512TR Steering Rack removal

First disconnect battery or use battery cut off switch in front boot.
Next, disconnect steering column from rack from inside car in driver's footwell. A 10 mm wrench and a 5 mm allen (hex) wrench will remove the bolt that holds the two together. Pull up on the articulated steering column and it comes off the rack.
In the second photo the column is disconnected and you can see the splined shaft from the rack sticking up through a rubber boot.
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Next, put the car on the lift or stands and take off the wheels. Remove the little metal shields that protect the tie rod ends with an 8 mm wrench (2 nuts on each shield - note one attachment point is slotted)
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Disconnect the toe rod ends. Remove the 19 mm nut and washer from the bottom and then use a tie rod separator tool to get them apart (the tie rod end sits in a tapered interference fit). Old school you can put the nut back on and smack it with a hammer or use a separator fork. This is way more civilized.
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The rack is bolted to the frame with 4 bolts (two on each side) that fit through a metal sleeve which fits in rubber bushings. Take off the access pan on the bottom of the car underneath the rack (10 mm bolts). The bolts can be seen from below and from the passenger side wheel opening, but not from the driver's side because the gears in the rack block the view. On the 512TR, Ferrari was kind enough to incorporate two access panels within the front boot. They are covered by a carpeted little panel and below that a waterproof rubber panel. Both just pry off, giving direct access to the 4 bolts. The Ferrari engineers went one step further and made the upper bolt hole in the frame a keyway, with the larger opening toward the bottom. Wait. something is easy on these cars? Is this really a Ferrari?

The upper bolts have the nut facing the front of the car, the lower bolts have the nut facing rear. With an assistant this takes just a minute. Hold a wrench (13 mm I think) on the bottom nuts from under the car while the assistant (preferably young, female and dressed in heels and a bikini if you are Shamile) removes the bolts with a 13 mm ratchet from the boot. Then hold the upper nut with the open end of the wrench while said assistant removes the upper bolts.
At this point the rack is free. Take out the large rubber grommet that seals the splined shaft to the foot well and it comes out the driver's side with some jiggling.
Done. Boom.

The photos show the access hole covers and the visible rack attachments (lower bolt removed).
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Once out (or before removal), measure the number of threads that the tie rod end is attached. Do this on both sides and write it down, because this will give roughly the same alignment if you are replacing this part. Mine were 27 mm each side (or 29 threads showing).
The bushings are easy to remove by pressing out the center metal sleeve. The bushings fit tightly into recesses in the rack mounting brackets. You probably want to replace the bushings, except for the fact they are $34 EACH from Ferrari. Superformance UK has them for $6.89 and I found an upgraded bushing on EBay from AWItalian for $12.50. My bushings looked PERFECT - nice soft rubber, no cracks, but I took one for the Chat and ordered 8 from AWItalian.com. I have a new rack to put in, but they will also rebuild your rack for $550. Choices. Nice.

The racks in these cars were made by TRW.
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So, hopefully the new bushing will arrive in a few days and I'll post the steering rack install. I plan on getting an alignment afterwards. So for now she rests above my ongoing 1970 GTO Judge project and next to my current 1970 GTO Judge driver.

I'm also gonna replace the pathetic Italian horns with some new Hellas. Pretty much a bolt in with some wiring changes.
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I also found some replacements for the tie rod end boots that should work nicely. I could not find replacement OEM boots anywhere. Just a few bucks at AutoZone and we're in business. Mine were torn.
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Good thought, but I'm putting in a new rack so I've got to go by eye. I'm having the car aligned after anyway and they will center the wheel if needed.

 

Here are some other numbers on the 512TR steering rack Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

The bolt that holds the splined steering rack and column together fits in the larger groove.
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The rubber bushings fit into these brackets on the steering rack. The bracket openings and the bushings are tapered.
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Update:
The new steering rack bushings from AWItalian are NOT polyurethane. They are also not identical to the originals but will work. These units supersede the originals which are no longer available. $12.50 each from AWItalian, $6.85 each from Superformance UK (depending on currency exchange rate), but obviously much higher shipping from UK and 2 weeks vs 4 days delivery time. But at least we have options. The other EBay $6.80 bushing was a mis-labeled REAR bushing. The listing has been updated.
Original on left, new unit on right:
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Hi John,
The original 67,000 mile rack had developed some play. It was not in the tie rod ends. I intend to send the old rack out for rebuild to AWItalian in New Jersey.

 

Well, the replacement rack went in without incident. There are not really any photos that would be helpful, but I will outline the steps I used. I don't think installation is possible without 2 people.
First, place the 8 new bushings onto the rack brackets with the metal sleeves through the middle holes. The top two bolts will fit into the upper frame bracket keyholes, so, on these upper bolt/bushing combos, the bolt head ends face the rear of the car and the nut towards the front. The order is bolt-washer-bushing-bushing-washer-nut. Leave the nuts loose so you have more room to wiggle the bolt head into the keyhole.

I measured the distance of tie rod end thread onto the tie rods on the original rack and repeated this measurement (27mm of thread showing) on the replacement unit. The new unit was then inserted whole into the driver's side and pushed/pulled/wiggled into position with the splined steering column connection in the large hole (the rubber grommet can be inserted from the interior). At this point it takes long screwdrivers and pry bars and luck to maneuver the heads of the bolts into the lower (large) openings of the upper keyholes.

Once the driver's side upper bolt is in the keyhole, push it upwards from below while your faithful assistant goes in the front boot and slides the lower bolt and washer through the lower bushing and bracket. It helps to position the rack over the lower hole with a screwdriver first (tolerances are tight). Thread the nut onto the bolt from below loosely. Don't worry about the lower back washer yet.

Repeat same procedure on passenger side, but when you get the lower bolt through the frame bracket, slide a 13 mm wrench up past the lower bolt and hold the upper bolt head while said assistant tightens the upper nut from inside the front trunk (boot) until all components barely touch and won't move (not too tight). Then, pull back on the lower bolt, and, using a screwdriver or similar tool, pry back on the rack enough to slip the washer between the rubber bushing and the bracket and wiggle it into place. Then push the lower bolt back through the washer and bracket and loosely attach nut.

Now go back to the driver's side and repeat process to get last washer on lower bolt between rubber bushing and bracket. Now the hard parts are done. Grab the upper bolt head with the 13 mm wrench ad have your assistant fully tighten the upper bolt. Thread the nut onto the lower bolt and tighten completely. Repeat procedure for the passenger side. Replace rubber trunk seals and oval carpet coverings.

Have an adult beverage.

 

Place the tie rod ends back in position and verify that the hubs are relatively straight. Don't forget the rubber dust covers on the tie rod ends. Thread the 19 mm nuts and washers up from below and tighten with an impact gun until there is no up and down play. It's an interference fit. Replace the little metal tie rod end shields with the two 8 mm nuts (each side). Attach wheels and torque to 95 ft lbs.

The next part is best done by someone thin and agile like Shamile, Back under the dash you go, armed with a 5 mm allen wrench, the steering column bolt and nut and a 10 mm wrench or ratchet of your choice. A cordless 1/4" ratchet makes this simple. Make sure the wheels are straight, then make sure the steering wheel is pointing straight and slide rubber grommet over the splined end of the rack and nudge/push/pry it into place (not as easy as it sounds. Then slide the splined end of the articulated steering column over the exposed splined end of the rack until the bolt slides through the notch in the splines. Attach nut and tighten. Replace carpet.

If all is well you should be able to turn the wheel without play. Don't worry if your steering wheel is a little off center because this will be adjusted when the car is aligned. This must be done before any distance driving or spirited cornering.

 

Yesterday I took the 512TR/M Dream Machine to Luciano Auto Repair where master Ferrari mechanic Dino Sanzogni put her up on the massive alignment machine and brought her back into spec by replacing shims and tweaking the tie rods. We decided on increased castor and camber to improve steering and handling. It is amazing how moving the tie rods a fraction of an inch can affect the alignment. The whole process took about 3 hours (Dino likes things EXACTLY right) and cost $250. The before and after spec sheet is attached.

The drive home was spectacular. Steering tight and balls-on straight with no drift. Ah, the world is right again. I don't recall ever aligning this car before (my bad). At this moment in time, all components on this vehicle have been completely sorted. All systems are working as designed and I have no further projects on my 512TR/M to-do list. So I guess it's time to drive until something breaks. It's been a long road, but worth it. Image Unavailable, Please Login