E46 CS steering rack opinions

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SoupAnxiety
E30 Zone Newbie
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Joined: Mon May 18, 2015 11:00 pm

Fri May 13, 2016 8:54 am

Hi all,

I planned to put an E46 CS steering rack in my E30 last year but ran out of money and ended up getting my OEM rack refurbished instead. There's no play in my steering but I'm wondering if I should put the E46 CS rack on my wishlist of upgrades. Is it really a night and day difference from a tidy E30 rack? Is there any loss of steering feel?

My car is a 1990 325i saloon, right hand drive. Are there any clearance issues with the M20 engines?

Thanks.
DanThe
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Fri May 13, 2016 9:27 am

Yes, night and day difference, by far one of the top mods you can do to improve your E30

M20 does end up with the exhaust close to the linkage, there are two ways around this, either use stiffer/slightly taller mounts or have the exhaust front pipe modified.

Ive fitted the alternative mounts to lots of standard M20 cars now without a problem, its only engines with aftermarket 6 branch manifolds where things get difficult.
If you didn't know I make/supply the custom pipes, linkages and engine mounts

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iDreamBeemer
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Sun May 15, 2016 8:58 pm

Yes. Do it!
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TriggerFish
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Sun May 15, 2016 10:12 pm

I love mine. Best thing I've done to it so far.

Also worth noting, mine fitted with the standard linkage with the gubio in place. That's with standard M20 one piece exhaust manifold, and old engine mounts (the new ones I've got should create a bit more clearance as they won't have sagged).

Dan's pipes/service are top notch too. (They got a compliment off the guy who fine tuned my tracking for me too :) )

I got my rack for £30 off eBay by trawling through every single 'e46 steering rack' and looking for the pictures of a purple tag. Don't pay extra to those people who are asking for added scene tax - just shop around and save £.
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Laith
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Wed May 18, 2016 6:54 pm

I did a z3 1.9l rack swap.

Sideways is now easier.

Best mod ever!
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SoupAnxiety
E30 Zone Newbie
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Posts: 13
Joined: Mon May 18, 2015 11:00 pm

Fri May 20, 2016 9:01 am

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm going to get the parts sorted from Dan and pickup a rack from eBay (thanks TriggerFish for the tip on searching for the rack by picture not CS tax keywords!).

Is there any interest in E30 steering racks? The one I remove from mine has been refurbished and it would be nice for it to go to a good home.
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