Saturday, April 03, 2010

DIY: Subaru Forester Steering Rack Boot Replacement

Remove  the old boot: 
Using a small pliers or a screwdriver remove band from boot. Band can not be removed properly, i had to cut it since it was melded. Here, be careful to keep pipe connections free from pliers (or what tool you are using) while removing the band. 
The small clip can be used again if you remove it carefully. All you have to do is to press to both sides with a pliers.
Install new boot:
I prefer removing the tie-rod end to put the new boot. Im not sure but if you have a lift, you may remove inner tie-rod without dealing with rod end.

Update: I found a very very helpful Steering rack boot replacement thread on subaruoutback.org. As i declared above, it also implies the need of tie-rod end removal.
But today i have seen that it is not really needed, if you jack up the vehicle. It is possible to break the locking nut with two 19 mm combination wrenches and go on twisting the rod and break it into two pieces. After removing the 19 mm nut you can replace the boot.

Some lessons learned: The old clip did not fit to the boot. Consider using some plastic fold locking cuff. And fix the small end of the boot after installing tie rod. If you fix it before it will twist and break.

Some pictures:







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