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MiN
Extreme Veteran
Date registered: May 2006
Location: Alpujarras, Spain
Vehicle(s): No cars, at all.
Posts: 555
| Help with Steering Problem
After a heavy weekend in the dunes I returned to the black top only to discover a steering wheel problem. With the wheels straight ahead my wheel is now rotated about 10 - 15 degrees anti-clockwise. The front axle took some knocks in the dunes but nothing majorly heavy. There is no shudder or shake with the steering. An immediate solution would be to take the wheel off and rotate it 10 - 15 degrees clockwise but this could be avoiding the real issue. I'd appreciate some thoughts on what the problem might be and any solutions.
Mike. |
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AlanMcR
Expert
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: US, CA, Los Altos
Vehicle(s): G300DT E300DT 230SL
Posts: 3500
| RE: Help with Steering Problem
You've bent one of the rods. Most likely it is one of the front end rods. If you can line up another G start measuring very accurately and comparing. Chances are it is the panhard rod or the steering rod.
Do not reposition the steering wheel. That will mess up the blinker cancel and the steering return on the power steering box. Besides, adjusting the rods is easier. |
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pistonhead
Member
Date registered: Apr 2007
Location: Loughborough, ENGLAND, UK
Vehicle(s): Nissan QX.
Posts: 22
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
You can realign your steering wheel by adjusting the drag link adjuster. This is the bar in front of the axle, the one connecting from the steering box arm, to the wheel. The front wheel alignment will not be affected. Make small adjustments and note the direction of steering wheel rotation, adjust accordingly. Note please, the drag link can bent also and knock out steering wheel alignment. You need to check which bar if not both has been bent.
Before, you do, do this adjustment, get the front wheel alignment checked out to make sure nothing is out of alignment here ( the bar which is behind the axle), the tie rod. Any bent parts here will need repair by replacing the bent part before the steering wheel is adjusted.
Although, I have no experience of sand driving and associated damage, I would say the likely hood of such damage would be unlikely or with a low probability. I would suggest that the out of alignment could be of slight bending not obvious to the naked eye, some times the adjustment for some reason resettles and a mere readjustment is all that is required to be within tolerance. If adjustment does not work within tolerance then the conclusion something has bent is obvious.
Regards,
Rakesh K Anand |
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MiN
Extreme Veteran
Date registered: May 2006
Location: Alpujarras, Spain
Vehicle(s): No cars, at all.
Posts: 555
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
Rakesh/Alan, thank you for the advice. I was under the front of the car last night and inspected the drag link, tie rod and the associated ends and could see no damage or anything out of alignment (with my naked eye). I'll go for the alignment check and hope that this resolves the problem.
Mike. |
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DUTCH
Administrator Doppelgänger
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: US, GA, Atlanta
Vehicle(s): 2015 Audi Q7 3.0 TDI,2018 Sprinter
Posts: 9963
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
MiN - 4/10/2007 12:18 AM
Rakesh/Alan, thank you for the advice. I was under the front of the car last night and inspected the drag link, tie rod and the associated ends and could see no damage or anything out of alignment (with my naked eye). I'll go for the alignment check and hope that this resolves the problem.
Mike.
The only alignment adjustment/correction that can be made to the G is the toe-in. If that steering wheel was centered before your adventure and is not centered afterwards, those "knocks" that the axle took have probably bent or damaged something. It's almost certainly not a matter of a simple misadjustment of the toe-in. My first guess would be a bent Panhard rod, which is a known weak point on the early G500's. |
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Braingears
Expert
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: St Petersburg, FL
Vehicle(s): G320 & ML320
Posts: 1450
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
Take a close look at your wheels and how they fit under your wheel wells. You are looking for one of the tires/wheels to be sticking out of the wheel well more than the other.
It might be less than 1cm... Look directly down from above the wheel and see if you see more tread on one side than the other... |
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4x4abc
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: La Paz, Baja California, Mexico
Vehicle(s): 02 G500
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
I am with DUTCH - you definitely bent your panhard rod. There is a section in the MBUSA G500 introduction on CD where this problem is decribed and measurements given (I am traveling at the moment and don't have access to the files - otherwise I would have posted the images)
http://www.4x4abc.com/G-Class/463newUSA.html |
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MiN
Extreme Veteran
Date registered: May 2006
Location: Alpujarras, Spain
Vehicle(s): No cars, at all.
Posts: 555
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
Chuck, thank you for the tip. I did just that and lo and behold, the passenger side wheel is sticking about 1cm proud at the front edge compared to the driver's side. So, if this is the result of a bent panhard rod, I guess that's where the fix lies.
Mike. |
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4x4abc
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: La Paz, Baja California, Mexico
Vehicle(s): 02 G500
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
Mike,
just found some MB engineering papers. A bent front panhard is not uncommon on 463 G (increased weight of the vehicle is suspected to be the cause). A stronger panhard has been introduced. Part number 463 333 03 01 |
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AlanMcR
Expert
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: US, CA, Los Altos
Vehicle(s): G300DT E300DT 230SL
Posts: 3500
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
4x4abc - 4/11/2007 8:58 AM
...A stronger panhard has been introduced. Part number 463 333 03 01
I can vouch for the replacement being substantially beefier. I ordered one back when I was convinced that I'd bent my panhard rod. In my case, however, the old and new rods were exactly the same length, so I sent it back. I'm not totally convinced that beefier is the right answer though. Under sufficient impact/stress something has to give. I'd rather it be the cheap panhard rod. |
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Braingears
Expert
Date registered: Apr 2006
Location: St Petersburg, FL
Vehicle(s): G320 & ML320
Posts: 1450
| Re: Help with Steering Problem
AlanMcR - 4/11/2007 12:13 PM 4x4abc - 4/11/2007 8:58 AM ...A stronger panhard has been introduced. Part number 463 333 03 01 I can vouch for the replacement being substantially beefier. I ordered one back when I was convinced that I'd bent my panhard rod. In my case, however, the old and new rods were exactly the same length, so I sent it back. I'm not totally convinced that beefier is the right answer though. Under sufficient impact/stress something has to give. I'd rather it be the cheap panhard rod. It really doesn't "give". It is not like if the panhard rod has been sacrificed. It has bent this long rod by 5mm-10mm (.5cm-1cm). Two things come to mind
1. Since the tires usually absorb this type of "shock" (I am guessing), would the newer G-Wagons with 18" wheels be more susceptible to this than the original 15" & 16" wheels? 2. Can this long panhad rod be bent back to spec? |
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