hey johnwag if they dont work how you want them to and you are going to loop your lines ill buy those plugs from you. i like the way they look.

 

I'll post my results up tonight when I get everything finished. I'll let you know.

 

I tried a 12mm line wrench, a regular 12mm wrench and vice grips and can't get the first small PS line loose. I'm just gonna loop the lines and call it good.

 

Were you at the shop or house? I might have been of assistance......
Mine is finished waiting for the weekend.

 

What are the sizing on those bolts? I can only imagine how much they're getting for that "kit" when you could probably get the same thing from lowes for next to nothing. if you've got a way to measure the thread pitch and don't mind i would appreciate it. (de-powering a rack in virginia will fail inspection if the inspector can tell so i figure those may be a little less obvious than looped-lines.)

 

alright. 12 hours of work on two cars and one wasn't mine.

Here is what I've concluded:
I'm a dumbass. I made things harder than they should be by trying multiple methods 2 days before a track event. Never again.
The miataroadster rack depowering kit is for racks that have been depowered the FM way.
All of you guys that have done the loop the line trick know what you are talking about and I never doubted you.
The 12mm flare lines at the highest point on the rack will not come out of my steering rack.
If you try the miataroadster rack depowering kit without doing it the FM way, the steering will barely turn.
Superpro poly steering rack bushings are NOT better than OEM rack bushings.
Don't slide the rack down too far or it will drop down so low that the spline toothed arm will fall and you won't know exactly where to put it back.

 

Sounds like you had some fun....

sit back with a 12-pack and you'll feel better..

 

I'll check the sizing for you tomorrow. The kit is not cheap, but the anodized bolts look real nice in the rack. I kind of had credit from Bill so I pulled the trigger to test them out. I was the first to buy them, but didn't realize that the rack needed to be completely depowered the FM way. Now I know.
I did use the two larger bolts but none of the small ones.

 

I didn't have time to check the thread pitch on the bolts yet because I was getting my car ready for miatas@hallett on Thursday.

Myself and group of local guys drove up to Hallett with Gary from trackdogracing. We did an instructor track day on friday. It was my first time to track my car since I've owned it and since I did all of the mods. The depowered steering rack was AWESOME! The steering feedback was better than I expected. I was running 225/45/15 RA1's and got a good forearm workout.
I highly recommend this mod for all of you guys that track your cars.

I truly realize how overboosted the miata power steering is.

 

 

This is gonna sound dumb...but I've been working on a project to adapt a Mazda power rack into another car... a Sunbeam Tiger...and I need to reroute the 2 hard lines for clearance... I've pretty much destroyed the original lines and was away from the project for a while and now I can't remember which line runs to which port . I thought I had pics of that before I took them off and now can't find them..or another pic on the 'net. Can someone help me with that...? Also I'm considering adapting the pressure line to JIC/AN fittings and need to know what aadapter to use...
Thanks in advance...
Jim

 

google image search: http://www.carsteering.com/viewpictu...80-00649&code=

The port that is farthest left goes to the top port by the spline shaft. The port in the middle of the rack goes to the lower port by the spline shaft.

 

Thanks... but unfortunately that doesn't look exactly like my rack which is I think from a '95.. I Do have a pic of it mounted on a spare cross member before I removed the pipes...but it's from the wrong side... :(

edit:
...just reread your post and hadn't read past the link...so...middle port goes to the lower port of the pinion housing...and the one on the 'passenger' side goes to the top port on the housing...
Thanks!!!!

 

Your right, it's not exactly the same rack, but the line positioning is accurate.

What do you mean it's from the wrong side?

 

I just meant that my own pic didn't show enough for me to tell which pipe was which...If I'd taken one from the back side of the rack, it would have been easy to see...

 

Hope this looks right...

 

Looks okay to me. Nice AN fitting for the PS pump.

Is that the water pump neck up near the radiator?

 

Yep... that's the water pump on the 302...
The MR2 electric PS pump will be in the right fender well, so both lines are going forward into the back of the valance and across... I cut the pipe off the top of the banjo return fitting and welded a 3/8" pipe X -6 AN 90° to it so I could run the braided hose... I might also use an AN adapter for the pressure side,too
I'll probably put an inline cooler behind the valance . The pump pressure will be adjustable as I'm using a 4QD motor controller on it adjusted by a **** in the cockpit...

 

Uhm, Step 1: Give ME the Tiger...

I know its off topic, but post more pics man! I'm a huge huge fan of Sunbeams!!

 

/\ Me too....and not just because of "Get Smart".
Amazing what those cars in good condition are bringing.