I have news...e46 rack

[Apps]

Just installed an e46 m3 rack this past weekend. Same procedure as the e36 swap.

I used e30 tie-rods as the e46 tie-rods were far to long and lacked necessary adjustment to shorten them an appropriate amount. I used 14mm spacers underneath the rack at the back holes and had to modify the column assembly with 3/4" spacers just below the steering guibo.

For these spacers I machined aluminum inserts that pressed in and allowed the use of 3/8" aircraft bolt...so no slop and no clamping force holding my steering shaft together.

Power steering hooked right up though it required a slight bend in one of the lines in order to clear the steering shaft assembly. If pics are necessary I can try to take a few...I was too dirty during to grab the camera...

[jasonsnoddy]

Is it shorter than the z3 rack?

[nrubenstein]

Is it shorter than the z3 rack?

Probably not. It's 3.5 turns ltl, although it might allow more steering angle.

[Apps]

Probably not. It's 3.5 turns ltl, although it might allow more steering angle.

Correct...don't know about the z3 rack but the rack gear shaft itself measured almost exactly the same as the e30 rack

[Apps]

btw 3.5 ltl is unimportant its the 15.4:1 ratio that means something...
...which is faster than all but z3 and e46 330i

[ZM Blue Devil]

post up pictures, good work.

[Jean]

Need more details/info/part numbers :) The wider the selection of racks we can use the better!

[Apps]

Tomorrow night I'll get some pictures/part number/details for you...

[Apps]

write-up e46 rack

Ok so I started out with this in my trunk... magically appeared one day...


Then I started machining spacers for the rack and spacers for the steering shaft that would press in and house a 3/8" aircraft bolt...no slop...


After a long period of wiggling parts and bolting things back together I'm left with this ugly mess on some old carpets in the trunk


And finally pictures of the steering shaft spacers in place






And pictures of the mounted rack




And pictures of the id plate, e46 tie-rods (about 1 inch too long), and the e46 boots that I used on the e30 tie-rods








Oh yea don't forget to hook the pas lines back up...I gave it one day without and as long as this cars sees the street in any form pas will be on it...though I doubt slicks would be much fun without pas at the track either


Try to look past a little bit of the grime...none of it is from the new rack all from having the old rack and lines dump in there when taking it apart.

[jasonsnoddy]

the majority of those pics are broken

[Apps]

not anymore...you reply too fast... ;)

[E30_fiend]

off topic but what bar is that? I have the same one but never could figure out what bar it was

TIA



Taylor

[Apps]

I assume your talking about the front sway?...It's a 25mm IE bar though I think there 22 would look the same...is yours hollow?

[Der Ruffian]

Hows the steering with this rack???

[1sgxj]

When you say PS lines hooked right up, do you mean the stock e30 lines, or other?