Steering rack boots

Both rack boots had perished on my car – they seem to collect all the oil and other crud coming from the engine bay.

This should be a reasonably straightforward job. The boots are fairly pricey, but the steering rack is a VERY expensive item, so replace a damaged boot without delay.

For a better explanation of how to change the rack boots, go here to see how Erik Roe did it.

1. Slacken the wheel nuts, jack and support the car and remove the road wheel.
2. Slacken the track rod locknut (no more than half a turn).
   On my car, one nut was siezed. You will need Stillsons, a very good fitting spanner and lots of patience. Eventually, it did free, but it was a bugger to shift. It may be a good idea to soak the nut in penetrating oil beforehand.
3. Remove the track rod end taper nut, and separate the track rod end from the steering arm with a joint splitter.
4. Mark the position of the track rod end, and unscrew it from the track rod.
5. Pull off whatever is left of the old boot.
6. Clean away any dirt from inside the rack, and apply some lube to the rack and new boot. I use a mixture of LM grease and EP90 gear oil – thick enough not to run out but runny enough to get in all the gaps.
7. Attaching the boot to the rack is tricky. Try turning the end of the boot inside out, offer up the boot to the rack, then flip the end over.
8. Once the boot is in place, secure both ends with plastic ties.
9. Replace the track rod end, tighten the track rod end nuts, and refit the road wheel.
10. Lower the car, tighten the wheel nuts. It’s a good idea to check the front wheel alignment as well.