Rack and pinion steering uses a gear-arranged to convert the circular motion of the steering wheel into the linear motion necessary to turn the wheels. It also offers a gear reduction, so turning the tires is easier.
It functions by enclosing the rack and pinion gear-arranged in a steel tube, with each end of the rack sticking out from the tube and connected to an axial rod. The pinion equipment is mounted on the steering shaft to ensure that when the steering wheel is turned, the gear spins, shifting the rack. The axial rod at each end of the rack links to the tie rod end, which is attached to the spindle.
Most cars need 3 to 4 complete turns of the tyre to go from lock to lock (from far to far remaining). The steering ratio shows you how far to turn the steering wheel for the wheels to turn a certain amount. A higher ratio means you should turn the steering wheel more to turn the wheels a particular amount and lower ratios give the steering a quicker response.
Some cars use variable ratio steering. This rack and pinion steering program uses a different number of the teeth per cm (tooth pitch) at the heart than at the ends. The effect is the steering is usually more sensitive when it’s switched towards lock than when it is near to its central placement, making the car more maneuverable.
There are two main types of rack and pinion steering systems:
End take off – the tie rods are attached to the end of the steering rack via the inner axial rods.
Centre remove – bolts attach the tie rods to the center of the steering rack.
As steering is essential for controlling your vehicle, it’s important to diagnose and restoration any steering issues as quickly as possible.
The chances are your vehicle has rack and pinion steering.
Thankfully, the basics aren’t hard to grasp at all: it’s all about turning rotational motion into linear. When you switch the tyre, this turns a steering column, which rotates the attached steering shaft and a worm gear referred to as the pinion. This equipment sits on the ‘rack’, a length of metal with some teeth cut into it. In order the pinion rotates, the rack techniques either left or correct, based on your steering input.
Power steering adds a device to 1 side of the rack with a hydraulically actuated piston inside. A rotary valve directs hydraulic liquid to either the right or left aspect of the piston – based on the steering direction – which applies pressure 
on the piston and reducing the effort had a need to move the rack.
The rack-and-pinion gearset does a couple of things:
It converts the rotational movement of the steering wheel in to the linear motion had a need to turn the wheels.
It provides a gear reduction, which makes it simpler to turn the wheels.
On most cars, it takes three to four complete revolutions of the tyre to make the wheels turn from lock to lock (from far still left to far right).