Do-it-yourself steering rack repair on a vaz 2115

In detail: do-it-yourself repair of the steering rack on a vaz 2115 from a real master for the site my.housecope.com.

Welcome!
The steering rack is an integral and very important thing in a car, over time it wears out and an unpleasant knock appears, which is especially audible when turning and when driving on uneven roads, this knock is not that annoying, but it clearly makes it clear that something is wrong with the car so, and in general, you don't need to joke with the steering mechanism and you still have to throw out a little money, if you don't remove this knock (In principle, even for free, you can remove it by simply pulling up the rail for this, we will write in another article to which we will give you a link a little later), then one day the rail may simply jam, in this regard, the steering wheel will stall in one position and you will only have to press the brake, because there will be no other way out, so be careful with the rail.

Note!
If you want to repair your rail, then stock up on a tool in advance, namely: You will need a special octahedron wrench for 17 (In a car shop, tell me that you need a special wrench to unscrew the rail stop nut and if the seller turns out to be knowledgeable, he will sell you exactly that what you need), as well as a chisel with a hammer, a vice (without them, the work will not be convenient), all kinds of keys (cap, wrenches, if you have cap heads, stock up on them) and screwdrivers with pliers you will need!

Summary:

When should the steering rack be repaired?
In general, the rail is being repaired to replace its protective cover or any other parts, but what symptoms will the rail give in case of a malfunction, you ask? Let's break it down! Firstly, if the rail began to knock when driving over bumps, or when turning (On the spot, this is not noticeable), then there is already a possibility that it has become unusable, put the steering wheel in the forward direction of movement and try to grab the rail with your hands and shake it after this (Take it in the place where the joint of the steering rods goes, for clarity this joint is indicated in the photo with an arrow), but before doing this, shake the steering wheel a little and thereby bring it to such a state where it will rotate easily, otherwise there is nothing will not work for you.

Video (click to play).

Note!
The rail deteriorates from a lot of things, but most of all from driving on an uneven road it becomes unusable, and in general from this the suspension breaks down faster, so if possible, then drive as rarely as possible on a bad road and as often as possible on a good road!

Disassembly:
1) At the very beginning of the operation, you will need to remove the rail from the car, you can learn more about how to do this in the article entitled: "Replacing the steering mechanism with a VAZ".

Note!
By the way, do not rush to start repairing the rail, if you were just the first to hear that it started knocking at you, just usually this knock can be removed by pulling it up, about how to tighten the rail, read the link to which is given in the article a little higher!

2) Now, on the right side (From the end) of the rail, remove the support and the spacer ring as shown in the first photo, immediately after that, use pliers to bite through the clamps that hold the protective cover in one place (see photo 2, these clamps are disposable), then remove the cover itself (see photo 3) from the rail, then on the other side (From the end) remove one more support (Metal this time) and the protective cap, you can see all this operation in the fourth photo.

3) Next, you will need to unscrew with the same special wrench with an octagonal head 17, the very nut of the rail stop (see.photo 1) and remove it after unscrewing, immediately behind this nut there will be a spring (see photo 3), it also needs to be removed and put to the side, well, using a screwdriver, hook the retaining ring as it is shown in the last photo.

4) Next, take the rail in your hands and tap it on any kind of board (Hit the crankcase until the stop falls out of the inside of it, see everything in photo 1 for more details), then remove the bulkhead O-ring as shown in photo 2 , then take a screwdriver in your hands and use it to remove the gear boot (photo 3) and the lock washer (photo 4).

5) Then proceed to remove the gear that comes complete with the bearing from the crankcase, it will need to be removed, for this, first unscrew the bearing fastening nut of this gear (see photo 1) and then remove it from the shaft (Photo 2 shown), then you will need to take a mounting blade and use it as a lever for a wrench, that is, with a 14 wrench, grab the gear flat (see photo 3) and leaning the key on this blade, remove the gear from the crankcase together with the bearing (photo 4).

Note!
By the way, it’s so easy to unscrew the nut that secures the gear, you will not succeed, because without a special key you cannot really do anything, so you need a special key with an octagonal head for 24, instead of this special key, you can use the head with the same size. you can see it in the photo below!

6) Now you will need to remove the steering rack itself from the crankcase, for this, simply tilt the crankcase and the rack itself will fall out (see photo 1), then pry the support sleeve with a flat screwdriver and remove it from the crankcase as shown in photo 2, instead of this sleeve you will need to install a new bushing in this place, but before installing a new one, put new damping rings on it (see photo 3, when installing, make sure that their thin part is against the cut of the bushing) and then install the bushing in its place (see photo 4, carefully install the bushing and make sure that the protrusions do not protrude, everything should be clear and the rubber damping rings do not forget to cut and remove their parts from the bushing).

Communities ›Kulibin Club› Blog ›How can you repair or modify a steering rack on a VAZ 2110 - 2115.

You just need to put in not the trimmings from the canisters, but select one polypropylene pipe by size. I found this option like this And you won’t have a bite and you won’t crash due to the fault of the reikiA good revision, many friends did this super effect and there is nothing to jam!And you can find out the reasons for such a non-standard approach to the repair of the steering rack? What does the factory repair kit do not suit you? Was the repair carried out without disassembling the rail and subsequent adjustment? And what is the maximum mileage of the repaired units? Pts. interesting!I will answer with the words of the user MadNemezis “Everyone says a collective farm ... And the rail where 30cm from the factory hangs in the air, is it not a collective farm? or the concept of a lever arm has never been heard at the factory, ”but at the expense of adjustment, I adjusted itWell, it's just that the video is missing, as is the wash. I prefer to work with clean parts, but people have different tastes ... I went over the rail with a factory repair kit six years ago, the mileage after repair is 85,000 km. Still not knocking! And if you disassemble it, it is stupid to change the repair kit, and so with sand and assemble it, then it is just 2-3 thousand km away. enough! And then the constructor with the sellers is not so ...What a fierce, mossy, tough collective farm! I have not seen this yet 🙂 Tin, as it is 🙂 And they are not ashamed to show it :)))This is advice on how to quickly get out of life, to hell with it you yourself will hurt yourself, but those who are not involved will suffer! I guess where this "revision" came from, this collective farmer generally needs to close the channel on YouTube for a long time.Here is such advice to hear from the outbid, I would still understand. They did what they did by investing at a minimum and spoiled them, and they don't care who is going to be killed there, the main thing is that before the money is transferred, it does not crumble. In general, so that the rail does not break initially, I put myself on the top ten an amplifier for the engine compartment flap (or whatever it is called there) because the iron there is thin, it walks when the wheels are turned and the rack gets loose because of this. Now, if you put it on the new one, and clean it along the way and fill it with normal lubricant and adjust it, then it will walk a hundred - one and a half, and it is much more pleasant to steer.

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What is this for? Shaft repair kits in stores. Work for an hour or two.And what about the effort when turning the steering wheel?depending on how to adjustdoes the steering wheel return after such a revision?and how was the gap adjusted? I have never tinkered with the rail)It will grip this plastic under the shaft and all the wedge of the slats.I modified the rail with a pipe on my car. The effect, believe me, is. And nothing gets stuck anywhere I've been skating for half a yearMore? What pipe? From what and how?Here is an example of one refinement there are many more posts on this topicEveryone says a collective farm ... And a rail where 30cm from the factory hangs in the air, is it not a collective farm? or the concept of a lever arm at the factory has never been heardBut how do they go for 100-200 thousand? With timely service. The main trouble with this rail, I think, is the boot, until you notice that it is torn, while you change it, it’s too late. The sand is full and thunderedI had several dozen cans. I have never seen a rail with a range of 100 thousand. Either rubbish, or repaired 10 times or stupidly new.My brother worked in a taxi in 7-8, on the new 2114 they changed the rail by 150,000 km. It could have been repaired, but they got used to changing it. As a mechanic-repairman, I cannot understand :)))
Then it was possible to pour companoud in half a volume, let it dry and ready, These half the volume would not even fit into the transmission.
In general, there is a rail and a Mazda 3 runs 100 thousand, then repairs. And the price for it is under 100 sput, no one is hammering pieces of garbage there - repair is repair, albeit expensiveAnd why did you decide that Mazda is a magic car that our craftsmen won't repair with shit and sticks?You can't do it with shit and sticks - it won't go, like any modern plastic car. As an example, I gave a Mazda, why a basin can be repaired with a canister, but a Mazda cannot? Both are cars. It's just that the attitude is biased for the pelvis.I had several dozen cans. I have never seen a rail with a range of 100 thousand. Either rubbish, or repaired 10 times or stupidly new.My 8Ka million has passed for sure, but the rake is the same. Sometimes there are thoughts to change, but there is no crime yet (one hairpin had to be boiled and that's it). Just don't try to use force and turn the steering wheel in place. The same about the CV joints - do not accelerate in a sharp corner.Everyone says a collective farm ... And a rail where 30cm from the factory hangs in the air, is it not a collective farm? or the concept of a lever arm at the factory has never been heardThis is a challenge to many auto manufacturers, not otherwise.)))Plastic cans are versatile.
I was working on the fenders for myself.This plastic will go along with the rack in the body, and grip it in the gear, the steering wheel will jam. And hi-ditch. I do not advise you to deal with the mechanism - there are repair kits if the backlash is small, and the new rail (if it is completely sad) is inexpensive. It is better to sharpen the bushings at the turner due to wear - the caprolon runs longer in this unit.
IMHO I would not trust this with my lifeif everything is done normally, it will not jam!It is highly likely, therefore, I consider it unreliable. Moreover, over time, this plastic will wear out and become like a newspaper, and then it will definitely fit into a gear-rack pair.it will not reach the gear for one simple reason - the native sleeve will not give it. You just need to push these liners up to the native sleeve and everything will be ok!Imagine a situation - you hammer a piece of plastic into a rail, the liner of which is already worn out (otherwise, why are all these movements?). As the canister wears out, the plastic of the canister will wear out and crumble, the piece will tear off and tighten into the gap between the sleeve and the rail. When this will happen - no one knows, but if you think about how many movements the rail makes for 1000 km, then I think very soon, in 20-30 thousand. And this is a year and a half, with average traffic.
What is fraught with - imagine you are going to overtake, an oncoming car is approaching, upon returning to your lane you want to turn the steering wheel, but the steering wheel does not turn, and this is due to a piece of plastic that someone (maybe not you) put in the rail. On the pelvis, a frontal accident in 99% is the death of a carrier + a passenger. Such a fate does not smile at me :))) And a car was driving towards me - what is it to blame?
You can put plastic somewhere in the motor - here, as they say, it is your own fault, you yourself suffer. But not in the steering.Have you seen what a regular bushing looks like? If not, then I give a hint there are two spikes for fixing! So nothing will pull anywhere! These spikes will not give! -3 thousand! Until I got on a good one. I passed 7000 km.The spikes are so on the outside, and the plastic will crawl between the rail and the bushing.Look at the thickness of the bushings, and estimate the gap in the bushing-rail pair. And think about what kind of wear it should be, so that something could get through there? I think the knock will get you earlier and you will make a bulkhead!What does the thickness of the liner have to do with it? As soon as the plastic is grinded off (and it grinds off) the rail (or pieces of it) will push it through this sleeve.
By the way, the bulkhead is not done here - they push a piece of the canister into the knocking railDo not grind it down to such a thickness! In the end, it can be made from a single piece! From the same plastic pipe, then it will definitely not be tightened.

Here's the pipe still all right. And this footcloth will surely kill someone someday, and it's good if only one "kulibin".I'm tired of arguing with you and proving the obvious things! I measured the gap at the first bulkhead, and so I had a 0.1mm dipstick between the rail and the standard bushing. , this is for Vaz. And then they are only able to pick up prices.A technical dispute, it is like that. When the arguments run out ...
I had a little more gap, but it didn't occur to me to insert a piece of cardboard into it. I bought 3 racks on parsing, chose the most straight rail (on a prism with a pointer indicator), then checked the fit of the gears by the paint print. I took the most suitable one (not quite ideal, but closest). With this set I went to the turner. The turner turned the bushings for me, with a lubrication gap. Material - caprolon. The same turner milled the pressing penny. The bearings were already in good condition. After the turner, I finished the bushing with a file, adjusted it in place. And I got an excellent rail on my hands. I put on a new cover (Balakovo rubber plant, there are very few options), stuffed imported lubricant (liquidation molly, it seems, not an advertisement) and put this rail, then I drove for 3 years and sold the car. I wound up about 80 thousand, then gave the car to my brother - I went to St. Petersburg, after 2 years I came back. Now I don’t know fate - I’ve not seen it in the city for a long time. Most likely due to the state of the body - it was scrapped. 94 years old was nine.
So everything is possible, the cost of repairs with the purchase of 3 more rails came out about 2000 rubles in those days (04 year), and 2 days of time, but after that I did not remember about it. The car from Peter came back in 11.Well, if I offended you, sorry! It's just that at one time I fell in love with this rail that I disassembled and assembled blindfolded. In general, I didn’t get bored! Now I go to Pyzhe, so don’t believe it’s boring! I want to sell and buy the product of our race track again!I never take offense. And I do not advise Rosavtoprom - I have a nine at work, I get bored of my beads, I go on it for a week, and again I love mine to madness. Although I did not even open the hood for a week on a nine.
So like this :))) Image - DIY repair of a steering rack on a VAZ 2115

General view of the car VAZ 2115

VAZ-2115 or Lada 2115 is a re-styling of the VAZ 21099, which was produced at the Volga Automobile Plant from 1990 to 2004 and was the ancestor of the second generation Samara. Lada Samara sedan is the modern name of the car, its production began in 1997.

One of the important components of the car is the steering gear. The steering rack in a car is the most important part of the assembly.
Through it, the force applied by the driver to the steering wheel with the help of tips and rods is transmitted to the steering levers, which are connected to the steered wheels through the trunnions. It follows from this how important the serviceability of the steering rack is for the safe movement of the car.

Steering design

The photo shows the elements that make up the steering wheel control structure.

Steering rack assembly components:

Position 20 is the rake.
Position 21 - rail support bushing.
Position 22 - damping ring.
Position 23 - rubber-metal hinge.
Positions 10, 11, 14 - details of fastening the rack to the steering rods.
Position 12 - brackets for attaching the steering device to the flap in front of the body, 13 - rubber bearings of the steering mechanism, 15 - protective cover of the device. The rack of position 20 meshes with a drive gear mounted on bearings in the housing of position 17 of the steering rack assembly.
A metal-ceramic stop, sealed with a rubber ring in the crankcase, presses the rack against the gear with a spring, which abuts against the nut.

The circlip prevents the nut from loosening. There are marks on the crankcase and boot of the steering gear to facilitate correct assembly of the unit.

While the car is moving, there are times when the driver feels a slight recoil when the car hits a pothole or a small obstacle on the road, on the steering wheel, a knock appears in the mechanism. Then it becomes necessary to eliminate the malfunction.
In this case, the VAZ does not need to repair the steering rack, but only the adjustment of the gap formed between the rack and the gear is performed. For what there is a special instruction.
To carry out the work, it is better to install the car on an inspection pit, a special lift or an overpass.

If there is a protection on the crankcase, it is removed.
With a special 17 mm wrench, clockwise rotation, the adjusting nut is tightened until the backlash in the rack reducer is eliminated.

Elimination of backlash of the steering rack

Advice: Before tightening the nut, it is necessary to clean it well of dirt.

If such an operation does not eliminate the knock, you need to disassemble the steering gear, check the condition of all its parts, replace the worn out elements with new ones. The price of such repairs will be higher.

Then, after assembling the steering gear assembly, the rack stop is installed, on which the O-ring is located, until the stop contacts the rack.
After that, the retaining ring, the thrust spring are installed and the nut is slightly screwed on.
The nut is tightened with a torque equal to 1.12 - 1.37 kgf.m, released on the two divisions marked on the nut or on the key "by 24", which provides the necessary clearance of 0.12 millimeters, from the nut to the rail stop.
The ease with which the rail moves, the absence of knocks, jamming is checked.
The steering rods are mounted to the steering mechanism in such a way that their axes should be parallel to the steering wheel housing.

The backlash is eliminated, and the knocking does not stop, then one of the options is chosen: buy a new steering rack or repair the steering rack on a VAZ 2115, which is much cheaper.

To save money, and sometimes nerves, you can repair the mechanism yourself.

Grease for bearings. Better to use Mobil Grease XHP 222.
In aerosol packaging Movil.
White Spirit.
Spray can WD-40.
Plastic clamps 200 mm x 4 mm - 3 pieces.
Rags.

Ratchet socket set.
Hammer.
Cardan shaft with extension.
Puller for handpieces.
Key with an internal octahedron.
Key for 22.
Chisel, up to seven millimeters wide.

The car is secured against unexpected movement by installing stops under the rear wheels. Tighten the handbrake, block the steering wheel.

Advice: When repairing, it is better to disconnect the battery terminals to avoid trouble from touching the wrench to the "+" terminals during operation.

The front wheels are removed.
Using a puller, fingers are pulled out of the lever struts, having previously unscrewed the tip nuts.
After installing the puller, the screw is tightened all the way. In the tense state of the key, the finger is knocked out of the lever with a hammer.
The nuts securing the rail brackets are unscrewed. The bolt on the steering shaft is loosened from inside the passenger compartment.
After completing all the preliminary operations carefully so as not to damage the splines, using oscillatory movements, the gear shank is disconnected from the steering shaft.
The entire assembly is pulled out through the right hole in the car body.

Steering gear with steering rods

Next, the steering rack of the VAZ 2115 is directly repaired:

The structure is clamped in a vice.All surfaces of the product are cleaned with a special brush, a cloth dipped in white spirit.
The steering rods are removed. To do this, unscrew the bolts on the bracket that fixes them, after bending the "antennae" of the locking plate, with the key "22".
The locking and connecting rods plates are removed.
Tie rods are removed.
On the right side, the support and the retaining ring are removed from the steering housing.
The clamps are cut off, with the help of which the protective cover is attached. Disposable parts are made of plastic.
Removable protective cover.
On the left side of the device, the support and cap are removed for protection.
Using a 17 key with an octagonal head, the rail stop nut is unscrewed, the part is removed, the spring and the retaining ring are removed.

Removing the nut, spring and retainer ring

The rail stop is knocked out of the socket. To do this, the crankcase hits a wooden support.
For sealing, a rubber ring is mounted in the stop groove.

The seal is removed.
The gear boot is removed, which is enough to pry it with a screwdriver.
The lock washer is removed.
A special "24" wrench with an octagonal head is used to unscrew the nut that secures the gear bearing.
The nut is removed from the shaft.
With a key "14" the gear is removed from the crankcase together with the bearing.

Removing the gear with the bearing from the crankcase

The rail is removed.
The sleeve is removed. To do this, a support sleeve is pushed on with a screwdriver, its protrusions must go into the crankcase holes and the part can be freely removed.

Removing the support sleeve

A new bushing is installed. To do this, new damping rubber rings are put on it so that thin parts of the ring are located against the cuts of the sleeve.
The bushing protrusions should fit freely into the holes in the crankcase.

At the edges of the sleeve, the rubber rings are cut and the cut pieces are removed.

The retaining ring is removed from the pinion shaft.

The ball bearing is pressed with a two-arm puller.

Removing the ball bearing

The needle bearing is pressed out using a special puller. If it is not there: two holes with a diameter of two millimeters are drilled in the end of the crankcase, for the needle bearing to exit to the ring.
Through it, the bearing is knocked out of the crankcase.

Pressing out the needle bearing

The crankcase cavity of the structure is flushed. The needle bearing is pressed in with a piece of pipe.
After that, the hole is sealed with preparations similar to "cold welding". With PIOL-1 grease, the bearings, the drive gear and the teeth on the rack are abundantly lubricated.

Tip: Before you start repairing the steering rack, it is better to familiarize yourself with all the operations on the video.

UNIOL-1 grease is put into the cavity, which is located above the nut holding the drive gear bearing. The steering rack assembly is assembled in reverse order.
A protective cover is attached and fixed with clamps. The rail stop and nut are set in such a way that there is a gap of 0.12 mm between them.
After adjusting the rail clearance, the stop nut is screwed in to prevent unwinding.

We will show you how to remove or replace the steering rack on VAZ 2115, VAZ 2114, VAZ 2113 cars with our own hands, without a viewing hole and assistants. Specifically, in our example, a backlash appeared in the steering rack, if you open the hood and pull on the traction, you can hear a distinct knock. Before removing it, there was an attempt to tighten it with a key, but apparently in our case it does not help anymore, the steering wheel began to bite, when weakened, a knock and backlash began again, in the auto service it was sentenced to be replaced.

We will remove it and repair it using a standard repair kit, the repair itself will be shown in the next videos. For the convenience of work, we immediately remove the adsorber, battery, air filter. First you need to unscrew these two bolts by 22:

We do this with a 22 head and a knob. Previously, using a strong screwdriver, it is necessary to slightly bend the plate on which these bolts sit so that they can be unscrewed. Disconnect the steering rods.Then we unscrew the two mounting bolts (one on each side):

This is done with a 13 key. Then remove the clamps. From the passenger side, this is easy to do, from the driver's side it is most convenient to unscrew through the wheel arch, having previously removed the wheel arch liner. You may need to jack up the car a little to lower the traction a little. Then we go to the passenger compartment, unscrew this bolt:

In the place where the arrow points, it is necessary to hammer something, for example a screwdriver as in our example, in order to expand this gap and we could remove the steering rack without any problems. Removal can be done. We take it out from under the left wheel arch, we first jack the car. Removal is done without rods, they remain in place.

Video removal and replacement of the steering rack in the VAZ 2115 2114 2113:

Backup video how to remove and replace the steering rack in VAZ 2115 2114 2113:

It is worth noting that you can remove the steering rack with your own hands alone, and to put an already repaired or new one, you will need an assistant who will push it from under the hood, and in the meantime, you are “aiming” from the passenger compartment.It is believed that the repair kit in the steering rack is not a very good solution, with it it takes a couple of months for it to go away.Video about how I remove the steering rack from the car VAZ 2115 (2113, 2114). Removal takes place without a viewing hole, overpass or lift, in the fresh air 🙂.
The process of busting and installing the repair kit on the removed steering rack could not be filmed. There is nothing complicated, you can watch the video
I also upgraded the rail a little from the video - I hope it will last a long time.
I did everything myself alone, the only thing when I installed it was difficulties, namely, to drive it back into the steering column in the cabin, they helped me there. It is better, of course, to do it with an assistant. And it will be faster and more fun.