Quote:
Originally Posted by Traf
Why don't you just measure each ends ? This is how i centered mine.
Also you need to cut the plastic tab otherwise it won't be centered.
|
Thanks for the reply. The markers on the rack are meaningless.
Fantastic- thank you guys for the awesome replies.
The steering wheel is now straight and the rack is centered.
[IMPORTANT!]
FYI for everybody else who is thinking about doing this mod. In my 2009 135i (no servo.), the steering angle is actually different from the M3 steering rack (sourced from a 2008 E93 M3). What this means is that you need to find the center of the rack, cut the plastic tab, and make sure your steering column (or wheel) is at center and place at the right angle at the connection between the column and rack.
1. the M3 steering rack markers (even the arrow to the number that looks exactly like that black arrow attached to the splines) don't mean jack. Use end-to-end method to find the center. What I have done is push the rack to the left end then mark where the arrow is, and push the rack to the right end then mark where the arrow is. About a bit over 1 turn, put the arrow right at the mid-arc between the two markers [first picture below]. (this is a lot more accurate than counting rotations).
2. align that black arrow (which is opposite of the tab) [marked in red in the second photo] to the center [another angle as shown in the third photo]. Sanity check by looking at your tie rods and see if they are approx. the same length (this maybe different if your tie rods are adjusted).
3. cut the tab as [dotted red in 4th image]
4. when attaching the steering column, make sure [green arrow of 5th image] is aligned to where your previous steering column is centered. For me, my center line fo the column is show in the green arrow of the [6th image].
5. To attach the steering column to the rack, to make things easier, lube the splines up a bit and use a screw driver to widen the steering column slit a bit. Have one person doing a bench press below the rack to push it up. Have a second person positioned near the steering wheel with one hand on the right and one hand on the column. Make sure that the steering column arrow [5th image] is aligned with [6th image] before using force to push the steering column onto the rack flush.