Z4 non powered steering rack fits e30

[Brian7]

My Z4 OEM rack showed up yesterday and lo and behold, E30 inner and outer tie rod assemblies fit the Z4 rack like I was hoping. The E30 boots will have to be stretched to fit over the Z4 rack but shouldn't be an issue, just more of a pain in the ass. Now I need to pick up a pinch bolt for the lower joint and it's ready to go in. Theres no way to use E30 lock washers so I'm going to red Loctite them in and call it good.

[Brian7]

I felt safer getting a good condition OEM rack with low miles. And it was a bit cheaper than $200.

[89325iturbo]

Thanks for the pictures. Yeah not sure, might go with a reman. I know there not using oem parts when they threw them.

[Brian7]

Would anyone buy a remaned unit? Rock auto sells remaned ones for $200, that's with the core charge. Most of what I see on eBay is about that price or more.

I think reman'd units are fine. Especially for a manual rack.

I got the Z4 steering shaft in today and decided to chop it up. Heres what I found.

Outer plastic shield removed


Quickly learned it doesn't come apart unless you make this cut. There are little tangs crimped over the hole holding the ball bearings inside from falling out. Cutting the female part of the shaft here allowed me to see what was going on inside.



Here is what is inside



The male section also has a small clip holding the bearings from sliding off that end



The clip is easily removed to give access to the ball bearing assembly.



Ball bearing size in case you decide to fill the grooves with solid rod like wanganstyle



Depending on how short the shaft needs to be will determine what I do with mine. Either keep the telescoping ability or weld it together. I think keeping the bearing assembly inside is just fine. Whether the shaft is 8" long or 3" long, the same amount of bearings are holding the shaft together.

[89325iturbo]

Would anyone buy a remaned unit? Rock auto sells remaned ones for $200, that's with the core charge. Most of what I see on eBay is about that price or more.

[89325iturbo]

Thanks for the link. I'm not to bad at welding either. My friend is also certified. I wonder what the spline count is for an e90 steering shaft? Anything from a 330i, 325i, ect.. They look similar minus the outer plastic part with the ball bearings. There fairly cheap 25-35$.

[Brian7]

Forgot to say I'm competent with my welding ability so I'll have to rip this thing apart and see the best way to make it one piece or chop it down so it still telescopes like it should.

[Brian7]

I had to start searching for other things to find the one I got but here's a relatively inexpensive one.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-Z4-Steer...5WU2T5&vxp=mtr

[89325iturbo]

I'm having a hard time finding a steering shaft. Atleast one for a good price.

[Brian7]

Found a Z4 steering shaft on eBay for $55 as well. All in all if I can use my E30 inner and outer tie rod ends I'll be into it a little over $200. Hopefully the manual steering is good enough for a daily driver! I put 200 miles a week on my car :D

[89325iturbo]

^^ nice. I'm at the point of ordering a rack as well. Just wanted to see a couple more cases of people installing them.

[Brian7]

Well, I may be the first to report if they fit. Got a Z4 rack on order :D

[Brian7]

So if E36 inner and outer tie rods fit the Z4 rack, does that mean E30 inner and outer tie rods will fit the Z4 rack as well? Since E30 inner and outer tie rods fit E36 racks I don't see why not. I have brand new E30 tie rod assemblies ready to go.

[jph]

Any new updates on this, from people who have installed it? With what combination of parts did you use for the steering ujoint? Or modify the stock z4 piece.

I've had the rack waiting to go in and I had Tyler at Arc Asylum make me a custom steering shaft using Flaming River joints and a collapsible shaft. The collapsible shaft will give me some wiggle room on fitment length and is also safer in the event of a front end collision. I'll update here once it's all installed.

[totheredline]

Installed in my m30 swapped car. Really really easy to turn compared to a non power e36 rack and wayyyyy better feel. Andddd the ratio and angle is beautiful. Pretty much bolt in besides cutting the shaft to length.

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