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If I turn the wheel from lock to lock, there are thumps from the front of the car. You get the same when the car is turned sharply at low speed. It sounds like a bad joint in the suspension.

However, I have checked the lower balljoints, changed the control arm bushes, changed the track rod ends, the sway bar has new bushings, I've also torqued up every bolt in sight : subframe mountings, rack mounts, sway bar mounts, you name it.

So that only really leaves a problem in the struts, or the steering rack.

Has anyone experienced this? This is a TR8 with power steering.

The PO said he installed roller bearing strut top mounts.

Oh, also worth mentioning - the car has an intermittent pull to the right. Yes, you heard right - sometimes you can drive for 5 miles, perfectly straight - sometimes it pulls to the left. Same stretch of road. Last night it was perfect driving home, then I pulled into the drive (to the accompaniment of various knocks), backed out again, and the car was then pulling. Something is obviously moving.

1980 TR8, coming back to life

Why would you fit roller bearings on a TR8 which has power steering, seems a bit strange to me. It might suggest your PO had a problem with the power steering?
Noises could be the inner ball joints in the rack or some play in the rack/casing itself.

Russ

1980 TR7 Sprint DHC
Dursley
UK

http://tr7russ.blogspot.co.uk/

Are the inner rack balljoints serviceable in any way? Could I grease or oil them, for example?

1980 TR8, coming back to life

No. The inner ball joints inside the rack are only to be replaced. Other than regular greasing of the rack grease fitting and replacing the deteriorated rack boots, that's all we can do.

You will most likely have difficulty finding new inner ball joints. In a prior article of mine the cheapest solution was to buy a Home Market TR7 rebuilt RIGHT-HAND drive rack from Rockauto.com and use the inner ball joints from there. I did and it worked out very well without need for taking the rack from the car.

Double check your TR8 inner ball joints have the same part # as the TR7 ones before plunking down the cash. The ones at V-B are outrageously priced.

Mildred Hargis

I had new polly bushes in the control arm,/antiroll bar joint pack up in about a year & 5000Km. It made some strange clunking at low speeds.

Other suggestions, engine mount packed up.

Engine mount tang on subframe broken, broken off subframe.

Subframe bushes fitted without steel spacers in the bushes.

Rack loose.

Hasbeen

Great, some things to try.

I didn't know there was a grease fitting on the rack... how many pumps of grease does it get, and what kind?

1980 TR8, coming back to life

Well, actually, what is on the rack is a plug. The plug is removed and a Zerk fitting installed. This plug is on top of the big nut that secures the tension shims. Don't mess with the nut unless you have specific guidance from GOD. I've never messed with mine except to install a Zerk fitting.

As for how much grease? I'll let someone else field that pop up query.

Mildred Hargis

5 strokes of a hand grease gun, every 6000 miles.

If yours has not been greased for some time/ever, give it 4 strokes in the middle, & one at each end of the rack, [with the thing on full lock one way, then the other.

Do not put in too much, or you will destroy the boots, pumping them full of grease.

Oh, & I leave the grease nipple installed, once fitted.

Hasbeen

Check bulkhead bush at bottom of steering column too!

Enjoy& regards

The cones and the rubber inserts in the coil spring seats at the top of the struts on our cars are starting to wear. The Seats are still available, but not the cones. Also, there have been reports that the "D: washer at the top of the struts are wearing the hole from a "D" shape to just a hole. If that happens, in rare cases, the retaining nyloc nuts have loosened. This will allow the unit to shift with extreme movement.

Both the repost I have received where on TR8s.

Clay

[url="http://www.jclay.me/"]My Triumph Site[/url], [url="http://www.triumphtechnical.me"]Technical Stuff[/url], [url="https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0B8MWEvqOpX3udEF4SmFQUW9RS09hbU5uNW5Wd0xrUQ/edit"]My Public Folder[/url],

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Century Gothic, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Howard722</i>

Check bulkhead bush at bottom of steering column too!

Enjoy& regards
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">


Yes, check to see that the plastic bush in the bulkhead that the steering column runs through hasnt broken up. After about 25 years the plastic becomes brittle and the column can knock against bulkhead under full lock.

Its easy to check by sticking your head in the footwell and checking the bush with a torch. Mine had about 6 cracks around the edges and had started to fall out.

Adam



TR7 V8 DHC Jaguar Solent Blue. 9.35cr Range Rover V8, Holley 390cfm, JWR Dual Port, 214 Cam, Lumention, Tubular Manifolds, S/S Single Pipe Exh, 3.08 Rear, 200lb Spax & PolyBushes all round, Anti- Dive, Strut-Top Roller Bearings, Capri Vented Discs & Calipers, Braided Hoses, 4 Speed Rear Cylinders, Uprated Master Cylinder & Servo, AT 14" 5 Spokes or Maestro Turbo 15" Alloys, Cruise Lights, S/S Heater Pipes, Replacement Fuel Tank. No Door Stickers. Mine since July 1986, V8 from 1991 courtesy of S&S V8 conversion and big brake kits.

So I jacked the car up last night, and the only play I could find is in the drivers side strut. If you grab the top of the wheel, and push and pull it, there is a knock from inside the strut. There is no such knock from the right hand strut.

It looks like I need to strip it down and see what's going on.

At the same time I'll grease the rack, check the inner joints, and replace the column lower bush.

Now I remember I had trouble getting one of the subframe bolts to reach the specified torque. I'll check it has a sleeve in the bush, as Hasbeen suggested.

1980 TR8, coming back to life

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Century Gothic, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Mark H</i>

.... there is a knock from inside the strut ... <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Sounds like a loose closure nut on top of the strut.

<center>
<font color="blue"><i>1976 TR7 FHC (needs some TLC ...)
1980 TR7 DHC (my first car, a.k.a. Kermette)
1981 TR7 FHC (Sprint engined a.k.a. 't Kreng
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If the nut has worked it's way off, make sure the bottom us supported when taken ut off the car as it is under the coil spring pressure. Locktite the nut on.


- - -TR7 Spider - - - 1978 Spitfire- - - - 1976 Spitfire - - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra - Yellow TCT

So what if I compress the spring to take the tension off? Do I then just torque the top nut to spec? Or is it like adjusting a wheel bearing for no play?

Looks like I could compress the spring in situ, making for a fairly quick fix.

1980 TR8, coming back to life