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Steering Power Balance:
On my 1981 it was much harder to steer to the right than the left. I found the right inner tie rod bent, probably from hitting curbs really hard. I replaced the inner tie rod and both tie rod ends, and got it aligned. Still pulled to the left and was harder to steer to the right. Tire shop said I needed a rack to fix it. When starting the car, I could see the steering wheel jump to the left a bit. With the front wheels off the ground, it jumped about an inch.
On my Cam Gear rack there is an adjustment for power steering balance. It’s under the little oval shaped cover on the front of the rack. It’s right where the steering shaft would be if it were longer and protruded out the front of the rack. It’s right in line with the main steering shaft that runs from the steering wheel down. The cover is about two inches across, and two 13mm or 14 mm bolts hold it on. Take the cover off and you’ll expose the lower bearing that the steering shaft rides in. Take the nut and washer off the end of the shaft. You adjust the balance by turning the inner race of the bearing, counterclockwise if your car steers harder to the right, clockwise if your car steers harder to the left. The lock washer has to be flattened and different tabs used to lock both the inner race and the nut.
This is a simple adjustment to do. I adjusted mine one notch counterclockwise one night and tested it. That cured about one half the problem so I adjusted it another notch counterclockwise the next night. Easy as pie. One of the most simple repairs I’ve done on the car. The bearing in question is lubed by heavy gear oil, not power steering fluid, so there was no flood when I opened up the cover. Be careful and you can use the same gaskets.
All this applies to my 81 Cam Gear. I’ve never done it on another car. I don't know if it applies to an 86. Good luck.
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Thanks to everyone for the help, Doug C. 81 242 Brick Off Blocks, stock, M46; 86 240, 131k
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