13 replies to this topic

[lmdew]

The Daughters 98 Outback was loosing steering fluid. The Pump was not the cause, but the Input shaft seal had worked it self out of it's seat and was up about a 1/16".

I drove it back down the best I could without removing parts. Has anyone replaced this seal?

Thanks, Larry

[nipper]

Just get a used rack, it is much easier. If that seal is leaking it is only a matter of time before the others leak too. I have the same problem and am waiting for good weather to resolve it.

[lmdew]

I drove the seal back down and the leak stopped. It's a pain, but if you take a 3/4" wrench and go over top the seal and up against the axle shaft you can push it back down.

I'm going to check the local bearing shop to see if they stock the seal.

I also checked a 2001 Forester and the rack has a rubber boot over the input shaft so the seal must be inside now.

[nipper]

Thats a mistake people make and do not understand. tightening something that seems to have adjustment in it usually wipes out the bearing. retainer bolts may seem like they have room to turn in them because there is either a bearing pre-load or room for backlash. Over tightneing things like this can wipe out those parts.

Another common mistake used to be people who would over adjust thier recirculating ball steering boxes and wipe them out. These adjustaments are for light tweaking but basically exist for the factory assembly.

All the work you are about to do, it is just easier to replace the rack.

[ShagginWagon]

http://bbs.legacycen...php?f=6&t=45717
I know this is for the earlier legacy's but maybe this will help. U could just buy a junkyard rack, but there is the chance that that one leakes or will leak in the near future. If u rebuild it u know that its good for a good amount of time. Hope it helps

[nipper]

http://bbs.legacycen...php?f=6&t=45717
I know this is for the earlier legacy's but maybe this will help. U could just buy a junkyard rack, but there is the chance that that one leakes or will leak in the near future. If u rebuild it u know that its good for a good amount of time. Hope it helps

I have heard many bad things about rebuilt units, and I would not recomend to amyone to try to rebuild a rack. Used ones are cheap, warreneted, and I don't know of anyone who has gotten a bad one.

[ShagginWagon]

200+ dollars isnt cheap, i dont know wut ur smokin but i want some

[lmdew]

No tightening was done, as there is none to do on the input shaft. I just reseated the seal.

[johnceggleston]

item #2, input shaft ''repair kit'', part number 34128AA190. SEEMS like it would be pretty easy to do if it were off the car.

if you drove the seal back in, was there any thing behind it that was slipping out. i don't know how the oil seal stays in but the rest is kept in by a clip.

http://opposedforces...ering_gear_box/

Edited by johnceggleston, 19 March 2011 - 07:35 AM.

[pamike]

my current job is rebuilding racks. iirc on a subaru their should be a seal and snap ring then on top of the snap ring should be a dust cover. i really don't see how the snap ring could come loose. maybe you pushed the dust cover back in and the main seal is only leaking very slowly and the dust cover is holding in the fluid. this is probably how the cover came out, fluid built up behind it and pushed it out. subaru racks aren't really all that hard to rebuild yourself. i have the proper seal drivers at work to properly install the seals but if your very carefull it can be done with a sockets and extension if you can buy the seal kit somwhere

nipper, you are right about reman units. when we do have problems with them leaking and they are returned, i feel it's mainly because the person assembleing the unit is careless and damages the new seals in some way or misses things they shouldn't. the seals we use are expensive and i feel are good quality and should last a while if installed properly.

Edited by pamike, 19 March 2011 - 08:23 AM.

[johnceggleston]

if it is designed like the speedo cable connection to the trans, the oil seal is outside the snap ring. they look similar in the diagrams, but there is no way to tell for sure from the rack diagram since they don't label all of the parts in the ''kit''.

http://opposedforces...eedometer_gear/

[nipper]

200+ dollars isnt cheap, i dont know wut ur smokin but i want some

I really take offense to that (not kidding). I will not tell someone where to find something cheap if i do not know where it is.

Go to ebay, they go from 65.00 on up (and I counted at least 10 under 100.00 and stopped there) to whatever you want to spend. People get them from here all the time and have no issues.

[johnceggleston]

the 10 closest to me, on www.car-part.com go for $50 - $85.

[GeneralDisorder]

Used rack's are about $50 to $75 and they rarely leak or fail.... that's the route I would go rather than chanceing it on a reman unit that may not have been assembled properly.

I have bought one reman rack - wholesaler closeout at Rockauto for like $95 - power rack for my EA81 lifted wagon. I was going to rebuild the original rack but after pricing the parts, etc it was going to be around $115 for the parts and I felt it was questionable to rebuild it based on what I saw when I tore it down so I took a chance on the reman......It's been installed for about 50 miles and already leaks . I'll probably end up resealing it again myself. I'm hoping it's just a reseal job and that the "reman" people did alright with..... some of it.

GD

Edited by GeneralDisorder, 19 March 2011 - 12:03 PM.