After getting the gearbox changed, I can now drive the thing!
Sort of anyway. There is about 6 inches of play in the steering wheel when driving before anything happens. When stationary, there seems to be about 2 inches of free play at the rim of the steering wheel. This makes the car wander when driving, I guess this is not normal? I've adjusted the steering box, there was more free play than this. I turned the adjuster until it just started to feel tight (it was very easy to turn once the locknut was lose), then checked the steering wheel turns fully from lock to lock. Should I go tighter than this? Can't see any play in any of the ball joints, but perhaps I should take a big lever to them to check them better? Any clues where else to look for problems? Do the shims on top of the swivels have any relationship to steering problems?
Thanks for all the advice so far!
Alan C
'98 4.6 HSE range Rover '75 109 LWB Series III Petrol