What You Need to Know About Rack & Pinion Steering

What You Need to Know About Rack & Pinion Steering

By Ron Haugen

The Rack and Pinion system is the system that most vehicles use to actually steer the vehicle. The system allows for directional steering, allowing the driver to maneuver as they need while driving their vehicle.

Problems with the Rack and Pinion steering system can cause serious issues with your vehicle. While some will find that the steering becomes difficult and unnatural, others will find that they simply cannot steer properly.

If you operate your own vehicle, you need to fully understand the simple Rack and Pinion system. When you understand how the system works, you may be able to quickly identify any problems that you have with the steering of your vehicle.

What is the Rack and Pinion?

The Rack & Pinion system is actually a simple system that only uses a few different gears to control the direction of the vehicle. The Pinion is the part of the system that is connected to the steering shaft. As you turn your steering wheel, the pinion rotates. This rotation occurs in the grooves of the rack, forcing the rack to move in either direction (depending on the directional change of the steering wheel).

The Rack of the Rack & Pinion system is attached to a tie rod. This tie rod connects the system to the tires, as the tie rod is connected to the steering arm that is connected to the tire. When you turn your wheel, the tie rod moves to direct the tires in the direction of the turn.

How It Affects your Driving

If you have driven different vehicles, you have probably noticed the differences in the feel of the steering of the cars. While some vehicles turn with ease, others require more work to turn. This is due to the torque that is had through the Rack & Pinion system. The more torque you have, the easier it is for you to move the tires. Older vehicles, or vehicles with Rack & Pinion issues, are harder to turn because the system does not move as efficiently as it used to.

Power Steering

Power steering is an important part of the Rack & Pinion system in all vehicles. All vehicles come with power steering because of the difficulty of actually driving the vehicle under non-power circumstances. It would be difficult to move the wheel enough to move the tires if you do not have the power steering, as the vehicle weighs too much to move quickly under simple man-power. The power steering system actually give a hydraulic boost to your actions, making it simple and easy for you to turn the wheels of your vehicle with the Rack & Pinion System.

The Rack & Pinion system is actually an incredibly simple system that allows you to turn your tires in both directions. If you are having trouble steering your vehicle, you can be sure that the problem lies within this simple system. This makes issues easy to identify and fix, getting your car into proper working condition quickly and easily.

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