Frightening experience

Samuel · Oct 27, 2005

Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around to
have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering box.
therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel and
wheels. i was bloody lucky that i was only going about 5 kays an hour. if it
had happened a couple of days ago on my trip to the country, there is every
possibility i wouldn't be writing this now.

this happened to anyone else?

just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own landies,
as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over 20
km/hr.

Sam.

Austin Shackles · Oct 27, 2005

On or around Thu, 27 Oct 2005 10:13:04 +1000, "Samuel"
<[email protected]> enlightened us thusly:

>Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
>series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around to
>have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering box.
>therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel and
>wheels. i was bloody lucky that i was only going about 5 kays an hour. if it
>had happened a couple of days ago on my trip to the country, there is every
>possibility i wouldn't be writing this now.
>
>this happened to anyone else?

bloody unusual, they're normally impossible to get off if you want to.
>
>just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own landies,
>as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over 20
>km/hr.

Just goes to show, though, always worth doing proper checks on the vehicle
when servicing.

--
Austin Shackles. www.ddol-las.net my opinions are just that
In Touch: Get in touch with yourself by touching yourself.
If somebody is watching, stop touching yourself.
from the Little Book of Complete B***ocks by Alistair Beaton.

Tom Woods · Oct 27, 2005

On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:28:32 +0100, Austin Shackles
<[email protected]> wrote:

>>this happened to anyone else?
>
>bloody unusual, they're normally impossible to get off if you want to.
>>
>>just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own landies,
>>as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over 20
>>km/hr.
>
>Just goes to show, though, always worth doing proper checks on the vehicle
>when servicing.

Are the steering arms just interference fit? (is that the correct
terminology?) or do that have some form of additional fitting?

Badger · Oct 27, 2005

"Tom Woods" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:28:32 +0100, Austin Shackles
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>>this happened to anyone else?
>>
>>bloody unusual, they're normally impossible to get off if you want to.
>>>
>>>just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own
>>>landies,
>>>as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over
>>>20
>>>km/hr.
>>
>>Just goes to show, though, always worth doing proper checks on the vehicle
>>when servicing.
>
> Are the steering arms just interference fit? (is that the correct
> terminology?) or do that have some form of additional fitting?

Personally, I'd have thought that you would have felt and noticed the
increase in free play as it was presumably working loose for a while prior
to actually coming off?
Badger.

Oriondirect · Oct 27, 2005

Samuel

Similar experience 18 months back - drag link ball joint snapped travelling
at about 20 mph. Finished up on someone's lawn. Fortunately no one was hurt.

Interestingly the ball joint was changed 7 months back at the annual MOT -
Not a genuine Land Rover part.

Oriondirect

300 Series Disco (95)
>
"Samuel" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
> series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around
to
> have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering
box.
> therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel and
> wheels. i was bloody lucky that i was only going about 5 kays an hour. if
it
> had happened a couple of days ago on my trip to the country, there is
every
> possibility i wouldn't be writing this now.
>
> this happened to anyone else?
>
> just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own
landies,
> as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over
20
> km/hr.
>
> Sam.
>
>

Nigel Hewitt · Oct 27, 2005

Samuel <[email protected]> wrote:

> Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
> series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around to
> have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering box.
> therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel and
> wheels.

Back in the mid 70s that happened on my tricked up
1600 Ford Anglia. It didn't drop off it broke.
Thankfully it was pulling out of a parking space not
doing 20 year old idiot style things on a bendy road.

I guess the max strain is when you are slow manoeuvring.

nigelH

beamendsltd · Oct 27, 2005

In message <[email protected]>
"Oriondirect" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Samuel
>
> Similar experience 18 months back - drag link ball joint snapped travelling
> at about 20 mph. Finished up on someone's lawn. Fortunately no one was hurt.
>
> Interestingly the ball joint was changed 7 months back at the annual MOT -
> Not a genuine Land Rover part.
>
> Oriondirect

I've had a customer have one snap outside the unit (not one
supplied by us!). Arguably the shoulder where the thread starts at the
top of the taper was too sharp which may have introduced a weak point,
but on checking the other TRE's we found that they had been massively
over-tightened which was quite likely real cause of the failure.

Richard

>
> 300 Series Disco (95)
> >
> "Samuel" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
> > series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around
> to
> > have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering
> box.
> > therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel and
> > wheels. i was bloody lucky that i was only going about 5 kays an hour. if
> it
> > had happened a couple of days ago on my trip to the country, there is
> every
> > possibility i wouldn't be writing this now.
> >
> > this happened to anyone else?
> >
> > just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own
> landies,
> > as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over
> 20
> > km/hr.
> >
> > Sam.
> >
> >
>
>

--
www.beamends-lrspares.co.uk [email protected]
Running a business in a Microsoft free environment - it can be done
Powered by Risc-OS - you won't get a virus from us!!
Boycott the Yorkshire Dales - No Play, No Pay

Samuel · Oct 27, 2005

"Badger" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Tom Woods" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:28:32 +0100, Austin Shackles
> > <[email protected]> wrote:
> >
> >>>this happened to anyone else?
> >>
> >>bloody unusual, they're normally impossible to get off if you want to.
> >>>
> >>>just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own
> >>>landies,
> >>>as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything
over
> >>>20
> >>>km/hr.
> >>
> >>Just goes to show, though, always worth doing proper checks on the
vehicle
> >>when servicing.
> >
> > Are the steering arms just interference fit? (is that the correct
> > terminology?) or do that have some form of additional fitting?
>
> Personally, I'd have thought that you would have felt and noticed the
> increase in free play as it was presumably working loose for a while prior
> to actually coming off?
> Badger.
>
>

nope. no free play at all. i shoved the arm back on the box just enough (arm
was only about a third or less onto the splined axle coming out of the
steering box) so i could get the car out of the way for other cars, and it
didn't feel a tad different.

as to wether it's an intereference fit, the axle that comes out of the
steering box has a concave section about halfway along the splined section.
i believe the retaining bolt that goes through the arm is meant to sit flush
in the concave. it may be that the bolt was too small and not providing the
block, allowing the arm to slowly lever itself off despit the retaining bolt
being tight. i had tightened it 1-2 months earlier.

i will check that it has the right bolt fitted, and while i'm at it i will
move the arm over a couple of spline so the steering wheel is actually
straight when i'm going straight.

Sam.

Ian Rawlings · Oct 27, 2005

On 2005-10-27, Samuel <[email protected]> wrote:

> this happened to anyone else?

Nearly happened to me, the swan-neck that connects the steering box to
the steering was hanging out of the bar at a 45-degree angle. The
garage that spotted it during a routine service asked "Who fitted
that!" to which I replied "You did." After a few more "Who fitted
that" incidents I don't go there any more.

--
For every expert, there is an equal but opposite expert

Alex · Oct 27, 2005

On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:45:42 +0100, Tom Woods <[email protected]>
wrote:

>On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:28:32 +0100, Austin Shackles
><[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>>this happened to anyone else?
>>
>>bloody unusual, they're normally impossible to get off if you want to.
>>>
>>>just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own landies,
>>>as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at anything over 20
>>>km/hr.
>>
>>Just goes to show, though, always worth doing proper checks on the vehicle
>>when servicing.
>
>Are the steering arms just interference fit? (is that the correct
>terminology?) or do that have some form of additional fitting?

Tapered Spline with nut and lockwasher. Leaving the lockwasher off can
cause the arm to drop off the box. The nut becomes loose, drops off
and the drop arm is next to work it's way off, eventually.

The drop arms on the steering relay are spline with interfering pinch
bolt, not the same as the steering box.

Alex

JD · Oct 27, 2005

Samuel wrote:

> Pulled into the rubbish tip yesterday with a trailer on the back of my
> series 3, and suddenly lost all steering. stopped the car, jumped around
> to have a look and realized the steering arm had dropped off the steering
> box. therfore having absolutely no connection between the steering wheel
> and wheels. i was bloody lucky that i was only going about 5 kays an hour.
> if it had happened a couple of days ago on my trip to the country, there
> is every possibility i wouldn't be writing this now.
>
> this happened to anyone else?
>
> just thought i'd let you know, mabe go out and check it on your own
> landies, as it would be very very dangerous if it were to happen at
> anything over 20 km/hr.
>
> Sam.

About forty years ago I had the lower lever on the relay crack through from
the splined opening about thirty miles out of Pimba leaving me with no
steering. Fortunately the road was straight with loose gravel worn into
ridges about six inches high which sort of kept us straight. Drove slowly
into Pimba stopping every so often to straighten the wheels, and got the
arm welded up there. It lasted without problems to Alice Springs where I
got a new arm - noticeably heavier than the broken one. (I doubt you would
find ANY Landrover parts at all today in Alice)
JD

Frightening experience

Samuel

Guest

Austin Shackles

Guest

Tom Woods

Guest

Badger

Guest

Oriondirect

Guest

Nigel Hewitt

Guest

beamendsltd

Guest

Samuel

Guest

Ian Rawlings

Guest

Alex

Guest

JD

Guest

Similar threads