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I'll be replacing the lower bearing seal on my steering column and was curious as to how the shift lever is attached to the shaft. Anyone know. Is it possible for it to move? My linkage had gotten jammed and I'm wondering if its position has changed as a result of me putting to much pressure on it. i only learn the hard way.
Steve
The "lever" in the photo is spot welded to the "shift tube" in the photo so no, it did not move. You would have had to break the spot welds and then I imagine the tube would just freely rotate inside the lever ring. Below are pics of tilt column parts, but the lever is attached to the tube the same way.
Last edited by Loaded68W34; February 22nd, 2022 at 01:44 PM.
Thank you for the pic, it explains a lot. So the lever is on a ring that goes fully around the shaft? Then spot welded in place? I also am replacing the rubber boot which is basically rotted and half missing. The lower bearing assembly appears to be held on by the one bolt. I have loosened and gave it a pull but it doesn't budge. Should it come of easily?
Yes, the ring is spot welded to the shaft. Are you talking about the rubber boot on the upper intermediate shaft U-joint (see pics below)? If so, remove the nut from the bolt that tightens the clamp. Then remove the bolt completely from the clamp. The upper "bell" is just pulled off of the shaft. Years of dirt and corrosion can make it necessary to tape the "bell" off with a hammer.
I assume the left side goes into assembly? I see bearing upgrade sets but where is a bearing? My shaft end is totally different than yours. Just pack it all with grease?
The other issue I have is apparently the spot weld did break. I'm trying to determine if I can possibly drill a small hole through the tube set a small screw or something to secure it without removing the entire shaft. If I have to I will pull it and have it welded, any thoughts?
thanks, Steve
Take the square pivots off, put the rubber boot on by working it down over the pins. Put the square pivots back on, fill the bell with grease as well as the pivots and reassemble. It is unlikely that the spot welds broke, look carefully to see if the lever is moving with the tube. It is more likely that the "impact" connection broke on the collapsible tube. In the event of a front end collision, the tube is designed to collapse (get shorter). There are small sections filled with injection molded plastic in a few areas. A hard enough hit will shear these points and the top half of the tube will turn freely in the lower half of the tube. Not a lot of ways to fix this and still have it serve its safety function. Perhaps using plastic rivets will work.
Thanks for the info on filling the cup with grease. I probably should have included this on the last post. The reason I think the spot welds have broken is because with the car in park from in the engine compartment I can push the lever down and the interior shifter remains in place. There is resistance but it will move. Unless there is a place up closer to the steering wheel that might give I can only think the weld have given way.
thanks again for your help. Your Toro is beautiful
Steve
Looking at a pic in the CSM it does look like up at the steering wheel the shifter handle just has a pressure fit type ring that could slip around the shaft? It does work but the range from P to L was off, maybe I just needed to get it back located correctly?
Phoenix is this problem on the '69 Cutlass? I have that intermediate shaft for a '70 if they are interchangeable. You can pm if interested in going with an OEM used shaft.
The most likely cause of you being able to move the shifter separate of the arm is circled in the pic below. These columns are designed to collapse in the event of a front end collision. The two sections of tube slide into each other to accomplish this. The only thing that keeps the from rotating is a small sliver of injection molded plastic one each side. With moderate force the plastic breaks and the upper and lower tubes will move independently. You can weld, screw or rivet the tubes back together, but then you have eliminated this safety feature and that section of the column will not collapse in the event of a collision. As I said above, if you can find plastic rivets they may fix the problem and still allow the column to collapse. Next you need to see if the arm is moving with the tube. Use a paint pen or brush and put a small dab of paint on the tube just below the arm. Move the arm back and forth to see if the tube is moving with it. If it is, the problem is at the upper joint pictured below, if the tube and arm are not moving together, then the weld broke and the ring can simply be welded back on the tube. My money is on the collapsible joint and sacrificial plastic sections as I have seen them break before.
February 22nd, 2022, 06:19 AM
