so anyone ever have problems with the steering rack? my car has a perfect alignment and pulls very hard to the right. mazda tech said it was the steering rack. Has anyone gone through this problem? Any easy fixes? what kind of aftermarket steering racks are out there?

 

Mine started making a clickity-clickity grinding sort of sound, about a week after my warranty expired. It sounds like stripping gears. It mostly does it when I am turning my wheels in the parking lot.

I asked the dealership about the cost. $1200 for the part, and nearly $800 for labor. Gulp. Then I asked him if there is any particular danger in driving with noisy steering. They said no, it will just make noise. I said that I would turn up my radio. That was a year ago.

So...I'm toying around with the idea of fixing it myself...although I've never done such a thing. Sooo...

1) Does anyone make an aftermarket unit? The stock one already failed, and I'm not real keen on sticking another one on when the first failed after 50k miles.

2) Has anyone done this before? Is there a guide for it somewhere? I can follow directions but I've never done anything like this before.

I'd like to fix it, but I just can't stomach the thought of paying $2k to fix a clicking/grinding sound that hasn't really effected handling, or grown worse.