Steering Rack Issue

[mickmurphy92]

Hi all,

Since I've had my GTI the past three months the steering wheel pushes back when at say the 2 or 3 o clock position left or right, it most noticeable on roundabouts. I brought it to VW for inspection & they said they didn't notice anything on the drive, & no fault codes showed up, they suggested replacing the steering rack (2200 euro) so that not happening ha! I got quotes for second hand steering racks from breakers of 80-120, I've never done one but I'm sure there's a video online (one of the best things about having a mk5 there's a video for everything) but you never really know your getting, my cars has 88k miles so a lot lower than most that have been scrapped

Has anyone else had this issue before, could it be the steering wheel position sensor? or is it most likely the rack? It really takes from enjoying the feel of the car through a bend.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[terrier]

Id be tempted to get a rebuilt rack with a guarantee/warranty.

[pudding]

By 'pushing back' do you mean heavy resistance just at that angle and then it frees off again?

It's worth checking the other suspension components before shelling out for a new rack.  A slipping alternator belt or bad battery can also cause intermittent heaviness (no power assistance).

If it is the rack, you'll be needing a Gen 3 (MK6 rack).  It's all you can get from VW now and some refurbishers won't want your Gen 1/2 back, so there'll be an additional surcharge to pay.

You're looking at £500ish for a Gen 3 for a refurbished one.  I got mine from Powerracksdirect.co.uk.  They didn't want my Gen1/2 back so I had to pay an additional £50 surcharge.  That may not be the case with all refurbishers though.

Then you'll need a £100 harness from VW to go with it as it's different to the Gen1/2 harness.

Then you'll need to do some VCDS coding to tell the car to use the angle sensor in the rack instead of the one in the steering column, and also do an adaptation.

And lastly, if you get a "J500 - unable to connect to controller" type error in the ABS module (you more than likely will), you will need to take it to VW to do a software update and upload the MK6 GTI steering profile to it.

If the steering feels fine, it's not essential to do the last bit.  You only need the steering profile if you're not happy with the assistance weight.  VW have different profiles for 16 - 18" wheels and 'sports' (heavy) and 'non sport' (light).