How to Center a Power Steering Gearbox

When installing a new power steering gearbox there are a few crucial steps that need to be followed in order to have a successful installation. Before installing a power steering gearbox or manual steering gearbox, it is important that the unit is centered. Many mechanics will assume that the unit is centered when it arrives, however usually it is not. Gearboxes can shift in transit, causing it to be misaligned. In order to center the unit before the install, follow these easy steps.

1) Place the unit somewhere it can be braced down and cannot move or fall.

2) Cover the spline with a cloth to prevent damaging the splines during the centering procedure.

3) Attach a wrench to the input shaft and turn until it stops. (never force the unit) This will be the extreme for this direction. (for this install turn clockwise first)

4) Once the unit is at extreme clockwise rotation, mark the unit or move the wrench to a position where the number of return rotations can be counted easily.
5) With this position marked, begin to rotate the shaft back clockwise and count the number of rotations. Be exact on this! Once the rotation stops clockwise, the complete rotations for the unit are known.

6) Divide the number the number of rotations in half and rotate the shaft that many turns back. At that point, the gearbox will be centered and can be marked for center, so that the center is not lost during the install.

7) Once the box is centered, follow the proper procedure for the gearbox installation.

When these short steps are followed carefully, the gearbox will be centered and there should be no issues with the vehicle’s steering.

MINI revealed MINI Copper Soho special limited edition car

MINI has revealed the MINI Copper Soho special limited edition car for United Kingdom.

The MINI Soho edition car will be available in both Cooper and Cooper D models from July until March 2012. The fuel consumption of the car is 74.3mpg and CO2 emissions of just 99g/km. The car has been introduced to MINI Hatch and Convertible models for limited time following success of popular MINI Soho Clubman edition last year.

The MINI Soho edition car is painted with exclusive white silver metallic paint which is not available on any other current MINI Hatch or Convertible model. The car is finished with 17 inch black star bullet alloy wheels, Bi-Xenon headlights with black interior reflectors and white indicators. The car interior cabin has sporty feel with Anthracite headlining, 3-spoke sport leather steering wheel and piano black interior surfaces.

The MINI Soho edition car price starts at £16,765. The car will be available for sale with dealers from July until 2012 March.

BMW revealed BMW i3 and i8 concept car

BMW has revealed new BMW i3 and i8 concept car which is going to make its first debut at Frankfurt motor show in September.

The BMW i3 concept car is powered with electric motor over rear axle which generates output of 170 hp and 250 Nm of torque. The car is accelerated from 0-60 km/h in under 4 seconds and from rest to 100 km/h in less than eight seconds. The top speed of the car is 93 mph.

The BMW i3 concept car has four seats, boot capacity of around 200 litres, instrument panel and door panelling are made from natural fibers, naturally tanned leather seats, central information display monitor positioned above control panel for radio and climate system, 6.5-inch instrument cluster and traffic jam assistant.

The BMW i8 concept car is powered with electric motor adopted from BMW i3 Concept car at front axle, 1.5L 3-cylinder gasoline engine system which produces 220hp and 221 lb-ft of torque. The car is connected to twin speed transmission. The car is accelerated from 0-100 km/h in under 5 seconds and top speed of the car is 250km/h. The car has large lithium ion battery which can be charged from domestic power supply can travel up to 35 kms on electric power.

The BMW i8 concept car interior has Porcelain White support structure, black technical level, section with Mocha Brown leather, air vents, control panels, full LED headlights, 3 dimensional air outlets, floating tail lights and 8.8 inch freestanding information display in dash joined with large display taking the role of instrument cluster.