Rack & Pinion(aka steering rack)

[Airgne]

i was wondering if anyone has used a wrx or sti rack and pinion on either a BE or a BC? if so what are the pros and cons?

[rougeben83]

you mean the steering rack?

[Airgne]

yes.

[rougeben83]

you'd need the 04 sti steering rack, the 05+ got a revised subframe with more reinforcements and changed the steering rack design as well. I have an 05 sti one, theyre 15:1 or something while the 04 is slightly slower (15.2 or something, lock to lock on the 05+ is 2.6 turns vs. 2.7 on the 04), slightly quicker than the 16.5:1 wrx's and n/a cars get.

Though tbh if you're really serious about changing to a quicker ratio, a revlabs quick rack would be more worthwhile, they're 12:1 (quicker than lan evo ratio) and even 10 or 9:1 for rally applications.

further reading:
http://www.rs25.com/forums/f128/t80969- ... k-gc8.html (http://www.rs25.com/forums/f128/t80969-sti-steering-rack-gc8.html)

[Airgne]

thanks for the info ben. looked for a rev labs one, but didnt find were i could look at specs or buy one. will have to read rs25 at home. boss would frown.

[JLav211]

Ben,

How difficult is it to swap into a BE? Can you give me a rundown on what was involved?

Thanks,

Jeff

[rougeben83]

Ben,

How difficult is it to swap into a BE? Can you give me a rundown on what was involved?

Thanks,

Jeff


The wrx/sti steering racks don't have the same input shaft as the n/a steering racks so unfortunately even the 04 sti rack or any WRX rack is not 100% bolt on. The u joint that connects the steering rack to the steering column will need to be modified. Some people have welded the U joint end for the sti rack to the u joint end to the n/a steering column (this is where a very experienced welder should be employed, you don't want steering failure when the car is moving), go to the NASIOC legacy forum and search UTisomething for the nick and his thread documenting a full STi swap into his BD for pics.

The second option was how mine was modified by ECS by basically joining the two U joints together at swivel joint - this makes the U joint 3 pieces instead of 2 with 2 areas that flex instead of 1. It's not 100% ideal as I can feel a little binding at certain points when I'm turning the wheel while the car is standing still, but its fine when the car is moving.

Last option would be to get a wrx/sti steering column, but I'm not sure about fitment of those as they may be shorter than the n/a columns - the U joint however may compensate for this.

The revlabs quick rack though, which uses the GC impreza steering rack as the core will fit directly I think.

[JLav211]

Can't find a website for Revlabs.

Sounds like a pretty involved procedure either way (did I read that correctly? $1G??) My steering is the remaining weak spot in this car and I'd like to tighten it up....was hoping for a cheaper solution!

[rougeben83]

Can't find a website for Revlabs.

Sounds like a pretty involved procedure either way (did I read that correctly? $1G??) My steering is the remaining weak spot in this car and I'd like to tighten it up....was hoping for a cheaper solution!

rev labs steering rack is around $1k I think but you will end up with a lot quicker rack than anything subaru makes. There's also some steering columns that quicken the ratio through a reduction gear, but I'm not sure if there's something commercially available. It should be a little easier to do than trying to raid the subaru parts bin. Best bet is to search on NASIOC about the steering column deal or rs25.com...

[JLav211]

Can't find a website for Revlabs.

Sounds like a pretty involved procedure either way (did I read that correctly? $1G??) My steering is the remaining weak spot in this car and I'd like to tighten it up....was hoping for a cheaper solution!

rev labs steering rack is around $1k I think but you will end up with a lot quicker rack than anything subaru makes. There's also some steering columns that quicken the ratio through a reduction gear, but I'm not sure if there's something commercially available. It should be a little easier to do than trying to raid the subaru parts bin. Best bet is to search on NASIOC about the steering column deal or rs25.com...

Gotcha. Anything in the short term you can recommend? Better bushings, etc.? Not even so much looking at speed as much as feel.

[rougeben83]

Can't find a website for Revlabs.

Sounds like a pretty involved procedure either way (did I read that correctly? $1G??) My steering is the remaining weak spot in this car and I'd like to tighten it up....was hoping for a cheaper solution!

rev labs steering rack is around $1k I think but you will end up with a lot quicker rack than anything subaru makes. There's also some steering columns that quicken the ratio through a reduction gear, but I'm not sure if there's something commercially available. It should be a little easier to do than trying to raid the subaru parts bin. Best bet is to search on NASIOC about the steering column deal or rs25.com...

Gotcha. Anything in the short term you can recommend? Better bushings, etc.? Not even so much looking at speed as much as feel.

steering rack bushings are a good upgrade for the money. Front swaybar and uprated endlinks too should help the connectivity of the feel of the steering wheel with what the front end is doing, but I think you already have those two, no? Wider, stickier tires too of course would really help with steering response.

Other than that, there really isn't much left that are bolt-in...

[Airgne]

what had a faster steering lock. 1st gen or 3rd gen?