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Steering wheel adjustment??

djais1801

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The previous owner put an aftermarket 3 spoke steering wheel on, but did not center it..
Do i need a steering wheel puller or can i just loosen and reposition??
This picture is how it sits with front wheels straight.
Sat11.gif
 
You need to get the front end aligned and they will straighten the wheel up when adjusting the toe setting. Steering wheels only go on one way.
 
DJ,I was an auto mechanic for over 20 years before joining the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) in 1999.
you shouldn't have told me that...i will now be chewing your ear off frequently!!
 
If you're familiar with the tie rod adjusters, you can do this yourself without losing your toe setting. Many of us have mechanical experience...I started working on cars in 68 but wasn't doing it for a living and never did but made a lot of money doing it lol. I started doing my own front end alignment after I kept running into morons at alignment shops around here. If you know of a shop that knows old Mopars, then you're good to go but if they are not familiar with them, they can do some major damage. One question I used to ask is how the front ends on Mopars are adjusted. If they said with shims, I ran from them.
 
It's pretty easy.

Center the front wheels (not the steering wheel).

Loosen the clamps at both ends of both tie rods.

Turn the sleeves the same number of turns in the same direction (towards the front of the car or towards the rear of the car), and see which way the wheel moves. I'd do one turn (of both sleeves) and then check.

Turning both the same number keeps the toe setting.

They make a special tool, but I've used channel locks/vise grips. Just don't crush the sleeves.

You may get down to 1/2 or even 1/4 of a turn.
 
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Back in the day...

Back in the day when I had my 'non-locking' steering system cars aligned, 1st thing the mechanic did was center the steering wheel. The 2nd was lock it in place with some kind of spring loaded bar on the wheel and into the seat to keep the wheel from rotating while he worked on the front end. 3rd was to adjust the tie rod sleeves accordingly to get the appropriate tow-in for each side. Obviously he also checked the Camber and made adjustments as required. To this day, I have an alignment done whenever I replace tires. With the cost of rubber, it is money well spent.
 
With the wheels centered either on or off the ground, it's MUCH easier (and easier to notice a change) to move the center link, pitman and idler arms, and column by turning the threaded sleeves, than to try to lock the steering and move the ball joints, wheels and tires.

Remember, we're doing this without the aid of alignment specs or a rack.

Regardless, the key is turning both the sleeves the same ammount in the same direction.
 
dude.. center the front wheels.....get a steering wheel puller...... remove the steering wheel.....reposition it and put it back on......i dont know WHY these guys are telling you the hard way to do this!
 
my friend manages a tirecraft in town...had it there today- there is a ton of play in the lower ball joints, and the steering shaft cupler. Gonna take care of those items, and fix the steering wheel then.
 
dude.. center the front wheels.....get a steering wheel puller...... remove the steering wheel.....reposition it and put it back on......i dont know WHY these guys are telling you the hard way to do this!

Dude, Seriously? The steering shaft has special splines on it. It only goes on one way.
 
dude.. center the front wheels.....get a steering wheel puller...... remove the steering wheel.....reposition it and put it back on......i dont know WHY these guys are telling you the hard way to do this!

I like that no bones about it attitude. To the point ( if that all it takes ). Thanks.
 
Haven't had mine apart in a long time, so my recollection may be foggy. I think the shaft has a master (flat? missing?) spline that would line up with the original wheel, but aftermarket (Grant, etc.) adapter hubs may not have the 'key' on the internal splines, so it may be possible to correct the wheel position.

Just my 2 cents.
 
dude.. center the front wheels.....get a steering wheel puller...... remove the steering wheel.....reposition it and put it back on......i dont know WHY these guys are telling you the hard way to do this!

Thank you .... I'm reading these other posts and thinking WTF .. just to straighten out the steering wheel. As you say pull the wheel, make it straight and put the nut back on...:happy5:
 
Dude, Seriously? The steering shaft has special splines on it. It only goes on one way.

DUDE........SERIOUSLY..........ive had mine off 6 times.....yeah it has splines on it but you can position it anyplace ya want,,,,,DUDE!:headbang:
 
Thank you .... I'm reading these other posts and thinking WTF .. just to straighten out the steering wheel. As you say pull the wheel, make it straight and put the nut back on...:happy5:

YOURE WELCOME....NO NEED TO GET COMPLICATED ABOUT THIS....take it off...reposition it,,,,put it back on.........no need to get complicated...THIS AINT ROCKET SCIENCE!!!!......SHEEEEEEEEEESH!
 
nothing really...i want to put on record that i DO have the UTMOST respect for the guru's on this site........but doing something as simple as moving your steering wheel does NOT need to take up half of your weekend. i guess some like to show how smart they are by getting technical......i prefer the K.I.S.S. method.....( keep it simple....STUPID...( K-I-S-S) !

let it be known that i am prepared to take my lashings from the powers that be......AMEN!....AND WHOAAAAA BUNDYYYYYYYYYY !
 
allow me to throw a diversion...
WHERE can i get a steering shaft coupler from? And is "MOOG" a good brand for lower ball joints?
 
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