Broken Omix Steering Sector Shafts Warning! for my Friends!!

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 10:26 am

I figured this was a technical warning. Members of our Jeep groups have experienced a failure you need to immediately know about. Two known steering sector failures have recently occured. The sector shaft is breaking free of the end where the two posts ride in the worm gear. You have no control of your front wheels. This could be fatal!!!!! The culprits are sectors made by Omix Ada. These were 7/8 shafts, and I know the military type was larger. But-------someone could have fit a civilian type Ross box. RICKG will post the photos for you. I hope none of you have this happen to you. Check yours to be sure. Oilly

Edited by Wes K :
Both 7/8' and 15/16" shafts are effected by the recall. This is directly from the recall announcement by Omix-Ada: " If you have replaced an Omix steering sector shaft, part numbers 18027.01 (7/8” shaft), 18027.03 (a repair kit with bushings and 7/8” shaft) and 18027.02 (15/16” shaft) identified in this campaign." so be careful and do not assume since you have a 15/16" shaft you are good to go!

RICKG · Post by **RICKG** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 11:01 am

Our 2A friend's sector broke while backing into his garage after running errands in Omaha traffic.
Last week our 3A friend's sector broke while coming down off of Tin Cup Pass and we had to lash the steering and tow him down off the mountain.
Both friends were with Oilly and I last week so we were able to photograph 2 identical repops with 2 identical failures.

4x4M38 · Post by **4x4M38** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 7:47 pm

Thanks for posting guys.

This is NHTSA recall type stuff. From the looks of them those breaks are symptomatic of a manufacturing problem.

Omix Ada needs to be made aware, as well as our vendors selling them.

No one wants any one hurt and no one wants to sell faulty parts.

4x4M38 · Post by **4x4M38** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 7:59 pm

Can you ask them when they bought their sector shafts?

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 5:01 am

Brian, Rick Cline called his supplier. All they said was they would replace it for no cost. We too asked the same questions. Why wouldn't a parts house stop selling them, and try and warn the customers who bought one? If you look closly at Omix Ada shafts on ebay right now, they are not welded and radiused and the crack is visable where the shaft meets the hole through the plate. Crack meaning the machined non-welded joint. It must flex at this point and with a good turn against it, or jarring action, shears the shaft. This is a accident waiting to happen. Yesterday, my brother-in-law looked at his 50 CJ3A and he has one!!!!!!! He called another supplier and that one said: "I don't sell that crap". I would think the suppliers when called would shake in their boots over this. A easy slam dunk for a lawyer. I'm not sure Omix Ada being "off shore" would be easily litigated against. Anyway, we decided to warn our friends! Oilly

Hawkshadow · Post by **Hawkshadow** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 5:50 am

Very concerned about this! The new sector shaft in mine is omix. Rebuilt only 2 years ago. Has this information been sent to omix?

I looked closely at this picture taken during the rebuild to see if there's a joint visible at the bottom of the shaft. It's not perfectly clear but there may be…

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 7:38 am

I don't see the "crack" or slit on the inside. Is that the larger 15/16 shaft sector? Notice on the picture of the broken shafts the "crack" or slit before the shattered part. That may help you ID the bad ones. Russ on the CJ2A page has opened a "ticket" with Omix. Hopefully they will weigh in on this problem for us. John

RICKG · Post by **RICKG** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 9:54 am

OEM OR CORRECT REPOP BELOW

FAULTY OMIX BELOW

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 5:19 am

The bad sectors had the shaft inserted through the end plate and then welded on the outside. These shafts need to be removed. Originals were forged and then machined or ground to spec all one piece. The Omix shafts were reduced in size where they fit through. So, they are even undersized for the job. Tell all your Jeeper friends that may not see this. John

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 1:02 pm

If you find yours to have WAT and a hardened button in it for the adjuster, that one is also good. See photos at G 503 in the MB/GPW technical section. I was able to pull my cover with the fender still on and take a look this AM. Well worth your time. John

RICKG · Post by **RICKG** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 1:39 pm

4x4M38 · Post by **4x4M38** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 3:43 pm

That doesn't look like a one piece forging Rick.

Post by **wesk** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 8:29 pm

Look closer Brian. The shaft is one piece with the large flange. The large flange is drilled thru in 2 places for the tracking pins. Then it has a shallow well drilled in the face of the flange for the hardened steel pressure button which the adjusting screw bears against.

oilleaker1 · Post by **oilleaker1** » Fri Sep 30, 2016 6:22 am

Don't forget that the previous owner of your Jeep may have installed one in yours!!!!!!!!!!!!

Derstrom · Post by **Derstrom** » Fri Sep 30, 2016 8:48 am

This kind of thing scares the s*** out of me. That's an unacceptable failure. I will be taking a very skeptical look at any Omix parts in the future. Thanks for posting this y'all.