power steering box again

[barriesheene]

Guy's i've been out of action with the flu for the last week or so  :oops: I've just spent the day trying to remove my old steering box to go and exchange for a recon one. The problem is it wont come out  Everything has been removed but it wont come out past the oil filter housing  :-k Any idea's guy's. It's on a 3.9 v8 with aircon so there's no way it's gonna come out from above ?

[iomlr]

jack up the body sometimes help give you alittle more acess from undernieth but if its just the steering box yor removing it will come out! yes theres not alot of room but enough just.....

or just remove the oil filter! wont loose too much oil!

[barriesheene]

It's not the filter, it's the pipework and housing for the filter thats blocking it  Can this  be removed from the block or would i be opening another can of worms to go with this one ??

[barriesheene]

RRB where are you I neeeeeed you ????  [-o<

[Range Rover Blues]

Sorry mate, plumbing radiators in the "nursery" for my sister's impending sprog :D

Ok, puts thinking cap on.  Last time I did the steering box under an airconn pump it was on a serpentine, you can't have any less space than that ;) Best way out is to loosen the air conn pump and lift it as far as you dare, fill the space with old rags or whatever to hold it up out of the way so you can get to the pipe unions.

Start with the union at the back, IIRC it's the easiest to undo and make sure your spanner is a good fit, round one off and you're stuffed.  One of the pipes goes under the steering box to the ram, that stays put so you need the bigger pipe and one of the smaller pipes off.  If you have to cut them you'll be swapping the pipes, absolute last resort :(

From underneath, remove the tie-bar.  Remove the drop arm if humanly possible but in any case remove the drag link, either swing it out the way or take it off completely (both ends)

REMOVE THE PANHARD ROD.  Not strictly neccesary but you will have so much more space, you don't need to remove the bracket though.

Disconnest the steering shaft, then remove the 4 PAS box bolts, the box drops onto the chassis rail then you can wriggle it out downwards.  It's a swine of a job and a mate to help will be a godsend, tie some chord round the PAS box for him to lower it.

Reassembly is a bitch, you havn't enough hands to hold the box in place just above the chassis and feed a bolt back through, it constantly tries to fall off.  Pack some old cardboard or hardboard under the box/on top of the chassis to hold it in place, or get your mate to help you.  I honestly had to stop to catch my breath :(

Utter utter utter pig of a job.

If removing the oil cooler pipes helps then do it, but you may need to prime the oil pump afterwards, try slackening them and spin them out of the way.  TBH I left them alone.


BTW, the drop arm nut is 33mm, the only one on the car

[barriesheene]

Thanks RRB. I've done all of the above,except remove the drop arm but that isnt catching on anything  :'( I've pushed the box as far back as it will go and it still wont come down passed the oil filter housing. There simply doesnt seem to be enough clearance to allow the box to drop. I'll get the 33mm socket to remove the drop arm,( already got the puller ) but to be honest it's the body of the box not the arm thats the problem  :'( :'( I'll try and get an extra pair of eye's to look in as i wiggle the box you never know  :-k

[BK]

My mates just had his 3.9 range steering box done by a garage he was gonna do it himself but the garage told him that you have to take the oil filter housing off so he let them do it :(

[barriesheene]

  *** :twisted:****** :twisted:* :twisted:*** :twisted:****** :twisted:*****BOX !!!!!!

[BK]

oh dear :(

[Range Rover Blues]

Well Blue doesn't have Airconn, but I'm 100% positive I managed without taking the oil filter housing off.  The oil filter itself I'm not sure about, but as I remember it I left that on too.  I didn't lift the engine either, I can't remember what I did with the oil cooler pipes but I think they stayed on.

[BK]

dont know whether my mates has aircon either but I know he did have to take the housing off cos there just was no room at all to work with it there :)

[barriesheene]

IT'S OUT !!!!






As can be seen from the pics,I had to remove the oil filter and the left hand oil feed pipe and even then it took alot of straining and swearing !!! I'm hoping i havn't damaged too much in the process  :roll:

[barriesheene]

Sorry mate, plumbing radiators in the "nursery" for my sister's impending sprog :D

Ok, puts thinking cap on.  Last time I did the steering box under an airconn pump it was on a serpentine, you can't have any less space than that ;) Best way out is to loosen the air conn pump and lift it as far as you dare, fill the space with old rags or whatever to hold it up out of the way so you can get to the pipe unions.

Start with the union at the back, IIRC it's the easiest to undo and make sure your spanner is a good fit, round one off and you're stuffed.  One of the pipes goes under the steering box to the ram, that stays put so you need the bigger pipe and one of the smaller pipes off.  If you have to cut them you'll be swapping the pipes, absolute last resort :(

From underneath, remove the tie-bar.  Remove the drop arm if humanly possible but in any case remove the drag link, either swing it out the way or take it off completely (both ends)

REMOVE THE PANHARD ROD.  Not strictly neccesary but you will have so much more space, you don't need to remove the bracket though.

Disconnest the steering shaft, then remove the 4 PAS box bolts, the box drops onto the chassis rail then you can wriggle it out downwards.  It's a swine of a job and a mate to help will be a godsend, tie some chord round the PAS box for him to lower it.

Reassembly is a bitch, you havn't enough hands to hold the box in place just above the chassis and feed a bolt back through, it constantly tries to fall off.  Pack some old cardboard or hardboard under the box/on top of the chassis to hold it in place, or get your mate to help you.  I honestly had to stop to catch my breath :(

Utter utter utter pig of a job.

If removing the oil cooler pipes helps then do it, but you may need to prime the oil pump afterwards, try slackening them and spin them out of the way.  TBH I left them alone.


BTW, the drop arm nut is 33mm, the only one on the car

RRB are you sure it's 33mm not imperial ? halfords only do 32 or 34mm. I'll get one from an auto factors if it's deffo 33mm> The recon box i'll be getting doesnt come with a drop arm so i' have to remove the old one.

[Range Rover Blues]

Oh yes I'd say it's going to be imperial as the whole box was designed as imperial to start with, but I managed to get a 33mm from Halfrauds (they've changed hands though ans don't stock the same brand of tools) and it fits snuggly.  Either way I havn't found another on the car that's the same size.

If you were closer you could borrow it.

If the drop arm balljoint is at all worn it would make sense to fit a new one now though (but fitting the box will be easier with it removed, so swings and roundabouts :?).