# Regrease Rack and Pinion **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [May 16, 2024, 2:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917 "2024-05-16T14:23:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![YoshiMoshi3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8dc957/32.png) [@YoshiMoshi3](https://community.cartalk.com/u/YoshiMoshi3)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2024, 2:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/1 "2024-05-16T14:23:31Z")
Typical rack and pinion system. I see for my car, on assembly, molybdenum disulfide lithium based grease is supposed to be applied to the teeth of the rack portion of the rack and pinion. Adding grease to the rack isn’t listed as a maintenance item. Is it a good idea to typically add additional grease to the teeth of the rack, as part of regular maintenance? Just thinking that after several years the lubrication properties of the grease has probably diminished since the date of manufacture. Kind of difficult to add grease to an inner tie rod, but it seems like the rack should be easy and i don’t see any negative in periodically adding grease? ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2024, 2:46pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/2 "2024-05-16T14:46:38Z")
Yes, remove your rack n pinion, completely disassemble it, hopefully you have the know how on building racks, grease it, reassemble it, reinstall the rack n pinion, hope you get it right, then drive it to have it aligned up and hopefully you did it correctly or the rack could lock up in a turn and cause a wreck… 🤦‍♂️ 💣 🚫 ☠ Yoshi, you have already been told in another one of your threads/post that this is a bad idea and I have NEVER heard of anybody doing this… I have 35+ years including building transmissions, complete engine rebuilds and rear ends and about everything in between and I would NOT even do this on my own vehicle… Stop overthinking things please… ---
**Author:** ![Tester](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/tester/32/15976_2.png) [@Tester](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Tester)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2024, 3:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/3 "2024-05-16T15:02:31Z")
Servicing the rack and pinion is not a scheduled maintenance item. > [@YoshiMoshi3](#): > > Adding grease to the rack isn’t listed as a maintenance item If there’s a problem with the rack and pinion assembly, it’s replaced. Tester ---
**Author:** ![YoshiMoshi3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8dc957/32.png) [@YoshiMoshi3](https://community.cartalk.com/u/YoshiMoshi3)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2024, 3:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/4 "2024-05-16T15:03:53Z")
My bad couldn’t remember if I asked this or not. I was thinking of just loosening the clamp on the boot to expose the teeth and adding some grease, not completely disassemble lol. But I get the point it’s not really necessary I guess. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2024, 3:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/5 "2024-05-16T15:28:38Z")
> [@YoshiMoshi3](#): > > it’s not really necessary I guess. Correction… It’s not necessary period… NO really or I guess period… lol Tester said it perfect, _ **If there’s a problem with the rack and pinion assembly, it’s replaced** _. ---
**Author:** ![TheWonderful90s](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/thewonderful90s/32/29584_2.png) [@TheWonderful90s](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TheWonderful90s)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2024, 4:01pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/6 "2024-05-21T16:01:10Z")
If you mixed the wrong type of grease it could cause the grease to soften or in some cases harden and not work as well. If the boot was torn and dirt got in there, maybe cleaning it and regreasing would be necessary? ---
**Author:** ![Tester](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/tester/32/15976_2.png) [@Tester](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Tester)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2024, 4:14pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/7 "2024-05-21T16:14:39Z")
> [@TheWonderful90s](#): > > If the boot was torn and dirt got in there The boots on the R&P are there to protect the inner tie rods from debris. > **[Steering Rack Boot](https://repairpal.com/steering-rack-boot)** > > The steering rack boot is an expandable rubber covering that creates a seal between the rack and pinion and the tie rod end. There is one on each end of the rack and pinion steering gear. Tester ---
**Author:** ![TheWonderful90s](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/thewonderful90s/32/29584_2.png) [@TheWonderful90s](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TheWonderful90s)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2024, 4:16pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/8 "2024-05-21T16:16:31Z")
> [@Tester](#): > > The boots on the R&P are there to protect the inner tie rods from debris. I saw a 2001 BMW where the inner tie rod boot was off and the teeth on the rack were exposed. It must depend on the vehicle. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2024, 4:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/9 "2024-05-21T16:20:16Z")
> [@TheWonderful90s](#): > > If the boot was torn and dirt got in there The rack n pinion is sealed off from the outside world, it is what keeps the grease and PS fluid inside the rack, the inner tie rod is attached to the outside part of the rack coming out of the rack… The boot protects the inner tie rod not the rack… Kinda like a transaxle seal where the cv axle goes into the transmission vs the cv boot that retains the grease and protects the cv joint… ---
**Author:** ![Beancounter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/59ef9b/32.png) [@Beancounter](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Beancounter)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2024, 11:29am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/10 "2024-05-22T11:29:42Z")
> [@YoshiMoshi3](#): > > Is it a good idea to typically add additional grease to the teeth of the rack, as part of regular maintenance? In a word, NO. Fifty years ago “greasing the rack” was part of the normal “oil change and grease job (ball joints, axel shaft, water pump, generator, etc.)” maintenance and the parts all had Zerk fittings to allow you to do it but since then materials and design have greatly improved, making regular greasing of the rack generally unnecessary. The exception is if the part is worn out, in which case greasing won’t help and it’s time to replace. ---
**Author:** ![PvtPublic](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pvtpublic/32/13089_2.png) [@PvtPublic](https://community.cartalk.com/u/PvtPublic)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2024, 4:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/11 "2024-05-22T16:20:06Z")
> [@Beancounter](#): > > Fifty years ago “greasing the rack” was part of the normal “oil change and grease job (ball joints, axel shaft, water pump, generator, etc.)” maintenance and the parts all had Zerk fittings I don’t remember any 70’s or even 60’s cars have a greasable alternator or water pump, much less a generator. ---
**Author:** ![Beancounter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/59ef9b/32.png) [@Beancounter](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Beancounter)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2024, 5:54pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/regrease-rack-and-pinion/194917/12 "2024-05-22T17:54:14Z")
Well, I can tell you that during the '50s several of the Brit Cars were still using greasable water pumps and generators (not alternators) with a take off reduction gear cable drive to the tach 😄 Without doing deep research I can’t produce an exact date when these parts were replaced but I’m guessing that it was somewhere around 1962 when the MG Midget was introduced and the generator MGA was replaced by the alternator MGB.