HELP!!!! 968 steering rack replacement

OK.... Here's the story. The steering rack on my 93 968 is leaking like a sieve. The 968 forum is essentially dead (kudos to the guys who are planning to merge them GREAT IDEA!) and I need advice/technical drawings/instructions. The good news is that for the 924S, 944, 951 and 968, the power steering racks are all the same. I have no idea how to replace it. On the upside I am fairly mechanically inclined, and have the tools to do the work. If any other Porschephiles out there have done this, I would love to have your help.



Regards,
Micah :banghead:

Fairly straight forward job. You'll need to remove the tierods( inner or outer your choice), remove the 4 mounting bolts, remove steering knuckle pinch bolt, slide rack forward as far as it will go, remove power steering lines, remove steering joint, and you done.
-Possible troubles:
-Power steering lines are held in place with banjo bolt with allen heads-some times they strip out
-Steering joint(knuckle) is usually stuck(rusted) onto the splines
Good luck!

Thanks for the info... I also asked a couple of friendly lads over at 968.net, and they turned me on to this website.... It's for a 944S, but the procedure is identical....

http://www.clarks-garage.com/shop-manual/steer-01.htm

I will post results as soon as I start the process. It is going to take a little time to get the parts together, and the time to put the 'ol 968 up on jackstands for a while (Got to earn the money to pay for the Porsche) I will post the ongoing chronicles.


Regards,
Micah :banghead:

Feel really mechanically inclined? check out www.rennbay.com
They have a power steering rebuild kit for the financially disabled. you can check out the installation guide to see for yourself the process. I haven't heard anything bad about the product. If you can't get it back together/become daunted, you can mail them the parts and they'll assemble it for you for about $50 IIRC

The owner posts on rennlist as "travis - sflraver"

Also checked them out... I think the plan right now is to come up with a possibly shady rack, rebuild it, and then swap straight across. I think it iwll be the most cost effective, and time effective as I do not have to have the car on jackstands waiting for the rebuild to be finished. Thanks for the link.

Regards,
Micah

Otay..... The job is finished and everything is ship shape. It was fairly unsurprising, but if anyone has questions about how to do it, let me know and I will be happy to help.
Thanks for everyone that helped me on this!


Micah

Did you replace the rack or rebuild it? How long did it take?

I replaced the rack, and just finished the rebuild of the old rack. I picked up the rack for about 150.00 from e-bay and it was really clean, so I didn't bother rebuilding it before installing. The installation itself SHOULD have taken about three or four hours. I didn't have some of the tools available, so it ended up taking more like six. The rack rebuld took about three hours to do. I haven't tested it, and I plan to hold onto it in the event that I need to replace it again. All told, not to stessful and easily accomplished in a weekend.


Micah

What special tools did you need? I ask because i have a manual rack and no idea of the process.

You will need either a 30mm or 32mm end wrench (mine was a 32mm.) You will also need a way to remove the locking peens on the tie rod end. A chisel will work, but it is easier with a dremel and a grinding bit. Clean the holy hell out of everything so you don't get that crap inside the rack. You will most likely need a bench vise to remove the tie rod ends, they MAY come out without it, but the vise prevents stress on the internals of the piece. Honestly though, see the website that I listed earlier in this post. The instructions are very straight forward and relatively easy to follow. The only thing is that it is for a power rack. I don't know jack about the old skool manuals from the early 944s and 924s.

Regards,
Micah