Steering rack OEM Mazda or ZF

PartReview Score

Rank #5 in ranking

-6

2.7

Noise

2.0

Play

2.5

No data

PR Score

Ranking

Votes

Reviews

Average rating

Properties

Car

PartReview Score

Rank #2 in ranking

3.8

Leaks

1.6

Noise

4.6

Play

3.3

Owners' choice:

Volkswagen Passat

Reviews

All

OEM Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

Bovaloe 20 Dec 2025, 22:52

Play:

Rating 5.0

Proper depowered rack in my NB, I love it. You don't really notice it when you're moving.

Pros: unnoticeable when moving

Vehicle: Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

inchpound 20 Dec 2025, 22:19

Play:

Rating 5.0

I bought a used manual steering rack instead, and absolutely love it! Moderate low speed effort with precise high-speed inputs and feedback. I think a manual rack from the factory is the way to go, if you can swing it.

Pros: precise high-speed inputs

Cons: moderate low speed effort

Vehicle: Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

AggressiveManager450 8 Oct 2025, 17:51

Play:

Rating 4.5

Mazda 3 Stick shift are very fun to drive. They have the same steering rack out of the Miata with added practicality.

Pros: fun to drive, added practicality

Vehicle: Mazda 3

ZF › Steering rack

louis_londoncartel 19 Jun 2023, 10:00

Leaks:
Noise:

Rating 4.0

So the ZF steering rack finally got through customs and arrived safe and sound - thanks UPS. The rack is originally from a VR6 Passat so in theory should be up to the task. Got it installed and hooked up and so far no leaks. Immediately I noticed the pump is a lot quieter connected to this rack than it was when connected to the TRW rack which makes me think the TRW rack couldn't handle the pressure coming from the pump? Or maybe there was just something wrong with it internally. So far no leaks from the ZF rack so fingers crossed it'll hold up well when I get it back on the ground and go for a test drive.

Pros: pump is a lot quieter, no leaks

Vehicle: Volkswagen Passat

ZF › Steering rack

b554me3 11 May 2023, 03:52

Play:

Rating 4.0

I can confirm, I had to change the rack on my 2001.5 Passat because the steering wheel was loose and they are in fact interchangeable.

Pros: interchangeable rack

Cons: steering wheel was loose

Vehicle: Volkswagen Passat

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

Substantial_Coat208 21 Dec 2025, 02:34

Play:

Rating 3.5

I did the depower and its hard to turn standing still but once you get moving I can one hand it even in a parking lot but I still use the factory wheels and steering wheel.

Pros: easy one hand moving

Cons: hard to turn standing

Vehicle: Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

Ratatattat44 25 Nov 2025, 03:20

Noise:

Rating 3.0

Feels like my CX90 steering rack has a bunch of these in it when I turn the wheel.

Vehicle: Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

bsep4 11 Jan 2026, 16:14

Play:

Rating 2.0

The sticky steering became such a problem (despite the worm gear recall and greasing), that they now have to replace the rack/pinion.

Cons: sticky steering problem

Vehicle: Mazda

Mileage: 35000 km

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

d4rkp0w3r 21 Dec 2025, 02:37

Play:

Rating 2.0

I just went back to power steering. I depowered it proper, cut the plunger off and welded the pinion but no matter what the adjustment I did I still had this really odd play. Other than that the steering was great, driving felt smooth the feedback felt great

Pros: driving felt smooth

Cons: odd play, bump steer

Vehicle: Mazda

OEM Mazda › Steering rack

idoidoidoew 2 Nov 2025, 00:03

Play:

Rating 1.0

Had mine replaced, took about a week. Loaded up the miles on an even nicer loaner, so I wasn’t too bothered…other than the unsafe feeling around corners at speed.

Cons: unsafe feeling around corners

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Show all

Which steering rack to choose — OEM Mazda or ZF?

If choosing steering rack across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.

We compare steering rack across these categories:

Comparison of steering rack OEM Mazda and ZF

PR Score.
Overall ranking.
Vote balance.
Average rating.
Number of reviews.
Feature ratings.
Car owners’ choice.

Which steering rack are better — ZF or OEM Mazda?

In March 2026 on PartReview, steering rack ZF were overall better than OEM Mazda.

OEM Mazda received a PR Score of 40 out of 100, and ZF scored 78 points.
OEM Mazda ranked 5 in the overall ranking, and ZF ranked 2.
The average rating is higher for ZF (3.8) than for OEM Mazda (2.7).
Steering rack ZF have better feature ratings than OEM Mazda:
- Play - owners believe, that this property for ZF is better than OEM Mazda.
- Noise - drivers claim, that this property for ZF is outperforms OEM Mazda.
- Leaks - reviews suggest, that this property for ZF is preferred to OEM Mazda.

Which steering rack are more popular — OEM Mazda or ZF?

In March 2026 on PartReview, steering rack ZF were overall more popular than OEM Mazda.

By vote balance, steering rack ZF surpassed OEM Mazda:

For OEM Mazda, the ratio of positive (13) to negative (19) votes is -6 votes.
For ZF, the ratio of positive (37) to negative (10) votes is 27 votes.

By number of reviews, steering rack ZF surpassed OEM Mazda:

For steering rack OEM Mazda there are 10 reviews: 3 positive, 2 neutral, 5 negative.
For steering rack ZF there are 15 reviews: 11 positive, 2 neutral, 2 negative.

Which steering rack do car owners prefer — OEM Mazda or ZF?

In March 2026, according to PartReview, steering rack ZF led more car-specific ratings than OEM Mazda:

ZF are chosen by owners of cars such as: Volkswagen Passat, and others.

Steering rack OEM Mazda have not yet taken leading positions in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding a review and specifying your car.

Other comparisons of steering rack

If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.

For example, comparisons of steering rack OEM Mazda with: OEM Honda, OEM BMW, OEM Volkswagen, OEM Subaru.

Also available: comparisons of steering rack ZF with: OEM Honda, OEM BMW, OEM Volkswagen, OEM Subaru.

You can also see who is better among other steering rack manufacturers: OEM BMW or OEM Honda, OEM Volkswagen or OEM Honda, OEM Honda or ZF, OEM Subaru or OEM Honda, OEM Mazda or OEM Honda.