Patent ID: 7172051

Claim:
A steering apparatus for a vehicle, comprising: a steering shaft supported in a cylindrical housing so that the steering shaft can freely move in an axial direction; and a nut member screwed onto a screw groove formed in an outer circumference of the steering shaft through a rolling member and rotatably supported in the housing, wherein steering is performed by transmitting rotation of a motor, which is driven according to steering, to the nut member and converting rotation of the nut member into movement of the steering shaft, the housing is constructed by coaxially connecting a first housing having an integrally formed fixing section for fastening to a vehicle body with a second housing having a fixing section for fastening to the vehicle body in a separate member, the first housing connects a pinion housing for supporting a pinion shaft having a pinion for meshing with rack teeth of the steering shaft, the nut member is supported by a thrust bearing fitted and fixed in the first housing so that the nut member cannot move in both directions along an axial direction, a radial bearing is fitted and fixed in the second housing, wherein the nut member is respectively supported at two points along an axis of the nut member by the thrust bearing and the radial bearing, the thrust bearing comprises a pair of angular ball bearings placed back to back, and an axis line of the motor is inclined from an axis of the steering shaft toward an axis of the pinion shaft.