JSeaman
Senior Member
The steering damper is basically just a shock absorber mounted to the steering system. If/when your damper fails, the car will feel a detached/vague and wander as you drive. As with most shock absorbers, they wear out and leak their fluid which prevents them from doing their job.
The good news is that it is a cheap (~£25) and very easy job to change it, here is how:
Step 1 - Jack the car up using the rubber mount as shown
Step 2 - With the car nice and high (give yourself plenty of room to work), support the car on axle stands - leave the jack in place too
Step 3 - Before you start the job, make sure you have a 16mm socket and a 16mm spanner (or 5/8 in old money). Socket sets often skip 16mm and 18mm sizes so check first. You will be pleased to know that the small spark plug sockets which you do normally get are 16mm and you could probably make do with adjustables if pushed
The good news is that it is a cheap (~£25) and very easy job to change it, here is how:
Step 1 - Jack the car up using the rubber mount as shown
Step 2 - With the car nice and high (give yourself plenty of room to work), support the car on axle stands - leave the jack in place too
Step 3 - Before you start the job, make sure you have a 16mm socket and a 16mm spanner (or 5/8 in old money). Socket sets often skip 16mm and 18mm sizes so check first. You will be pleased to know that the small spark plug sockets which you do normally get are 16mm and you could probably make do with adjustables if pushed