Chassis General

Lubrication
Power Steering
Stiff Steering
Torque Settings

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Lubrication

Sep 96
Early Griffs have sealed steering racks. Later model racks have three grease nipples which benefit from regular lubing as the racks can wear quickly if neglected. Other suspension lube points are not easily accessible for DIY maintenance. Wishbone bushes have rubber inserts, so are inclined to rot if you put grease on them. See note on Wheel Removal elsewhere.

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Power Steering

Sep 96
Be careful not to overfill - strange whirring noises on full lock can result.

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Stiff Steering

Internet Mailing List Jan 98
When my car is cold there is quite a resistance to turning the steering wheel more than 30° to the left. The resistance can be overcome with a little extra force and then any further turning becomes normal. This happens once or twice and then the resistance dissapears, until that is, the car is left standing for some time. There is no problem in turning to the right, hot or cold. Has anybody got any bright ideas?
Cathy

Internet Mailing List Jan 98
I had this on both my Chimaera and Griffith which used to go round islands on their own once started. This was due to a partly seized steering Universal Joint in the front wheelarch. Great place to put it, right behind the front wheel with no protection from salt spray etc., it's difficult to think of a worse place. Free it with some WD40 or similar but to do a proper job you might have to remove it and if you're doing this you might as well replace it.
Robert Morgan

Internet Mailing List Jan 98
I read reports recently of someone making a leather sheath for these UJs, and packing them with grease, thus protecting them from the elements, as well as keeping them lubricated.
Den Lyon

May 98
I did try to find the source of the steering column UJs for someone recently, but without much success. The steering column is Vauxhall and the later rack is TVR, although with the same size splines as the Rover rack they used to fit on the early Griffiths. As a consequence, the top UJ is a hybrid with Vauxhall sized splines one side and Rover sized ones the other. The bottom UJ is all Rover size. Both UJs appear to be specially made for TVR. They are probably based on stock forgings somewhere along the line, but there are no markings that indicate who the supplier is. The rods that link the UJs come in varying lengths, so all-in-all it looks like a job for a dealer.

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Torque Settings

The following settings are from a TVR Engineering information sheet for the Griffith circa 1993.

Component ft lbs Nm
Caliper to front upright 43-44 50-60
Track rod end to upright 30-35 40-47
Bottom balljoint to upright 60-65 81-88
Top balljoint to upright 60-65 81-88
Upper balljoint adapter pinch bolt 59-66 80-89
Top front wishbone to balljoint HSG 35-40 47-54
Bottom wishbone to balljoint HSG 12-15 16-20
Steering rack mountings 12-15 16-20
Steering UJ clamp bolts 12-15 16-20
Front & rear hub retaining nuts 229-258 310-350
Rear caliper to bearing carrier 40-45 54-61
Rear bearing carrier to upright 45-48 61-65
Differential front allen bolts 90-100 122-136*
Differential bushes to chassis 48-55 65-75
Rear diff carrier to diff (cap Hd) 33-36 45-52
Top rear diff bush pinch bolt 45-50 61-65
All front wishbones to chassis 45-50 61-65
All rear wishbones to chassis 45-50 61-65#
All rear wishbones to upright 45-50 61-65
All damper bolts 55-60 75-81
Roll bar mounting clamp to chassis 30-35 40-47
Drive shaft bolts to diff 32-35 38-40
Drive shaft bolts to axle shafts 32-35 38-40
Seat belt anchorage bolts 25-30 34-41
Wheel nuts 73-77 99-104
Brake master cyl to servo 15-20 20-27
Front crossmember 45-50 61-68
Gearbox crossmember 45-50 61-68

* Use Locktite, square section washer and locknut.
# Except top rear spring mounting which is 55-60 ft lbs.

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