went to the lkq self-serve and pulled a rack from a low mile '95 legacy for my friend's 330k '94. evidently, the racks are all the same from '92 to '98. i bet the '90-'91 are the same as well with some insignificant difference, kind of like the struts are different, but only in the camber adjust bolt...
anyway, stopped off at Napa to pick up some new boots. i asked if they had Beck-Arnley, but they only had DANA. they assured me, these were premium!!! i bought the parts, along with a new Fel-pro valve cover gasket set and headed for the shop. after cleaning the rack and inspecting for wear, i found the tie-rods, seals and gear in good condition. so i packed everything with a good quality grease and then went to install the DANA boots. OMG!!! these boots are one size fits most. hell, the small end was about .3" and it was supposed to fit a .6" diameter tie rod. additionally, the large end was to be "zip-tied" where as the original has a molded in garter spring for retention. and if that wasn't enough to send me over the edge, the material was practically plastic! sure, there was some virgin rubber in the mix, but not enough to keep this boot from fatiguing and cracking within two years!!! did i mention the box said "Taiwan"... i hate chinese shyt!!!
dammit Napa!!!! i expect this sort of bs from Autozone and O'reily's, but you napa... et tu brutus!!!! you are pissing me off!!!
turns out, napa charged me $25.50 each for the boots. i can mail order oe subaru for $21.50 plus shipping....
you know, dana, timken, etc. used to be respected, quality parts. now they have fallen to the same philosophy so many other american companies practice. they lower their quality, farm it out to asia, and sell for the same price as OE.... just so the CEO makes $25M a year and the stockholders are happy. America, you are going down the shytter, you stupid, shallow, greedy Americans.... quit buying chinese shyt! have some pride and patience. save up your money and buy quality stuff. quit feeding this vicious circle of self-destruction!!!
okay, i feel a little better for now....
'94 steering rack boot replacement
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