Vague steering and tramlining? Check your steering rack preload

[canadians14sr20det]

This is more of a PSA type post, but this issue plagued my car for way too long. Hoping this post can save someone a bunch of time.

My car was wandering all over the road, following all the ruts and grooves. The steering didn't seem to have any excess play though. I did new tie rods, knuckles, LCA bushings, tension rods and wheel bearings. Car is on BC racing coils. Nothing fixed it.

Looking at the rack one day I noticed I could rotate the actual rack bar (where the tie rod inners thread into) about a quarter inch.

You can and should adjust out this play by setting the preload on the rack. Loosen the 22mm jam nut, then tighten the 12mm adjuster until the play is just barely gone. Don't over tighten. If you're concerned, the fsm has a specific procedure for this.

This fixed my suspension issues instantly. The car feels brand new. What was happening is the suspension as it moved could rotate the rack bar slightly, which caused the steering to wander on its own. Best part is this fix is free! Definitely try it before buying a new rack.