After installing a new engine a couple of months ago, two issues have cropped up with the steering: (everything with the engine is going great now fortunately )
1. the steering wheel is pointing to 1 o'clock when the road wheels are straight ahead, i.e. the steering wheel is 30° out
2. the steering (and seemingly the whole front end) vibrates badly at anything over 45mph. I also think there's a bit more play than there used to be at all speeds.
Both issues appeared as soon as the engine was installed.
As for the misaligned steering wheel, is it normal for this to happen after installing a different engine (with new mounts and steady bushes)? Is it anything to worry about that it's moved this far out? This was a sudden thing that happened immediately after the engine installation, rather than a gradual thing.
I know I simply need to take off the steering column then re-install it with the splines in the correct position - which I'll be doing once my new shear bolt (and bushes) arrive.
I do have one question - a vital step is missing out of my Haynes edition and I'm aware that fitment of the steering column is safety critical. Haynes goes through every step but at no point tells me when to re-tighten the U-bolt nuts!! Can someone confirm that I should do this at the very end, after I've engaged the spline, torqued the pinch bolt and tightened the shear bolt? I'm aware how critical this procedure is so I'd like to be sure before doing it.
Secondly, the vibration at high speed - I've found many threads about this and it looks as though tracking down the cause can cost quite a bit of time and money if you're don't identify the right cause first time. The tie bars are straight, they both have an equal number of threads exposed, the rack is fastened securely to the bulkhead and the tie bar bushes seem to be ok. I'm thinking about taking the car for tracking, but before I go and spend £40, can anyone advise whether there is another more likely cause of vibration at speed following an engine install with new subframe mounts? Is it normal for the tracking to be thrown out when a new engine is installed or should I be looking for another cause?
Is there any advantage in having all four wheels tracked or will the front two be sufficient?
Will a national chain like ATS be ok for setting tracking on a Mini or should I be taking it to a specialist?
Thanks everyone in advance for putting up with my amateurish questions
P.S. my last MOT had an advisory saying "Nearside Play in steering rack inner joint(s)" if that helps, although I can't feel it myself