1966 Charger Steering Column Rebuild

[John Folz]

Just a quick intro before we get into the main subject here. I have been a long-time lurker and read through all the major restoration threads. They have been a huge help and confidence boost to undertake this entire project. I am currently in the process of restoring a 1966 Charger. It was originally a 318 Auto. Drivetrain is long gone so the plan is a basic 440 build that will look as original as possible. There is not a restoration thread as of yet because work has been sporadic due to time and money constraints. Car has had all the major metal work done IE: Floor pans, Trunk pan, and inner fender aprons. All done at home. I have been slowly redoing all the original parts that I can and building a collection to assist with assembly once the body gets painted.

So that brings us to this weekend’s project. The steering column. I browsed many threads on column rebuilds but did not find one specific to 1966. Which is different than the later collapsible years. The column was very intimidating at first but was definitely a lot easier than expected. I tried to photograph and document as much as possible. Hopefully this thread helps others with any questions and if there is someone who sees something I miss please correct me!

The goal is to spend the week cleaning and painting the parts and to assemble next weekend as time allows. Here is where I started. For some reason I managed to not get a picture of the entire assembly. Go figure



Start by pulling the pins out of the plug. There is a tab on each side that needs to be compressed then the wire pulls out the back.
Next off comes the horn pad. Quarter turn Counterclockwise and it pops right off
This is what's underneath



3 Phillips screws later and the pad mount lifts right up



Next is to pull the steering wheel off. Using a basic puller not pictured the wheel popped right off with no issues

 

[John Folz]

Under the wheel is the horn contact ring there is a spring style retainer that slides off and the contact pad lifts right off after that


Once the wheel is off you are left looking at the turn signal switch. The plan is to clean up the original switch and reinstall. did not want to spend the money for a N.O.S switch or buy a junk repop.



The screw going through the center holds the Turn Signal Lever to the Turn Signal Switch



Once the lever is off there is a small retaining plate with 3 small Phillips screws that holds the turn signal switch down.
Once the screws are removed the switch slides up with a little persuasion.

 

[John Folz]

Once the switch is out you can remove the upper column bearing. there is a rubber cover / seal that goes around the bearing and seats it in the upper column housing.
There is a snap ring on the top side of the bearing and a half ring circlip on the bottom side



Once the bearing is off you are looking at the mounting for the upper and lower column collar



The 2 nuts hold the upper collar to the column housing while the 2 Phillips screws hold the lower collar to the upper collar
Remove the 2 Phillips screws and you can see the bottom of the upper collar and how the 2 square head bolts hold the collar to the housing tube



Once the nuts and square head bolts are off the collar pops off with a little tap of the hammer



Last thing off of the column tube is the upper half of the firewall mount
This is the last piece off and must be the first on because the bottom of the tube has a tapered flare that will not allow it to slide down and off.

 

[John Folz]

Lastly is the steering coupler which connects the column to the steering gear
1966 is a different style compared to the 67-70 couplers



The top cap/seal is pressed and held on with tabs that are folded over the main coupler body
Pry these tabs up and the top seal will slide right up and off the coupler



On each side is a metal shoe and a spring that holds tension apart. The grease was old and hard and dry at this point.



There is an alignment hole on the shaft and the coupler body to align everything together during assembly. The marks are hard to see with everything rusty and greasy

 

[John Folz]

That brings us to where we are now. Everything is disassembled and laid out. Next is to sandblast the tube, shaft, both collars, firewall mount. Clean all the other parts and hardware. I will update here when assembly takes place / is complete