disconnect the pressure line on the power steering pump. This will cause your entire power steering ATF to leak out. Have a catch can handy.
Remove the bolt on he universal joint of the steering shaft.
Loosen, but do not remove, the four bolts that hold the steering rack onto the front engine cross member. Pull the steering rack forward enough to pull the steering shaft from the steering pinion on the steering rack.
Press out the tie rod ends with a puller. You'll first have to remove the cotter pins from the castle nuts.
Speaking of pullers. Here is a kit I bought from Harbor Freight for about $80. This will come in handy throughout the duration of vehicle maintenance. Below the kit, there is a pickle fork. These can be bought for about $5, but they have a habit of tearing boots on tie rod ends and ball joints.
Unscrew the return line on the steering rack.
Completely unscrew the four mounting bolts on the steering rack that you previously loosened.
The steering rack has now been completely remove. Inspect it for leaks. Notice mine is in dire need of a replacement.
Removing Tie Rods
To remove the tie rods, you're going to need a vice. Pull on the driver side until it is fully extended, exposing the rack teeth.
If you have a 3" vice, it should fit inside of the vice perfectly horizontal. If you have a 5" vice, like me, you will have to angle the rack. Use soft jaws, lots of rags, etc. to keep the rack teeth from getting damaged.
Where the inner tie rod shaft mounts to the rack, there is a locking notch that must be removed in order to unscrew the inner tie rod from the rack. The red arrow in the previous picture points to this notch. You'll need to use a chisel to break the notch free. With the notches removed, you can use a 30mm wrench to unscrew the inner tie rods from the rack. If you don't have a 30mm wrench, and adjustable wrench will work. I recommend buying a wrench instead of using an adjustable wrench. If you use an adjustable wrench, you need to be extremely careful not to slip off the tie rod. This could put a scratch in the shaft, which could cause leaks if you rebuild the rack.
Remove the aluminum mounts from the rack, as well as the plastic compensating line from each end of the rack. You'll need to re-use the aluminum mounts.
Preparing New Power Steering Rack
Install new bushings onto the rack. Then, install the old aluminum mounts over the rubber bushings.
Install the high pressure line onto the rack to 14 ft/lb with new copper washers. If you still have the front hose mount, you'll know how to align it properly. If you don't have the front hose mount like me, the hose should be aligned to where it crosses in front of the lower driver side mounting hole.
If the hollow screws for your power steering rack are allen head type, you might want to consider changing them to hex head. This will help when reinstalling.
Put the compensating line onto the rack. You can reuse your old one or replace it. I opted to just go ahead and replace mine since they're only around $20.
Installing New Power Steering Rack
Before you install the rack, you need to get it centered properly. Unscrew the bolt with the arrow pointing to it two pictures down. This will expose the actually steering shaft; it's kind of a viewing window. When the shaft is centered, you should be able to see a large divot in the steering shaft through the window.
Push the rack up into place. Install the two mounting bolts just a few threads in place. Leave the two driver side bolts out. Reach up and grab the steering shaft. Slide the steering shaft into the back of the rack while pushing the rack towards the back of the car. Install the bolt for the steering shaft to 22 ft/lb.
Install the two driver side rack mounting bolts. Evenly tighten all four mounting bolts to 17 ft/lb. The red arrow in this picture points to the bolt that shows the viewing window to centre the rack.
Install the pressure hose on the power steering hose to 22 ft/lb. Make sure you use new copper washers.
Install the return line to the back of the rack to 14 ft/lb using new copper washers. This will probably be the hardest part of the install as it's nearly impossible to get to. Since I now have a hex head hollow screw, I was able to use an open end wrench between the cross member and oil pan. Once finished, re-install the heat shield.
Installing the Tie Rods
Put the new tie rods up next to the old ones and adjust the tie rod end so that they line up as close as possible. This is to get the alignment as close as possible for your short drive to the alignment shop.
Push the rack boot on hard until it pops over the ring that holds it in place. It may take quite a bit of force, but it will go eventually.
Thread the inner tie rod into the steering rack as tight as possible. Then use a 30mm wrench or adjustable wrench to tighten to 61 ft/lb. Be very careful not to slide off of the inner tie rod. If you slide off, it could put a scratch in the steering shaft. A large enough scratch can cause the power steering fluid to leak out at the seal.
Next you will need to lock the peen after tightening. Here is a picture of the inner tie rod before locking the peen.
Use a punch/drift and a hammer to knock the peen in. This keeps the inner tie rod from rotating out of place. It can be a little tricky. Just make sure that the peen is bent down next to the cut out. Once finished, pull the shaft boots onto the rack body. Secure them in place with zip ties.
Attach the tie rod ends to the steering knuckle and tighten the castellated nut to 22 ft/lb. If you can't see the hole for the cotter pin, you can keep tightening until you can see it. However, do not tighten more than 36 ft/lb. Once you can see the hole, install a new cotter pin onto the castellated nut.
Installing New Reservoir and Filling System.
Coming soon.............
