So,

The welding for the tub has been finished on my car, but the problem now is with the hole for the steering rack coming through the tub to the column.

The rack seems to be a little way from the bulkhead. Has anyone else encountered this problem and has anyone got any solutions??

I'm not sure what the problem is? Does the gap between the rack and the bulkhead make a difference? Are you having difficulty deciding where to drill the hole?

With the mini the rack is up against the bulkhead, so the spline from the rack is inside the car. Because mine is only just poking inside the tub, which means that the knuckle of the steering column is through the bulkhead. Which means that it is going to be a pain to seal.

Has anyone mounted the rack the same way as the mini (ie on the tub)???

If not, what gaiter do people use to seal and what size hole is used?

This is the last little job that I need to do, to get the tub finished.

Cheers

Aha!

Once I'd cut a large enough hole to clear the UJ I moulded and bonded a circular lip onto the floor. I used a universal steering rack boot slipped over the column and tywrapped over the lip.



I used a pressed steel UJ first of all but this failed due to bad manufacture so I changed it for a cast version. It turned out to be bigger so the damn boot doesn't fit any more. I'm going to try a Fiesta CV joint boot in the near future.

John,

Any pics?

Is it better to use a gaiter? We were thinking of extending the bulkhead out, using a tube, which the UJ would fit inside. But I'm not sure if the rack moves much in relation to the tub.

A lid and gaiter sounds like a good solution though.

I've edited my original reply with a 'diagram'. No pics I'm afraid.

If you extend (in either direction) using a tube will you be able to reach the pinch bolts?

I'm hoping to make it big enough to reach the pinch bolts.

I'll have to have a think about it

Just a question regarding the steering rack ... will a metro steering column fit the coupe ??

You can get anything to fit, but it is all about the spines on the rack/column. I'm fitting a maestro column, as it has the same end fitting as the mini rack, but has got 2 universal joints, so you can line up the wheel properly.

I've had one of my changes of plan, so I'm mainly going to be using the Dolomite column, but with the bottom of the maestro column.

However, I'm in the process of stripping the column, I can't seem to get it all apart. The handle for the adjustment comes off, but the screw seems to be fixed somehow and doesn't want to come out.

Am I missing something? Is the bracketry supposed to slide off the column? Mine stops on the welds at the end.

There's a pin which needs to be drifted out. The bolt has a flat or a slot on it ( I forget which) to stop it rotating as you turn the adjusting screw and it's located by the pin.

Cheers John. I spotted it straight away once I knew what to look for.

Managed to get the whole thing apart (including all the column) tonight and now have a fully functional steering column, including steering lock etc. Was a bit of a rebuild in the end, but all has turned out well.

All I need to sort out now, is what screws etc are used to mount the cowling. I can see that the middle one is unc something or other, when I can sort out with the thread gauge at work, but how are the two side fixings done?

(Oh, and I need to find a set of stalks for it too!)

If you're talking about the tiny screws which hold the two halves of the plastic shroud together I've a feeling they're BA. I tried tiny metric and unf and I couldn't get them to fit correctly.

I tapped my out to suit UNF threads, makes it eaiser to remember bolt sizes etc when they are all the same type.

Here's a pic of my steering rack gaitor design, works well and makes it possible to get at the pinch bolt and keeps everything water tight, the gaitor (CV boot) is held in place via a pressure plate fixed to the body through 4 bolts, it effectively squeezes the bottom rib against the body. I cut the first rib off so that a flat sib was left.