'94 Silverado Steering column

Can one ask why you want to replace it? There may be an easier way is why I ask. Whitelightning

AH.... I almost forgot I posted this (work long hours!)

You may ask! Is broke. Really, really broken. The esteemed spouse, whose truck it is, was in the habit of using it as an entry grab handle. Over many years. Eventually the tilt mechanism seemed very loose, then finally the whole upper column moves around with the steering wheel. With the tilt pulled all the way down, you can see what appears to be torn metal around or just past the tilt pivot point. Torn, rent, cracked and bent, whatever you want to call it, it don't look like it was meant to be that way. Also doesn't look like a simple case of loosened bolts or something. I started to take the whole thing apart, got about as far as I cared to with it, it's already apart enough that I'm not so sure about getting it back together anyway. I'm not even sure I can get all the way down to where it is, and I suspect from the damage I can see that it'd just be way, way easier to replace the whole damn thing, since it looks like I'd need part of another column anyway. When a Pull-A-Part location gets an appropriate model year in, I can get one quite cheap compared to the usual used prices. BUT.... the B'ham yard, closest to me, has nothing close to '94 in inventory right now, and if I drive to Atl. or Nashville for a model CLOSE in year to '94, like '93, I'd like to know I'm not making a long trip for nothing. Yes, even with gas money I'd be better off driving a distance rather than paying close to $200 for one already pulled at a junkyard. Steering column with tilt from them is a tad over $40 incl. core charge and optional warranty. Can't beat that with a stick even if I do have to yank it myself, big deal I'll have to pull the old one and replace it myself anyway. And can't be worse than ripping the thing entirely apart into little pieces just to possibly wind up scrapping the whole thing anyway.

Rich

Going to agree here with fix it. Pull sterring wheel, remove lock plate for steering wheel lock, You can borrow the tool that makes it easy from most auto parts storse for a small deposit, its held on by a small wire clip, once the tool is in place pushing the lock plate down compressing the spring underneath it you can get the clip out of its groove with two small screw drivers and then slide it the rest of the way up the shaft. Remove the turn signal arm, emergency flasher button, and then remove the screws for the turnsignal switch. Pull the turn signal switch out of position and once its out of the way you can useing 1/4 inch drive set you need a 1/4 six point socket, on an 8" extension and rachet to tighen the three of the screws that hold the tilt together, the one in the upper right you cant get to with out taking the top collar of the column. I have found if you can get the other three tight it works just fine. Then tell wife not to use sterring wheel as grab handle to get in.

Whitelightning

Whitelightning wrote:

Hehehe. Easier to say to tell her than actually telling her... not one to take advice well.

Well, I bought the lock plate device even before I made my first post, and I've already got it all torn down to the point of having the turn signal off, and I think I might see at least two of those tilt screws that hold the base of the yoke down, and I'll find a way to see if they're tight, but they don't look loose. They're not worked out, they don't seem to wiggle, I hadn't located my socket that might fit them yet, but the one that appears most accessible, the lower right, I grab with longnose pliers and see no looseness in it. The whole of the tilt and the other mechanisms, such as turn signal, keyswitch, etc, that are arranged around the actual steering shaft are loose and wallow around, and you cannot change gear positions on the column shift without turning the tilt and all the associated hardware along with that shroud or whatever you want to call it that is part of the column shift mechanism. , and vise versa. It's like everything arranged the actual steering shaft is jammed together. If I knew how to get that column shift hardware that surrounds and shrouds the steering shaft off, I might be able to see what's wrong, but as I say, looking in between that shroud and the top of the tilt, with the tilt pulled all the way down, I can see at least one bit of metal that looks like it's cracked. Has a tear in it. I'll try to locate and tighten those tilt yoke bolts, and originally I was hoping that's all it was, but I have serious doubts that's the problem. Thanks to a wonderful boss, I work long hours, so it's long periods between having the desire to mess with it, or even check these posts... *shrugs*... Thanks y'all for all the advice, I already have it torn down that much and just seem to either be having trouble seeing the right screws, or else it's much more broken than loose bolts. I'll report back if I can figure it out!

Rich

I've had to tighten my Dad's 90 GMC column twice now. Like you I took the column apart and all I could get to were 2 screws. They looked tight just like yours but once I got a socket down onto the screws I could tell they were loose. I tightened them really good the last time I was in there and so far a year later the column is still tight. But like you I could only get to 2 of the screws.

Bob

Yeah.... well, it sure does flop about. Something's more than loose, it's totally disengaged, that's why the screws still even being in there don't seem to make sense.

But we'll see. In the meantime, my ISP just informed me the clock is ticking, and as I don't want to 'transition', there goes my USENET access unless I luck out and get another provider that carries newsgroups. Ptptpt. Thanks all, been fun!

Rich