Steering rack on an omni

[FearThe4Doors]

I guess this is the best place to post about this, but whats it take to change a rack on a TBI omni? Pull the engine? Drop the frame? Or by an act of *** can it slide out somehow?

People told me on my Spirit you had to drop the frame, but i managed to get it in and out a few times without that.

Anyone have any hints?? Thanks!

BTW, its power steering, TBI

[GLHS99]

I changed the rack in my 83 N/A Omni 12 years ago and I didn't pull anything other than the rack itself. It was a manual rack though. If I remember I popped the tie rod ends, disconnected the steering linkage and then removed this small tin shield. THere were 4 bolts and one refused to come out. I cut the head off and removed the rack and then removed the stubborn bolt with a hammer and cold chisel.

[sergio]

Honestly I think it would be easier to just drop the K-frame. With all the other stuff having to be disconnected anyway another 4 bolts isn't that much of a big deal.

And at least by taking it all off you won't have as much of a problem with banging your elbows and squeezing your hands into all the tiny little spaces that our L-bods are infamous for.

[FearThe4Doors]

youd have to undo the lower ball joints too... and possibly caliper and rotor to get to them, along with sway bar mounts.

But I got d@mn lucky, turned out I just had a tire develop an egg in it and since my rack IS rather shot, it was slamming everything around very hard and giving me symptoms of a rack falling apart.

:crossing my fingers i can get another few mos out of the rack!:

Thanks for the help though!