1971 MGB GT - Steering sorted - see page 31

[Peter C]

4 hours ago, Westbay said:

The fittings you cut off are the front seat belt fittings, no rear seat belts ......

Bugger.

They were an awfully long way back in the cabin to be associated with the front seats.

[Westbay]

On 01/06/2025 at 12:54, Peter C said:

Bugger.

They were an awfully long way back in the cabin to be associated with the front seats.

Something to do with the height of the shoulder belt  and 'loadings' if I have (vaguely) remembered correctly ...

[Mally]

On 01/06/2025 at 12:54, Peter C said:

Bugger.

They were an awfully long way back in the cabin to be associated with the front seats.

Be fine with a very large and thick plate washer and nut underneath if you bolt a seat belt to whats left.

Possibly this should be fine*  

[Peter C]

5 hours ago, Mally said:

Be fine with a very large and thick plate washer and nut underneath if you bolt a seat belt to whats left.

Possibly this should be fine*  

You might be right but it's not really an issue, as the two point seat belts that remain fitted are satisfactory and I have no plans to improve the current safety arrangements. 

[captain_70s]

Weird. I'd have thought a '71 car would have had factory 3-point belts!

[chadders]

3 hours ago, captain_70s said:

Weird. I'd have thought a '71 car would have had factory 3-point belts!

I'm pretty sure my 74 Roadster had 3 point statics from new, which I then replaced with inertia ones.

[Dj_efk]

I had a J plate BGT with inertia reel 3 point belts….

[Mally]

Compulsory from 1983, but I'd use 3 point too.

[N Dentressangle]

7 hours ago, Peter C said:

You might be right but it's not really an issue, as the two point seat belts that remain fitted are satisfactory and I have no plans to improve the current safety arrangements. 

The problem is that the way they're fitted now puts a great deal of downward pressure on your shoulder and spine in the event of a collision. The upper mount is there to alter the angle of the belt as it goes over your shoulder and avoid that problem.

[SiC]

The factory BGT front seat 3 point seat belt mount with almost certainly original Kangoo belts in my old BGT. 

Even in a light accident (sub 15mph collision), 2 point belts will cause abdominal injuries and severe whiplash. They knew that in the 60s and why stuff like the BGT came with 3 point belts. Even my '68 Austin 1100 MK1 had front three point belts. 

[Westbay]

18 hours ago, Peter C said:

You might be right but it's not really an issue, as the two point seat belts that remain fitted are satisfactory and I have no plans to improve the current safety arrangements. 

Technically you are not 'improving' the current safety arrangements but returning them to what was designed for the vehicle ...

I respect your  '...my car, I'll do what I want..'  approach, but , remember you may be in an accident not of your making ...

[Peter C]

Is it my birthday again?

 

[666jjp]

as long as that rip in the box hasn't damaged the contents.

[High Jetter]

2 hours ago, 666jjp said:

as long as that rip in the box hasn't damaged the contents.

That tape looks fragile...

[timolloyd]

Oooh, is it an airbag kit?

[Marina door handles]

Is it a new MG monogrammed wallet? 

[Peter C]

9 hours ago, 666jjp said:

as long as that rip in the box hasn't damaged the contents.

Look closer and you’ll see more than a rip in the box!

[vinyljunky]

This package is so full of goodness it’s about to bust out all over and install itself

 

[vinyljunky]

But truthfully the optional Harry Truman was never the big seller BL hoped for

[Peter C]

The MGOC box contained a reconditioned steering rack and a pair of new track rod ends.

The weather was pretty foul today and I didn't fancy working on the MGB outside, nor did I want to kick the Sierra out of the workshop. I shifted the Sierra forwards and made enough space in the workshop to work on the MGB.

Comfortable working environment achieved.

 

I started working on the offside wheel. removed the track rod end locking nut, it came off easily. 

I tried to knock the track rod end bolt out of the knuckle by using a large hammer. It wouldn't budge.

I tried to split the top of the track rod end from the knuckle.

It wouldn't shift.

I lifted the front of the car with a hydraulic jack positioned under the track rod end bolt.

Despite the considerable weight imposed on the bolt, it wouldn't budge.

I then placed the hydraulic jack under the track rod end and lifted the front of the car again and in the process I smacked the bolt with a large hammer.

It wouldn't budge.

I don't have a blowtorch but I do have a Parkside weed burning tool. It generates a lot more heat than an ordinary heat gun.

I cut off as much of the rubber gaiter as possible and positioned the weed burning tool next to the track rod end.

After a few minutes, the rest of the gaiter begun to melt and the wheel arch filled with smoke. 

I got my hammer out again but this time there was no need for it. The bolt came straight out.

I used the weed burning tool on the other side and had the track rod end off within a couple of minutes. Win.

Separating the rack from the crossmember and splitting the steering column was easy. Within ten minutes I had the rack off.

As advised by @BeEP and my research confirmed the same, the most likely cause of the knocking that I was experiencing through the steering wheel is a worn bush inside the steering rack. Replacement bushes are available but I suspect it will be a bitch to replace and no doubt I will damage other parts in the process. One of the gaiters on my old rack was split and oozing grease. I figured I might as well fit a reconditioned rack and save myself a lot of hassle.

Old and new, look the same.

Putting the new rack on was easy.

I adjusted the track rod ends to get both wheels pointing vaguely in the right direction. I will get the alignment done properly once I'm finished.

A brief test drive revealed that the steering is too stiff. A bit of research revealed that I need to place shims between the rack and the crossmember to get the upper and lower parts of the steering column to correctly align. That's a task for another day.

More soon.

[Wibble]

Excellent improv’ there Peter👍

[Mally]

To  remove taper ball joints, you hit the side of the steering arm sharply with  a hammer, exactly where the taper goes through.

 

[N Dentressangle]

As Mally says, if you ever need to do another balljoint, don't bother hitting the threaded part.

Just thump the bit I've arrowed. Hard. As if by magic the shaft will pop out

[SiC]

Also getting everything out the way and in position to get a good swing with your arm helps a lot too. 

[Peter C]

A couple of days ago I had a go at adjusting the steering rack positioning, as necessary to enable the two parts of the steering column to be correctly aligned. Regardless of what I tried, the steering felt really stiff. The car was dangerous to drive. I put the MGB back in the garage and had a think about what I was doing wrong.

I had another go today. As the weather was gorgeous, I decided to work outside.

I loosened all the steering column and steering rack fixings. With the front wheels up in the air, the steering was still stiff. 

I decided to investigate the pinion mesh setting. This involved removing two bolts and a cover plate.

With the cover plate removed, I found four shims between the rack body and the cover. The less shims, the tighter the adjustment between the rack and pinion and vice versa. With the cover removed, the steering was no longer binding. Evidently, whoever rebuilt the steering rack did not put enough shims in. 

I made a reasonable assumption that my local Euro Car Parts won't have the correct shims in stock on a Saturday morning. So I decided to make my own.

I marked up an outline of the shim and drilled three holes in a large piece of metal.

Then I cut the piece out and, hey presto, we have a shim.

It fitted perfectly.

With the cover reinstated and the steering column and steering rack refitted, the steering was no longer binding. Win.

Now the steering needed aligning. I didn't want to drive too far with the geometry all wrong so I called up a few local garages. The first two places I called said they don't have the necessary settings in their machine to do the job but the second place gave me a phone number for a local old boy who would definitely be able to help. I called him a dozen times, nobody was home. So I decided to call Wheels in Motion, based in Chesham. Whilst that's a bit far from me, they did a cracking job of setting the geometry on my W123 and I was sure that they would sort the MGB out just as well. Except they are no longer in business. In the end, I took the MGB down to my local garage in Old Beaconsfield, less than 2 miles from my house.

They had the right equipment and were willing to do the job.

Just in case, I took a photograph of the steering geometry settings, as presented in my Haynes manual.

Turned out I shouldn't have bothered, the garage had all the necessary data on their machine.

Job done and £78 lighter, which is the most I've ever paid to have the front wheels aligned, I set off home. Before I left the Old Town, I could see that the steering wheel wasn't straight. As it took the garage an hour and a half to set the geometry, I really couldn't be bothered to go back and ask them to have another go. When I got home, I removed the steering wheel and refitted it one spline to the left. Job done.

The moral of this story is that you shouldn't trust anyone with your pride and joy, even a specialist. I had to change the adjustment settings on a refurbished steering rack to make it work properly and realign the steering wheel after a man with a fancy machine fucked it up. 

To celebrate my little victory, I got my polishing kit out.

I polished the MGB last September and the paint still looked shiny after a wash but red paint does fade quickly and I figured it would look shinier if I slapped on a coat of Autoglym polish and high gloss polish.

Looking good for 54 years.

I now need to find some time and take it for a proper drive.

More soon.

 

 

 

[Mally]

I'd have driven it a bit before messing with the shims.

If I did add a shim I'd have borrowed one from the old rack.

As you were able to drill your 'shim'  I'd suspect it's too thick. Unless you removed a few original thin ones before fitting yours.

Rack shims vary but each is only a few thou thick.

 

[Peter C]

15 minutes ago, Mally said:

I'd have driven it a bit before messing with the shims.

If I did add a shim I'd have borrowed one from the old rack.

As you were able to drill your 'shim'  I'd suspect it's too thick. Unless you removed a few original thin ones before fitting yours.

Rack shims vary but each is only a few thou thick.

 

The car wasn’t safe to drive, the steering was far too stiff.

The old rack went back to MGOC on Monday.

I have fixed the problem by adding another shim, which is only a little thicker than the originals.

[SiC]

Surprised Wheels in Motion have closed down. They used to be the go-to place for MX5 alignments. 

[SiC]

4 minutes ago, SiC said:

Surprised Wheels in Motion have closed down. They used to be the go-to place for MX5 alignments. 

Oh, it appears the guy who was the owner and alignment expert died a couple of years ago.

https://www.omegaowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=149232.0

 

[MorrisItalSLX]

I hardly think it is the fault of the garage that the steering wheel was not on square. Everything is bound to change minutely when replacement parts are fitted and adjustments are made, taking into consideration BMC/BL engineering tolerances which I’m sure are not up to NASA standards, all of which has been accentuated and exacerbated by the steering wheel position.

The steering column to universal joint to steering rack fitment may have been a spline out when the rack was fitted.

Sure, if the garage had noticed the wheel was not on square when the alignment was completed they could have corrected it, but I don’t blame them for not doing something that was not within the agreed scope of works.