Galvanized shim N.4 that measures 11.9mm for steering box adjustment.
Purpose of rack adjustment
A well adjusted rack should work like this:
During braking and deceleration, the car will lean forward and the rack will then lower relative to the wheels. If the 2 steering rods have the same length and are inclined at the same angle, when the rack is lowered the tie rods will push the wheels in the opening direction at the same angle. So we have the right wheel turning right and the left wheel turning left (opening direction), we lose parallelism but the wheels continue to roll straight helping the car to maintain direction.
It is the same principle for the acceleration phases in which the rack will rise with respect to the wheels and therefore the wheels will both turn inwards (direction of convergence).
In case of incorrectly adjusted rack:
The 2 steering rods are not the same length and are not inclined in the same way. When the car changes attitude (when braking, decelerating, accelerating, etc.), the connecting rods will turn and make the wheels turn, one in the direction of opening and the other in the direction of convergence. The 2 wheels then turn in the same direction and the car "pulls". It is therefore important that the rack is parallel to the axis of the gears and that the midpoint is correct (so that the 2 tie rods have the same length).
Important: Note that this is not a parallelism problem as the wheels are effectively parallel as long as the speed is constant.
Galvanized adjustment shims
The height of the steering box is adjusted by means of shims inserted between the rack and the chassis. These thicknesses are numbered from 1 to 7 and each thickness has a precise size value. These shims are needed to compensate for the misalignment of the box supports on the front side members. The two thicknesses therefore do not necessarily have the same number and diameter.
Important: These shims are specific to the model of Renault 4, Renault 5 and Renault 6, on which they are mounted, it is very important when disassembling the steering box to identify the position and number of shims for each side of the rack.
Rack adjustment
In which case is it recommended to adjust the rack?
- If the thicknesses were not identified during disassembly.
- If the steering box is replaced with a new one: an adjustment may be required, especially with a regeneration.
- If the car exhibits the symptoms described above (steering on one side when braking and on the other when accelerating) and all other possibilities have been eliminated (poor parallelism, poorly adjusted steering center point, defective undercarriage or silent block of the tie rods, ball joints in poor condition, badly tightened rack, etc).
For car
Renault 4
Renault 5
Renault 6
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