I have the minilites that came on the car i am going to mount the falkens on and try them out and see how it feels.If its much better i will put ao48s on for traction as with the turbo and these offset wheels its a little sketchy full throttle in 1st but not too bad.I need the best possible traction i can get so i will be sacrificing in some areas.

throw some pics up!

IME 10x7s are too wide....  they will amplify any problems you may have.  Its pretty much a double whammy..  the offset upsets the geometry ..and they don't make suitable (road tyres for wheels that wide...  I've had a few sets of silly wide wheels and my experience has been that handling always improves if you go back to a 5 or 6 inch wide wheel with a reasonable offset.  

The problem with 12s is that they don't seem (not seen anything advertised and certainly nothing available Down Here) to make a good "performance" tyre in 12"...

If a set of 10x6s with Ao32s don't float your boat then I would be looking at a set of 13s in whatever width the tyre makers recommend - again with as small an offset as is available...

Cheers, Ian

From a driving point of view and not necessarily aesthetically the less offset the better the bump steer and maybe even torque steer. Running the stock D series as you were you could get away with the 10's As you are going to have so much horsepower on tap and being FWD you will need to find a happy medium and the 10's will probably not be them. Most of the Honda swaps seem to go with the 13's either 6 or 7's but i am no expert so maybe some of the VTEC guys can chime in.

Ive never driven another mini so its hard lol

Malsal i really appreciate the responses from you as well as everyone also.

The car has the wide 10x7 crazy offset wheels.Im curious and want to change back to the factory 10x5 minilites to see how it drives with them.Im sure way better for normal driving.Im not too much concerned with locking the wheel and turning crazy turns but id like a other set of wheels ..12" and not sure of width and offset really.The -7 offset is what minitec calls for due to steering but also the more negative offset the worst it handles it seems?? Also it seems to torwue steer a little more..whats a good happy medium do you think for normal driving and a higher HP car.This car will be pushing 200-220 whp in no time at this rate with some bigger injectors and more boost lol

Glad you got it sorted. To answer a question you asked you can open up the gap in the pinch slot so it clamps tighter if the edges are close or touching. Also you can fit a 5/16" grade 5 - 8 bolt washer and nyloc nut and it should not come loose again as long as the shaft and the column are perfectly lined up. With all the extra power you are running it makes sense to make sure the steering is 100%.
Now you know how it should feel you will know if it starts to get sloppy eNJoy.

UPDATE!!!

Just got in ,long night..the verdict...

Column/pinchbolt-splines are good and pinchbolt was LOOSE Checked the 4 bolts on the floor,they werent falling out or Wiggling but yes they were slightly loose and all 4 needed a good tightening! Took it for a ride and boy does it feel WAY BETTER!!!

Thank you guys soo much!!! I really apprecuate it.I dont get much time i work long hours so its nice having pointers and some people with knowledge so i can come home and just get stuff done.

ALSO,it actually helped with the stability/torque steer some.Now i can run a little more boost soon! Lol

Also JAMAL i really appreciate your response,and ive talked to you calling and asking about brakes and rebuilding my master cylinder before and also way back when i had the 1275 with tons of clutch issues.Greatly appreciate everything !

I was picturing the pinch bolt being on a flat spot on the shaft and forgo that with the groove all the way around it could spin.

Not sure how those wheels look..Im not quite in the market now for wheels again.

Easily the splines get worn away and the pinch bolt loosens then as you turn the splines or what is left of them jumps over each other and the result is no steering, one of the issues with the grooved splines as apposed to the notched one as that one can only move so far until the bolt stops it. It is not a case of the column pulling up to loose the steering.

I have a set of 12 inch by ? SSR 3 piece wheels which look like the alleycats if you are interested.

Im not good with this stuff..the bracket that holds my column seems stock as the column itself is very close to the lower dashpad.

Jemal,i really appreciate that response..

There is a small area where there are no splines and seems its where the pinch bolt should go.The rack shaft itself has the groove all the way around that you explained and it and seems the pinch bolt is supposed to lock into there.That being said with those factors and the rack not being able to pull out i dont get how you could lose steering.The steering column would have to pull out 1 inch probably and can not because of the rack being mounted.

The bolt itself was in fact lose on the column slightly and actually i could pull on the wheel hard in and out and feel it (wiggle) in that groove im guessing slightly.I will have a look at those rack U bolts tonight and see,it slipped my mind lastnight as i was cursing at the car as i was working on it and cursing to myself for wanting such a small car...

A short drive later with the turbo spooling i remembered why lol

P.s car has 10x7 Cart wheels with 165 falkens..i know you guys are against it!

I also had the 10x5 minilites

And i want a set of 12s....i think the 12x6 minilites are such a perfect fit for a larger wheel and 13s are just too big..i do like the alleycats though..wish they made them in 12x6 or 12x7..i thought i did see them in 12s once somewhere before years back but i cant find any info on if they were made before at one point that size

The powerful engine and your big heavy wheels are putting MUCH more load and abuse on components designed for 3.5" by 10" wheels!  There have been a few different styles of racks and ways that the pinch bolt grabs the pinion on the rack. My early Cooper S quick ratio rack has a "slot" for the pinch-bolt which adds extra safety, giving some warning if the splines fail as the bolt itself will not allow the pinch bolt flange to simply spin on the rack's stub-shaft.  Most standard ratio steering racks simply have a groove cut all the way around the little stub shaft so that the pinch bolt itself can be installed in any orientation.  These CAN fail completely with total loss of steering, so it is a very serious matter to make absolutely certain that it's safe!

The most common reason for failure is the installation of a column-drop bracket WITHOUT properly aligning the rack itself to the column. This forces the pinch-bolt to operate through a bind during EVERY rotation of the steering wheel.  The stub-shaft on the rack is made of hardened steel and will destroy the splines inside the pinch bolt.  As soon as there is any play, particularly with big wheels and horsepower, you are risking your life and others' by driving the car!  

Also the stock column uses FELT and Plastic bushings to support the shaft doing all the actual work.  Keep in mind all these parts were designed for weedeater power, so you are really pushing their limits even in the best condition with Honda power! 

Look carefully at the splines inside the column pinch bolt.  They do not necessarily go all around. Perhaps 20% of the ID, the area immediately around the slot that allows the bolt to "pinch" may not have full splines. You should be able to tell with good lighting and perhaps a little magnifying glass if your splines were worn away, or that that area just did not have them. To me it seems unlikely that just a few splines have worn, and that your problem is more likely loose u-bolts mounting the RACK to the floor, or even thrashed subframe mountings from that Honda and those big wheels!

It sounds like a po has fitted a drop bracket and may not have loosened the steering rack thus allowing the steering rack shaft to wear out the steering column splines.
To explain, where the pinch bolt clamps onto the steering rack shaft it will either have a notch for the bolt to fit into or it will have a groove for the bolt to fit into (on the rack shaft). I prefer the notched type because if it fails you do not loose your steering completely whereas the grooved type could or will do.

Im trying to look online to find the difference..wish the pics were more up close! Im having a hard time picturing what youre explaining for some reason...maybe ill process it in a little while.I may take it back out and have another look.Its tighter now and feels a lot better but it still has an issue.My car has wide wheels and a little more castor then the standard set up so the steering is a bit heavy especially at a stop.I turn the wheel hard at a stop and you can see it shifted still slightly.

I will check the rack bolts tonight i completely forgot lastnight ..I meant to then fought with the column trying to get the 2 bolts back in that bolt under the lower dash pad .Being 6'4 with the seat still in place it was a hassle ..the metal plate ontop that isnt fixed was being a PITA.do all columns/minis have thst plate just sitting up there lol

Yes it is. X 2 what Norm said. I have helped a Mini owner out who had no funds to repair or replace his column but if you have the column with the groove all the way around the rack spline for the pinch bolt it is too risky imo to "repair" and needs replacing, if you have the other type with the notch cut out of it it is doable. Minisport Aus (i believe) sells the end piece so it can be welded onto you original shaft if you have trouble finding a good column shaft. Did you check the rack mounting bolts ? Are you or was it fitted with a lowering bracket ?

I had the column out lastnight and looked over everything..It slid into the splines nicely up and down.

I never rotated anything i lined it up and maked it so it went back in the same way.

The inside threads on the column itself had threads which appeared to go around 3/4 of the inside and there was a smooth 1/4 (fractions might be slightly off) with no threads.It almost looked as if that it was supposed to be that way maybe because if the way the pinch bolt was or something.

So,the insideof the column is supposed to be threaded all the way around??

worn splines = potential total loss of steering control

Trying to rotate it in an attempt to get some of the remaining splines to hold on might, possibly, delay but why take such a chance? Replace the worn part is the safest option.

Top question: why are the splines so badly worn? If there is play in the system which caused it, then new parts might wear and fail also. By the way, the pinch bolt is not supposed to transfer any load, only hold the splines together so that their large surface area can do so.

Additional check item: is your rack's pinion lined up with the centerline of your column? If it is not, the resulting load can fatigue the pinion and it can break off (same catastrophic result of total loss of steering). Steering column drop brackets, installed without also rotating the rack accordingly, can be a factor in this kind of wear. Test this by loosely fitting the column and then confirm it can be slid up/down the pinion smoothly, without any binding (pinch bolt not installed for this test, of course).

Norm

Had a look at it tonight.Bolt was slightly loose.Took off the rack and inside where the splines were there werent splines all the way around,like a section didnt seem to have anything.Is this normal? was hard to get a good look it was dark and i had a cell phone light.Got it back in and tightened it all up and drove it around and it still seems to shift SLIGHTLY if i really crank the wheel tight.

can i cut the little slice wider to allow it to clamp down more??

also,whats a decent replacement column worth off someone or what should i be looking to pay incase i need one in the near future.Just column ,no wheel etc.

Thanks guys! really appreciate it.I like to reply to things so other people can see,i learned a lot from old threads.

Also check to see if the four steering rack mounting bolts under the carpet are loose.

Ok ,will check that out.And no i will not drive it until i figure it out.Thank you!

I just read it online,i parked the car tonight and figured it would be easier if i asked and then came home tomorrow and had a small list of things to check for.I never had the column out or even looked at it actually.I dont have much time when i get done work to play with the car so i want to be prepared lol

#1 check the pinch bolt at the lower end where it bolts to the rack, actually even if it's tight, take it out and remove the column and check the splines for damage If it's off centre and then not That's the place to look. In the mean time don't drive the bloody thing!!