Assessment Of The Steering Of A Vehicle Involved In An Accident
WARNING: This page is about a different variant/trim than selected.
The steering gear may have to be replaced in the following situations:
- Yellow or red warning light (in the instrument cluster) indicating a problem with the steering.
- Visible or perceptible damage to the steering gear.
- Fire damage (e.g. steering bellows burnt).
- Unacceptable rise in torque and the steering gear jams or catches when turned fully from stop to stop. Check the steering with the engine running and stopped - the front wheels must be free when turning (front axle raised).
- Permanent deformation, damage or breaks on:
- Rims
- Tie rods
- Steering arms
- Steering-gear mountings
- Steering shaft
- Bellows as a result of water leaking in
- Spring struts
- Wheel bearing housing
- Trailing arm
- Front-axle cross member
- Screw-on points for wheel suspension parts on the body
Control dimension for tie-rod ball: If control dimension -X- is < 188 mm (measured up to the roll edge on the tie-rod ball end), the complete steering gear with tie rod and tie-rod ball must be replaced.
Control dimension for tie-rod ball
If the listed criteria are insufficient for making a decision, we recommend that the steering gear be replaced.