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MG MGB Technical - Heavy steering?

Maybe years of servo steering have made me a weakling, but I feel the steering of my recently aquired 64 MGB is a bit on the heavy side. It is equipped with 175/80-14 Toyo tyres. I have been told that there is nothing to be gained in changing to 165 tyres, but that there are differences between tyre brands of the same dimension. Does any of you have experience with this?
Tore

Compared to a modern car it is heavy. It's especially true when taking 90 degree corners at town speeds. It's worth checking out the smoothness of the steering with the front wheels off the ground. You could just have a stiff kingpin assembly. I changed from 165 to 185 tyres and didn't really notice any difference. What pressure are you using? Many, many MGB drivers like to pump the tyres up to around 28 - 30 psi, which lightens the steering and seems to have no adverse effects. Sorry, I can't convert to metric pressure for you at the moment.
Mike
Mike Howlett

Tore-
Check the boots on your steering rack. They may have cracked, allowing all of the lubricant to leak out. If this is the case you will have to clean the dirt out of the rack right away or serious damage will result.
Steve S.

Tore: If a PO has changed the steering wheel for a more "modern", smaller diameter wheel that would accentuate the heavy feeling.
In addition to the excellent suggestions also be sure the the king pins and tie rod ends are lubricated properly. I acquired a 69B last spring that had sat in storage for a long time, so in additon to a full lube I also removed the top cover from the steering rack, cleaned the damper assembly and filled the rack with 80/90W, which as it turned out was practically empty. I had the radiator out at the time also, which makes this a lot easier to do.
Andrew Blackley

Tore,

Steve S. maybe on target (he helped me with mines). I had the same problem of heavy steering and noticed that the sterring rack gaiters were broken and there was no oil and alot of black grease and dirt. Just replaced them and cleaned everything out. Now, she drives much lighter.
napoleon

When I bought my 78 B, it hadn't been used much in several years. The steering seemed heavy, but there were no visible mechanical problems, and lubing didn't make a difference, so I just wrote if off to the nature of the car.

The tires had plenty of tread, but were old and starting to crack, so I replaced them. I went with 185/70-14(don't remember brand now), and I was a little concerned that it would be heavier yet on steering. With the new tires, the steering was incredibly lighter; apparently the old michelin tread had taken a set that didn't like to turn.

I would check the mechanicals (see if it is still stiff with front wheels raised, do visual inspection), but for me the tires made a huge difference (not sure if it was manufacturer/pattern or just age).
Tom G

Thanks for all your input. My steering rack looks very new. I had the radiator out to repair a leakage a week ago, and at the same time removed the top cover on the rack and discovered it was only grease inside, so I filled it with 90 oil. Feel that it made a little difference. I have a 15" steering wheel. Guess that leaves me with the possibilities of stiff kingpins, tyre pressures, unsuitable tyres - or just getting used to it! My previous MG experience is from a midget, which of course has a very light steering.
Tore

Tore

Jack it up, remove front wheels, disconnect track rod ends. Then try each hub in turn. Grease kingpins - if grease wont go in, use blowlamp to gently heat until it does. Pump grease in on full lock both ways. When disconnected the hub should swing easily from lock to lock, with little force. Try the rack 'lock to lock' with the track rods disconnected it should turn easily. All this should show any tightness. Tyre pressures should be at least 26psi front/26 rear.

Dave
Dave Wellings


-What Dave said - I recently discovered the king pins to be very stiff on one of my LBC's due to old hardened grease - remove and cleaned it all out . re-greased and all was well again .

My GT had heavy steering and I tried filling the rack with synthetic motor oil on a BMC trained mechanic's tip , it has worked well for me , no more heavy steering and the synthetic oil will not rot the rack boots out either .

-Nate
Nate

A clue might be in your statement about the rack looking very new. If it has been replaced, it might not have been aligned and shimmed properly. It MUST be aligned or it will put a helluva stress on the steering U-joint, at worst it can lead to steering failure, at best premature U-joint wear and HEAVY STEERING. If you remove the four bolts that hold the rack onto the crossmember and the rack moves in any direction, or feels like it is still bolted hard to the crossmember, it is not aligned properly.
Ken Lessig

Magic! Had a good, long drive in the MGB yesterday, and the steering is much lighter! So my biceps have grown enormously in a week? I believe the real explanation must be that the oil I filled in the rack a week ago must now have penetrated the steering properly - possibly past some grease blocking it? I only had a short drive after I filled it, and did not then notice such a big improvement as I felt yesterday.

The steering rack is new - I had a good look, and found a clean, white paper label on it, stating that it is made in Argentina. This seems to indicate that they are only very lightly lubricated with grease from the factory, and should be filled with oil before being installed in the car? Or is it possible that it is so new it has taken some time to loosen up? I have only had the car for a month.

Anyway, my problem is solved!
Tore

This thread was discussed between 30/09/2002 and 02/10/2002

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