Having just completed this mission, I can tell you nothing is easier. Piece of piss. But don't start the mission if you get angry turning spanners in tight places, it is getting dark, or there are mosquitoes.
Here's how it goes down. Don't forget to disconnect your battery first.
Oh, by the way, I drive on the right hand side of the road here, so the steering wheel is on the left. You will figure it out. Think opposite to what I am telling you here. Better not do this drunk or high then.
Remove three small screws, 8mm head, from the power steering lines nearest the radiator. The two held together with the plastic clamps, not the ones on the sump. Two are in front of the harmonic balance, one is under the power steering pump. Get into it with a long extension.
Get a bit of rope. Attach it to one side of the steering wheel, loop it around the headrest of the driver's seat, and tie it to the other. This way, you know you are not twisting the wheel and breaking the spring inside it as you move it to get the rack out. Don't cross the ropes, right?
Turn the wheel so the nut under the universal joint that joins the steering rod going through the firewall to the steering wheel to the rack is facing the bell housing. The steering lock holds everything in place, so you will need a bit of deft ignition key work. You can get your 13mm ring spanner in there onto that nut then, between the engine and the rod. Give it a spray with WD40 cause you are gonna want to spin that baby off with your fingers as soon as you can. Remove the nut and pull the bolt out. When you got it off, turn the wheel so where the nut was is directly facing the engine and lock it there.
Reach down to the top hose nut of the power steering lines with a 16mm spanner and loose it off until it's gonna come out with your fingers. But don't completely undo it yet.
Loosen your front wheel nuts.
Jack your car up at the front and put it on stands.
Cut the cable ties and pull the rubber boots off the side of the steering rack.
Get a big spanner or shifter onto the steering rack end of the arms that attach to the rack. Get the jack under your shifter before you raise the car, and use the jack to push the end of the shifter up, applying the lever force. It will have those arms loosened in a jiffy, which will otherwise be a pain in the bum if you leave them tight till the rack is off.
Get under the front of the car and undo the 8mm nut holding the top power steering line you just loosened to the chassis.
Undo that steering line and pull it back out of the way a bit.
Pull off the wheels.
Undo the nuts and knock the joints at the wheel end of the rack arms out. Put an old nut on the top before you start bashing at them. If those tie rod end joints are difficult, you hit the housing sharply on the sharpest end with your meaty hammer. You know, a sharp bash on the housing perpendicular to the bit you want to get out, instead of trying to hammer the joint out like a nail. Pops it out like a curry gooner.
Twist off the arms to reduce weight.
Get your 19mm spanner and go in through the wheel arch and undo the bottom power steering hose and push that back out of the way.
Hold the rack up with a bit of wood and the jack now, and undo the two 19mm bolts either end that fix it to the chassis.
Tap it out of the end held in there with the bushing.
Lower it down carefully with the jack. You might have to get up and pull the steering rod off. Mine just falls out of the bracket as I lower the rack down.
You got it. Wipe all the transmission fluid you've been rolling around in off yourself.
Undo the hydraulic hoses. If they are reluctant, put a bit of heat on them, and go for some prudent use of vice grips. Don't deform them, you don't have to go that hard. Don't leave them on there, cause you are only gonna **** em up, and ruin your nice job.
Get your big old allen key and remove that huge allen key bolt. You'll need a man-size allen key for that. You can easy tell this car was designed for Australians. I stuck it in there, braced the end in a hole in a manhole cover on the road, and then used the long end of the rack as the lever to twist it. Just pushed down on it. No need to undo the lock nut them, which is a bastard. Whole lot comes out so easy.
Knock the steel doodad under it out by hitting the opposite side lightly with your mallet. Make sure you're away from the road so nothing rolls down the gutter.
Undo the 19mm cap over the pinion nut. You'll find it, cause it's the only one on there. It's just a cap. Bit of heat helps if it is stuck, one of mine was.
Undo the 17mm nut on the end of the pinion inside.
Undo the two bolts with your allen key holding the pinion housing onto the rack chamber. Tap it with a rubber mallet, off it comes. Pull out the pinion.
Observe where seals and stuff are so you can put it back together. There's that diagram above too.
Go to the long end of the rack. Look in there, you'll see the nylon end cap. Clean everything in there really well, and hit it with some DWD40, if dirt got in your rubber boot.
Cut a nail to fit across the slots of the cap, and you can easy twist it with big pliers or multigrips to spin the wire circlip out of the hole. Just spin it anticlockwise till you see the end of the clip, pry it up with your screwdriver, and keep spinning. It's soft and easy. Scared of the big allen key, see. Out if comes. Use a pair of long nose pliers if you got the end cap with just holes, not slots. Put the points in the holes and twist, using a screwdriver as a lever if you need to.
If you stick your broomstick into the pinion hole, sit in a chair and put your leg over the broomstick, and hold the rack between your legs, this twisting game is a breeze. I found my long nose pliers with the slot cap went either side of my piece of nail and down the hole in the rack arm, and - using a breaker bar as a lever - cracking it initially to get it spinning had it submissive in no time.
Pull the nylon cap out if you want but you don't need to. You can just grab it with your long nose pliers. If it's reluctant leave it there for a stricter lesson.
Then, just pull hard on the end of the rack arm where the end cap was, or use it like a slide hammer - or, if it hasn't learned yet, tap at it with your broomstick and mallet from the other side - and the whole kit and caboodle will come out. Be careful power steering fluid doesn't fly out the hydraulic hose holes, ha ha, if you are doing the slide hammer thing, and you are working somewhere your wife gets angry about. Sshhh...
Then get a wooden broom stick and knock the seal out of the other end, the pinion end.
All the other seals in the pinion housing etc. come out easy if you just gently lever them out with your long nose pliers.
Observe how it was all put together.
Change all your seals and O-rings etc., and put it all back together.
Pretty much these steps in reverse.
Honestly, it's an easy job.
Best thing is, it's like brand new again, for $35. Sweet. I hate spending money on cars.