Electric power steering apparatus

An electric power steering apparatus comprising:

• a rack shaft having rack teeth disposed at a portion of a peripheral surface of one end thereof and a screw portion provided at a position displaced from an opposite end toward said one end thereof;
• a pinion for meshing with said rack teeth;
• a rack guide mechanism provided on a back side surface of said peripheral surface, opposed from said peripheral surface portion on which said rack teeth are formed, for pressing said back side surface of said rack shaft;
• a nut mounted on said screw portion;
• an electric motor for applying an auxiliary torque, corresponding to a steering torque, to said rack shaft through said nut;
• and
• a bush for supporting the opposite end of said rack shaft to thereby restrict bending of said rack shaft in excess of a predetermined value when said rack shaft is bent by the predetermined value, wherein the bush is disposed adjacent the rack shaft such that there is provided a clearance between the rack shaft and the bush of the predetermined value.