scott863

'81 USA Auto.

I have the pod off, the bolts on the u joint closest to the steering rack have been removed. Everything (I can see) holding the steering column has been removed, including the 3 hex head bolts. The column has some play but wont move.

I have the manuals, but they are so vague (much info is taken fof granted by manual writer) and seemingly contradictory. Anyone know anything on what I need to do next?

The ujoint (was failing) closest to the steering wheel (and it) stripped the splines on the steering shaft, so I lost all steering pulling out of my driveway. Luckily a catastrophe was avoided (I live on a hill) and I got the car back inside. I also found a broken bearing on the steering shaft.

scott863

BuMp

Imo000

Did you disconnect the universal joint on the other side (engine) of the firewall? It's between the steering rack acn the steering column.

scott863

Imo000,

I removed the bolts that keep it locked in place. I can't figure out how to get the joint off the splined shafts, as it's a very snug fit.

Dennis Wilson

The joint can be very difficult to remove. Might try PB Blaster, heat, then a brass drift and hammer.

Dennis

Imo000

Here's how I did mine when the heads were pulled 5 eyars ago. Loosen both bolts on the universal joint (the one byt he sttering rack, in the engine bay) and then the joint will slide down towards the steering rack. If it doesn't then, turn it around untill you can see the longitudional cut and pry it open a littel with a large flat head screwdriver. The joint only comes and geos on one way. Or now that I think of meaybe the joint slid up not down, but in any case it moved up/down enough to disconnect it from the steering rack.

I hope this helps!

Imo000

NO NO NO!!!! bad idea!!! The joint is made of aluminium and is very soft/fragile, any hammering or heating will destroy it.

scott863

IMo000 thanks for the tips. The car is up on ramps so turning it is out of the question. I will soldier on with your latest advice.

:-)

Dennis Wilson

IMO000,

The brass drift and hammer are the last resort. If the other methods don't work, you need to replace it anyway. Actually, if the upper U joint is bad, the bottom is probably toast anyway.

Dennis

scott863

Update: The steering column housing is off, and the shaft is disconnected from the forward-most universal joint. Now, it so far has not been possible to get the shaft back out through the firewall. There's a donut shaped thingamabob on there that gets caught on the cylinderhead/cover. On my replacement piece the donut is not there, and there are four bolts (2 on a side opposing eachother) that seem to hold the forward-most spined shaft to the rest of the shaft, do I need to unbolt these to get this sucker out?

thanks!

Update II: The ujoint on top on the steering shaft has a large crack running down the middle. I know part of this is due to the increased stress on the system due to my power assist being broken (I finished fixing it today, all new reservoir, and hoses) put a lot of strain on it when turning the wheels at low or no speed. Well, that's my best guess for now.

Imo000

Scott, Sorry I never went that far on the 928. If it's too too hard, just unbolt whater you think is in the way. If you need anything other parts, I have an '86.5 that I'm parting out. Feel free to send me a PM.

scott863

Thanks :-)