Oil on steering box

[Silky]

If a van has been "advised on play and dampness of oil on the steering box" in an MOT (which it's passed) how big / bad or otherwise is that? It's not my van, but one up for sale.

I guess this is one of those "how long is a piece of string " questions, with lots of different answers, but any advice would be much appreciated so we know whether just to scratch it off the list completely.

Thanks,
Silky

[California Dreamin]

Well firstly it's not a T25 as they have steering racks.....
so dampness could mean a weep around the steering arm main seal or even pipe unions although less likely. When they advise it just means 'keep an eye on it'. If it were mine I would be checking the PS oil regularly and looking out for a tell tail drip where the van is parked up. If the level never goes down and you only ever see the odd drip...I would just be inclined to live with it and just keep checking.
If this is a more serious leak then you're probably going to need an exchange steering box...it's just a case of taking the old box off with the steering in it's straight ahead position (bolts that hold the box, a column coupling and two hydraulic pipes usually) refit with the new box locked off in it's central position. Check the tracking although in some cases replacing the box doesn't alter the tracking....it all depends on the vehicle and whether it comes with the the steering arm attached etc.

Martin

[bigherb]

Assume you mean the steering box at the bottom of the steering column, VW call it a relay gearbox. If it has play in it then it usually needs replacing. Is it play at the steering wheel or up and down play in the output shaft?

[Silky]

Thanks! You're right, it's not a T25, it's a VW LT28. A friend's looking for a LT at the moment but we weren't sure whether that was an indicator of a major problem or something more easily remedied.

Silky

[R0B]

It might be worth asking on the brickyards LT forum as well. http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/forum/lt-cr ... rum31.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Silky]

Thanks Rob!

Silky