cygnusx1 Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I had just did a second and third gear blast of acceleration and when I let off the throttle the steering completely locked up on me! The car pulled me over the double yellow line, across the oncoming lane, through a bush and onto the opposite dirt shoulder heading for a stone wall. OMFG it freaked me out. I just about ripped the steering wheel off trying to steer it back to the right (impossible) while I was threshhold braking to slow it down. I managed to MAXIMUM brake and stop after plowing through the bush about 2 feet from the stone wall. I caught my breath and put it into reverse and it steered fine. I backed it onto the road and carefully got it home with no more trouble. What the heck could have happened? I tried steering it after I parked it and it steers fine. I never touched the key the whole time so I doubt the steering lock popped in. I refuse to get back into it obviously. This is the first time anything like this has happened and I have not done any work to the front end in at least 1.5 years. :shock::shock::shock: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thumper Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I had just did a second and third gear blast of acceleration and when I let off the throttle the steering completely locked up on me! The car pulled me over the double yellow line, across the oncoming lane, through a bush and onto the opposite dirt shoulder heading for a stone wall. OMFG it freaked me out. I just about ripped the steering wheel off trying to steer it back to the right (impossible) while I was threshhold braking to slow it down. I managed to MAXIMUM brake and stop after plowing through the bush about 2 feet from the stone wall. I caught my breath and put it into reverse and it steered fine. I backed it onto the road and carefully got it home with no more trouble. What the heck could have happened? I tried steering it after I parked it and it steers fine. I never touched the key the whole time so I doubt the steering lock popped in. I refuse to get back into it obviously. This is the first time anything like this has happened and I have not done any work to the front end in at least 1.5 years. :shock::shock::shock: WOW! GLAD YOU ARE OK! Check your pants because I would have pissed AND shitted myself. Umm you are a running turbo maybe your engine torqued and the turbo or something got jamed in the steering lingage. Check to make sure everything is tight. WOW. Be safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deja Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Yikes! It sure sounds like the steering lock engaged for some reason. The fact that it just went away is very scary. If it happened once logic dictates it will happen again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mario_82_ZXT Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Glad you're ok!!! Did it feel like something locking around the steering wheel area or from the suspension in the front? When the wheel lock engages mine will still move a little, did it move at all? Scary! Mario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted November 30, 2007 Author Share Posted November 30, 2007 Yeah it was more than scary. At first I thought a left front caliper locked up but the steering wheel would not budge. It did feel springy. It was locked somewhere near center lock and the car wanted to go slightly left. I am now thinking that the key somehow let the steering lock engage. I jacked up the car and everything seems fine underneath. I am going to remove the steering lock and hope it never, ever, ever, happens again! I put the steering lock on manually and felt the steering wheels resistance and it pretty much felt exactly like what happened. I jiggled the crap out of the key in the ON position to see if I could make the steering lock engage in the garage but it would not. My next drive is going to be VERY nerve racking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrommitZ Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Wow! I'm glad you're OK. That had to be scary. Edit: I see you just answered the questions I had. Maybe the acceleration aided in the key lockup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
240hoke Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Wow thats crazy to say the least glad you are okay... that could have been a horrible accident. Hope you get it figured out... id be ripping that rack out and checking it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudypoochris Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Yikes! I am glad you are all right! What is the purpose of the steering lock any way? Theft deterent? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragonfly Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 First of all I'm glad your allright... when you pull the switch appart you will see an oval hole in the steering column where the locking shaft passes through to lock the wheel. I would check the hole in the steering shaft (look through the hole in the column) to see if there is any indication what so ever that it may have been deformed from pulling the heck out of it while locked. If you find that it was the steering wheel lock I would highly recomend that you replace the entire key/lock assembly with a new one, then pull a little CSI on the old one to see what caused the problem. Last but not least let the rest of us know what you found so we can check ours to make sure know one else goes through the same thing. Dragonfly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Careless Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I really don't wanna find out who this is going to happen to next. Is there a way of disabling the steering lock completely? is it just a pin or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragonfly Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I really don't wanna find out who this is going to happen to next. Is there a way of disabling the steering lock completely? is it just a pin or something? Yes there is a pin that you remove to disassemble it the problem is that the pin is under the metal cover around the key hole. You have to either have a special tool to remove the cover or you destroy it taking it off, if cygnusx1 replaces the orriginal one he can destroy the old one to find the source of the problem. If the problem is inside the key mechanism the rest of us can take ours to our local locksmith to have the cover removed without damage. Dragonfly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capt_furious Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Holy pucker value, Batman! Glad you're all right and the car isn't badly damaged. Anyone ever hear of this happening before? Hate to think this might be a hazard on Zs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest S12 Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 i had to literally beat my steering column lock and acc. off with a hammer to even get my car, because the prior owner lost the key. after i had the lock pushed up (disengaged) i threw a nice weld on her to keep her that way until i could fully remove it. i have done the same thing, but not as fast... thats when i welded it. haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Careless Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 Yes there is a pin that you remove to disassemble it the problem is that the pin is under the metal cover around the key hole. You have to either have a special tool to remove the cover or you destroy it taking it off, if cygnusx1 replaces the orriginal one he can destroy the old one to find the source of the problem. If the problem is inside the key mechanism the rest of us can take ours to our local locksmith to have the cover removed without damage. Dragonfly Thanks -fly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted November 30, 2007 Author Share Posted November 30, 2007 My plan of action is to go after all the bolts in the front end to make sure nothing got loose and bound up. So far it seems all fine up front. The next thing I am going to do is what I always wanted to do anyhow. I am replacing the ingition with push button start. The column lock will be tossed or disabled but I will DEFINITELY perform a CSI on the whole system focusing on the mechanisn that holds the locking pin back. I was accelerating hard in 2nd and 3rd over somewhat rippled pavement and the rear wheels were breaking loose. Then I let off and no steering! A few minutes earlier I was "breaking the speed limit" on a tree lined twisty parkway. I am seriously moved by this experience. The bush I went through put a few scuffs on the clearcoat that will rub right out. I CANNOT stop thinking about how lucky I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big-phil Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 wow, thats wierd. I'm glad your ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strotter Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 Another possible source of the problem might be something the steering box, jamming between the gears. When I rebuilt mine, I found a piece of a circlip in the grease inside the housing. If something metallic like that could work its' way between the pinion and rack, it might caused a "springy" (because of the rubber isolator) feeling jam. Probably not, but something else to worry about... BTW, that kind of mechanical failure is the stuff of nightmares. Seriously. Glad you're OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil280zxt Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 I'm glad you and the Z managed to survive that episode Dave!! Temporary loss of steering can definitely make you approach the next few turns with increased anxiety. I've owned two vechicles in which I have experienced similiar conditions. The first was a 1987 Pontiac 6000 SE. The steering racks in this model was known to develop a small leak that allowed the seals on the push rods to dry out. If you tried to turn right when the seal was dry, you could not turn the wheel for a few seconds. I had to replace the rack twice while I owned the car. The second was my wife's 1996 Dodge Caravan. Making a right turn on to a residential street, the steering locked up momentarily. Almost took out three parked cars. Turns out there was a Chrysler recall. The problem was that the drain hose on AC would drip water on the power steering pulley while turning right. This caused the belt to slip for a few seconds and essentially rendered the steering useless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted December 1, 2007 Author Share Posted December 1, 2007 This was complete mechanical lock up of the steering. There was NO way to bring the car back to the right. I didn't have the time to try steering left and then back right again to see if it would break free. I wanted to go RIGHT and desparately. I got the steering lock/ignition assembly off of the column. For the life of me I can find no way that lock pin could have popped out with the key still in the ignition in the ON position. I can't make it fail with any force or vibration. This is really scary. I am not going to be putting the lock back on the column so I dismantled as much of it as I could. It's probably one of the most failsafe systems you could think of. I am sure "failsafe" was on the engineers top priority list when they designed it. Besides, right after I ran off the road, I caught my breath, put it into reverse, steering left, and steered right, back onto the road! How could it lock and then unlock with no action from the key? Debris between the rack and pinion is possibly the culprit. The rack boots are intact and fairly new so I can't see them allowing a pebble or something onto the rack. You never know. All the bolts for the ball joints, steering arms, swaybars, TC rods, are tight and right where they should be. Even the rack bushings and bolts are good. I still need to investigate the steering coupler bolts but visually they look OK. I hate to say this but it looks like I am going to have to pull the rack and possibly the column. I didn't need another project right now but at least I am alive to fix it. The key will be replaced by a rotating knob for OFF-ACC-ON and a push button for START. OMG!!! The picture in my signature is exactly where the steering locked up! How weird is that?????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillZ260 Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 That IS freaky! Glad your OK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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