Steering wheel and rack not centered

[tvrgeek]

Got the rack back in, all nice except the center of the rack has the steering wheel 90 degrees ccw from center. I know the steering wheel and shaft are correct because I did not touch them and the turn signals trigger correctly.

What I figure is I did not have the pinch bolt notch in the correct position when I bolted the valve body in. Does that make sense? NOTHING in the manual about it. NOTHING. Unlike cars I have done before, there is only a strait notch in the valve body shaft, so it only aligns one way.

Does this make sense? What is the correct alignment procedure? It only talks about centering the rack when adjusting the free-play.

[Davem62]

Having just fitted a new rack , I had the same problem, the rack was centred before fitting so we had to remove steering column and rotate the wheel to correct alignment. A stag expert locally said I should be able to remove the top and bottom pinch bolts and tap the mid shaft down enough onto the rack to disengage the upper uj, but I could not get it down far enough so remove the column and replaced the lower bushes and the sliding column ones as well while it was out
regards david

[tvrgeek]

Same rack, just new seals.Column and intermediate shaft are as original so the problem has to be in the rack.
Pinch bolt into the valve body has only one position. Do the other joints have the full radius cut so they can be repositioned?
THere would have to be a dead center for the valve body that aligns with the center of the rack. That is what must be wrong. How do I find it?

One can move the rack back and forth, but nowhere near enough.

[Phil S]

is it that the opinion gear has been put in, in the wrong position, remove and rotate?

[Davem62]

If that’s the case just pull the top joint and rotate the steering wheel

[tvrgeek]

Are the pinch bolt notches for the top U-joint cut all the way around like an MGB or are they a one-position only like the valve body shaft?

There has to be some instructions on what position to rotate the valve body shaft to install when the rack is centered. Notch @ 9:00 ? I expect a Haynes not to include this, but no excuse for the factory book not to have proper instructions. I have to think the valve body needs to be positioned correctly so to give balanced boost at center. Don't know as I have never dealt with power steering before. Can't believe it is left up to trial and error.

[Davem62]

The top one is a groove all the way round, so you can rotate the shaft one spline at a time , but it’s best done with 2 people if you need to take the column out if the mid shaft won’t slide down far enough which was the case with me
david

[tvrgeek]

OK, bolt groove all the way around. That can fine tune where the turn signal triggers work and there is some sideways movement if the rack, some adjustment of the rod ends. I am still concerned as I do not know how the valve body works if it has to be centered. Logically if it is off center, then it is appling boost to one side when going straight. Or does the valve somehow only sense movement and does nothing when still? Searching the WEB for some theory.

[tvrgeek]

Ah, I think I get it. Position does not matter as it is controlled not by position but by the torsion blade. I'll give the upper U-joint a try. My learning for today!

[Davem62]

Sorry can’t help you there , my old rack came with car and had been replaced by previous owner having only done 6k miles it was very heavy and wouldn’t self centre, having searched on here decided to get a recon one from TD fitchett triumph specialists and can say am very pleased, is has a nice feel and not too light like a lot of stag racks
david

[Lingen]

The position of the lower steering shaft relative to the rack is immaterial. Get the wheels pointing straight ahead by moving the car, or halving the number of turns on the steering wheel from full lock to full lock. Then use the top spline to get the upper column in the correct alignment, as has no "Flat". Also, you may need to temporarily remove the steering wheel to see that the pawl that cancels the indicators is in the correct position-halfway between the pegs on the switch. Any fine adjustment can then be made when replacing the wheel.
Mike.

[Hughesy]

if you have tubular exhausts you may need to move the rack right of centre in order for the steering shaft to clear the manifold. The steering wheel is then centered using the top spline engagement position and tie rod adjustment.