I'm gonna go out on a limb here...but I'm guessin you've treated this poor soul like a red-headed step child. Oil seals usually go bad and begin leaking as a result of being run in dirty oil. (this also would explain the KNOCK) As for your rack and tie rods...I can just see ya blarin down a washboarded dirt road at 75...and the windshield leak would follow suit after a couple hundred miles of that. And I bet the tranny pan was full of your foot prints when the mechanic tore into that. LOL. Are you one of those guys that could tear up an anvil? LOL. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" />