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MG MGB Technical - Steering question

A very good mechanic friend of mine, who owned several MGBs in the 60s and 70s, drove my 73B roadster a few weeks ago. Although he didn't mention it at the time, he felt the steering didn't feel quite the way he remembered.

A couple days ago he discussed this issue with another very experienced MG person. Their comment was that it was possilbe there could be a frozen "king pin", if I understood him correctly.

Now, being a very "unexperienced" mechanic, I'm not sure where to look to check this out.

Any thoughts?

By the way, the steering seems just fine to me!

Thanks,
BH
BH Davis

BH. The stub axle goes through the kingpin and rides on two bronze bushings. I assume what your friend is speaking of is the axle being tight on the kingpin. Way to test is to put the front end up on jack stands, disconnect the tie rod ends, and see how easily each side moves. If one side is binding, that would be the problem.

The kingpins also pivot on the shock absorber and the lower spring pan/A arms. This would be checked by putting the jack stands under the frame, near the front of the car, and the jack under the spring pans to see how easily they might be raised.

First, however, I would ask your friend what he meant and what he thought might be the problem.

Les
Les Bengtson

Les,

Thank you.....just what I was looking to find out. Between your explanation, a look at the Moss parts blowup, and another conversation with my buddy I should be in good shape.

Regards,
BH
BH Davis

BH. Glad I was able to help. As you can focus in more on what the problem might be, we can provide more assistance.

As I remember, from previous postings, your car is new to you and may have been sitting for some time. This can change the circumstances. One cause of "stiff steering" is old, hardened grease in the upper and lower grease fittings. Sometimes, heating up the upper and lower portions of the stub axle will allow the grease to melt. Then, it can be pushed out with new grease. Alignment of the steering column and the rod out of the steering box can also be a factor. Many different things can cause steering to seem to be harder than normal, including front end alignment. We need to figure out what is working correctly so that we might diagnose what might not be working correctly.

Les
Les Bengtson

BH Dont rule out the rack itself.When you have poped
the tierod ends out crank the steering wheel back and forth it should "fly" with no hitches if not the rack may be bad. RIC
RIC LLOYD

Good point, there hve been threads on here where aftermarket racks from South America have been used with just this sort of symptom.
Stan Best

"it should "fly" with no hitches"

But don't bang it from lock to lock, you should be able to move it between locks with a little finger tip on the wheel with no effort.
Paul Hunt 2

This thread was discussed between 15/09/2007 and 23/09/2007

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