This is gonna be alot of waffle for something quite straightforward? I was doing this today on mine and took a few pictures along the way so thought I would post them up for anyone that doesn't know or wasn't sure how these fit on, I fall in them categories!
These are the KAD ones, I have not come across any others and these were actually purchased from Minisport , they are all KAD parts for people with issues with certain suppliers
First of all, this is NOT difficult to do and you get basic instructions aswell, but I like lots of pictures
My car was already on axle stands currently going through an engine conversion which does not use the original mini subframe so cannot speak from an a-series setup point of view, however I hope the pictures help if you do have enough clearance to access the steering rack gaitors on each side
In the pack I bought from Minisport you receive two sets of collars, one has a smaller inner edge and the other has a much larger, these are to cater for whichever type of rack you have already, maybe they always send two sets as I did not specify which I needed as I would not of known at the time?
My rack was an exchanged unit from Minispares, I did not go for the later MPI rack (with less lock) as I presumed it wasn't required at the time, however I now know my new suspension/drivetrain setup may over-extend my driveshaft joints so I've added these limiters as a precaution
First off, cut off both cable ties on the steering rack gaitor, be careful not to snip any part of the gaitor - for obvious reasons! You can actually cut just the inner end (engine end) and pull the gaitor over but I cut both and slide it across, make sure you clean up the track rod bar as best you can before sliding the gaitor over to prevent any crud on the bar falling inside the gaitor. If the bar is very crudded (word?) up then just snip the inner end (engine end) and pull it across to give yourself enough access. My rack was new so slid it over - I started on passenger side first
Now unless you are Geoff Capes.......
your gonna struggle to split the collars apart to slide over the rack, so borrow your mums kitchen for a bit to boil them
If your the sort of person that needs a fire blanket nearby when making pasta then its probably best to leave the above to an adult!
After the above I used some needle nose pilers to prise them apart and slide onto the rack
Important - These need to be slided over to the outer end (wheel end), there is a small lip on the end of the rack which you can feel as it passes over, the instructions you get also emphasise this aswell
I then spin the collar so that the opening groove is visible
Use the cable tie provided and zip it up making sure it is sitting flush against the outer end and very tight
The reason for me making the opening groove visible in the collar is so you can efficiently see the collar closing whilst making sure it sits flush against the end
Make sure again the cable tie is tight then snip the end off close
Slide the gaitor back over and cable tie both ends up
If your unsure how far the gaitor slides over, refer to the other side, its all straightforward though, honest
Repeat on other side
KAD say you will get seven degrees less end rack movement putting these on
If there are any discrepancies with any of the above info then please PM me or post up here as I'm an everyday joe and not a mechanic!
Edited by Kam, 14 July 2010 - 10:29 PM.
