Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 01:42 PM |
|
|
MK2 Escort Rack Upside Down
This thread appears in the the three wheeler section but I'm not sure how many people read that section so here it is again in a more suitable
area
Hello all,
I have got some hubs now and was wondering if I can use a escort mk2 rack which I already have, upside down? I need to do this to as the steering rack
is now used behind the hubs and not in front as in a escort mk2, it also helps point the steering pinion more directly to the centre of the vehicle.
Would it make any difference to the operation of the rack being upside down? I'm thinking not at all but always worth checking. The original
rack to suit the hubs is totally wrong and of no use
Cheers
David
|
|
|
|
|
Miks15
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 02:11 PM |
|
|
It will effectively change the rack to LHD i believe.
|
|
|
Confused but excited.
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:01 PM |
|
|
If you fit it upside down it will work in reverse. ie: turn steering wheel to the right, car will turn to the left. As opposed to making it LHD.
Edit: Opps typo.
[Edited on 22/7/11 by Confused but excited.]
Tell them about the bent treacle edges!
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:06 PM |
|
|
What I'm doing is moving the steering rack from the front of the hub like the MK2 escort is originally taking it behind the hub like almost all
fwd cars then turning it upside down, two operations here that should end up with the wheels going in the right direction when I turn the steering
wheel, I think.
Cheers
David
|
|
|
Miks15
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:08 PM |
|
|
Yeh it will mean it will work behind hubs instead of infornt of the hubs,
but as you turn it over the input shaft will be on the Left and not on the right
|
|
|
Confused but excited.
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:12 PM |
|
|
Oops my bad. Forgot bit about moving behind wheel axis.
Apologies all round.  That's not anger, it's embarassment.
Tell them about the bent treacle edges!
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:16 PM |
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by Miks15
Yeh it will mean it will work behind hubs instead of infornt of the hubs,
but as you turn it over the input shaft will be on the Left and not on the right
Yes that is ideal for what I want as the three wheeler will probably end up as a single or tandem seating arrangement it is on the left but it now
points more centrally which will help in my case
Cheers
David
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:16 PM |
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by Confused but excited.
Oops my bad. Forgot bit about moving behind wheel axis.
Apologies all round. That's not anger, it's embarassment.
No problem, I'm getting confused and it's sitting in front of me
Cheers
David
|
|
|
Miks15
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:19 PM |
|
|
Not sure how you mean that it points more central, I think (this is from memory so forgive me if its wrong) the input shaft is slightly angle to the
outside of the car so when flipped over, instead of being pointed to the offside, it will be pointed more to the nearside and still away from the
center
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:22 PM |
|
|
I think a few pictures would help, how would I do that?
Cheers
David
|
|
|
Miks15
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 03:46 PM |
|
|
upload them to your photo archive.
Then click on the photo so it come up big, and just above the photo there is a forum code.
Copy this code and paste into your post.
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 04:18 PM |
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by Miks15
Not sure how you mean that it points more central, I think (this is from memory so forgive me if its wrong) the input shaft is slightly angle to the
outside of the car so when flipped over, instead of being pointed to the offside, it will be pointed more to the nearside and still away from the
center
Your right, I have no idea where my idea that it would be better for my application, I must have dreamed it! This doesn't exclude it though as
it's no worse if using a central seating position, no good for a right hand drive if I decide a conventional passenger/driver layout is
possible
Cheers
David
|
|
|
John Bonnett
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 04:33 PM |
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by Minicooper
This thread appears in the the three wheeler section but I'm not sure how many people read that section so here it is again in a more suitable
area
Hello all,
I have got some hubs now and was wondering if I can use a escort mk2 rack which I already have, upside down? I need to do this to as the steering rack
is now used behind the hubs and not in front as in a escort mk2, it also helps point the steering pinion more directly to the centre of the vehicle.
Would it make any difference to the operation of the rack being upside down? I'm thinking not at all but always worth checking. The original
rack to suit the hubs is totally wrong and of no use
Cheers
David
Hello David,
I had exactly the same problem when I built my trials car. I wanted to use the Peugeot rack which normally works with rearward facing steering arms.
However I'd fitted Cortina uprights with forward facing steering arms. So, I sourced a left hand drive Peugeot rack and turned it upside down.
This works perfectly.
Best of luck with you project.
regards
John
|
|
|
RAYLEE29
|
| posted on 22/7/11 at 05:39 PM |
|
|
just a stupid idea and probably wrong but could you swap the uprights side for side the use the rack conventionally?
dont know how it would affect castor angles if at all
Ray
|
|
|
Minicooper
|
| posted on 23/7/11 at 12:14 PM |
|
|
Thanks everyone for your inputs, the more I look at it the more I think a more conventional fwd steering rack should be used. I have several low
mileage mini racks and they are more suited to what I want to do, they are very similiar in overall dimensions to the MK2 Escort rack and at least I
can mount it in the correct orientation
Cheers
David
|
|
|
MikeRJ
|
| posted on 24/7/11 at 01:44 PM |
|
|
One possible annoyance with using the escort rack upside down would be that the mounting points would be reversed, so you have to clamp the rack
underneath a structure rather than on top. Apart from I can't think of any reason why using it upside down would be a major problem.
If sourcing a different rack, note that the actual rack length (or at least the distance between the inner ball joints) needs to be correct for the
geometry of your car. Small differences can be corrected by moving the rack location, but if the rack is significantly too long or too short you are
likely to end up with bump steer problems.
|
|
|
