Explaining a car on Instagram: "Follow (us) @ExplainingACar to learn something NEW about vehicles every day 🚗💫 Rack and pinion steering converts the rotation of your steering wheel into the side-to-side motion needed to turn your car’s wheels. When you turn the wheel, it spins a small gear called the pinion. The teeth of the pinion mesh with a long, flat gear called the rack. As the pinion turns, it slides the rack left or right — pushing or pulling the tie rods connected to each front wheel.