center steering wheel

Pull off the steering wheel, turn to align then push back steering wheel back on the spline.

 

But wouldn't you have to screw the wheel back onto the hub? Not too familiar with the GT4 but I'd be hesitant to just turn the ball joints (counting turns of corse). I think you could create a nasty alignment problem. How did it come to be mis-aligned? I don't think Mike's solution will work but I'd want some other experts to chime in.

 

Hey,

How did the wheel get off center?

I would want to know and a set up of string on each side of the car will give you an answer.

John

 

Not sure if these pics help but this is how you get he hub off. It has a woodruf key in there so not sure how you could adult that from the top???

Rob

+1 was it always off?
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

I meant pull the steering wheel with the hub together.

 

the wheel bolts on to the hub which slides on the shaft. I think you mat have to straighten this out at the rack, I could be mistakes though.

 

actually moving the steeringwheel to the centre by messing with the steeringrods/trackend is a really bad idea.

to do it properly:

1 make sure your steering rack is exactly in centre
2 make sure your wheelalignment (I mean toe or out) is how it's supposed to be ( without attaching the rod ends
3 make sure your steeringshafts are exactly equal in length when attaching them to the wheelhubs
4 see how your steering wheel position looks and adjust by rotatinig it on the steeringwheelshaft.

Doing it your way will mess up your steering (only a fraction, but it will!)

 

Its definitely correct that simply adjusting the track rods without checking is not the way to do it.
This would center the wheel and maintain the toe-in but the risk is that it might introduce bump steer. This happens when the center of the circle formed by the up/down suspension movement of the steering arm does not coincide with the center of the ball joint which is located in the rack, so that when the suspension moves up and down, a steering movement occurs.
But, the hub is not spined onto the steering column. Its a taper with a Woodruff key. No adjustment, so step 4 is not possible. Once everything else is checked, the only way might be to rotate the steering universal joint which would have splines on both sides.

 

sorry, i overread the woodruff key connection. But your solution for my fourth point will surely work as well, maybe even combined with the 6-allenschrew connection to the hub. combining these it must be possible for sure to aling the steering wheel

 

Yes. In fact there is a youtube video on how to remove your steering rack that uses this method. Loosen the tie rod end jamb nut and turn the tie rod with vice grips. It was recommended to me to use some white paint on the tie rod end and on the rod so you know just how much you've turned each side.

 

To use your way of communication: IF YOU ARE AFRAID OF THE ANSWER, JUST DON'T ASK THE QUESTION

and about your "hotshot alignmentplace", look for a better shop.

 

I'm afraid I have to agree with this...you don't go adjusting the mounting of the steering wheel at the column.

You dorve up the alignment machine with it straight, and then align your car!!

Ferrari wheels are locktited on (for good reason), you don't go breaking them all apart because someone made a mistake.......

 

Jim,

I stand by mu original comment that I dont think the problem is at the wheel or the steering u joint or shafts but at either the rack or tie rods. I dont think you answered but was it ever centered. I am a hardcore GT4 guy so I just want to help but never had this problem.....

Good luck and keep us informed whatever you do.

Rob

 

I have not looked at this aspect of owning my 328 but on every car I have ever owned or worked on, the wheel is centered by turning the tie rod sleeves. If I needed to center the steering wheel, that's the way I would do it. In fact, I don't know of any other way to do it. I don't think anybody, even Ferrari, would have designed a car where some portion of the steering system had to be disassembled to perform what is part of a normal wheel alignment.

 

You are correct. The Ferrari is no different in their design. The steering wheel is centered just like every other rack and pinion equipped car. Too many answers, not enough knowledge is the root problem here...With today's modern alignment equipment, getting a steering wheel straight doesn't get any easier.

 

Thats correct but my rule of thumb is to check everything in case someone has messed something up. If in the (admittedly unlikely) case that the uncentered wheel is something other than unequal track rod lengths, then centering it by adjusting the track rods will make things worse.
Its rather like diving in and adjusting a mixture screw to correct an injection problem without checking the rest of the system first.

 

More a case of two (correct) things getting blended/mixed in the wrong proportions IMO -- it's true that the final fine/small resolution adjustment for steering wheel centering must be made using the tie rod ends (as any splined connection has a finite, and rather coarse, resolution), but it is also true that you don't want to use the two tie rod end adjustments to compensate for a poorly centered rack adjustment, and this can easily get messed up if one of the connections in the steering column is disconnected and then reassembled in a different position -- i.e., if things were fine before, and you do some steering column work and now the steering wheel is 120 deg off, it would be a mistake to use the tie rod adjustments to fix. However, if things have been fine, except for the steering wheel being off a few degrees, making small tweaks to the tie rod ends to fix would be low risk. JMO...