Messed up the steering column
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2003
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From: Colorado
Messed up the steering column
recently when i took off the steering wheel i somehow managed to misalign my pulling tool such that when i cranked on it i was pulling upward on the column (dont ask me how i did this, it was late and i dont even remember anymore 
)
since then there has been a little bit of play in the steering wheel, not rotational but rather a back-and-forth play that allows me to nudge the wheel up and down. i more or less dismissed it and figured i'd fix it some day. I'm now having a new problem where when I turn the wheel left and right, it shorts something and blows my turn signal fuse. I can't help but think this extra play in the steering wheel is allowing it to pinch something in the turn signal switch.
so the question(s): how concerned should I be about the stress i put on the column, and do you think this back-and-forth play could be the cause of my electrical short?
thanks,
robert
1988 Bronco XLT, 5.8
)since then there has been a little bit of play in the steering wheel, not rotational but rather a back-and-forth play that allows me to nudge the wheel up and down. i more or less dismissed it and figured i'd fix it some day. I'm now having a new problem where when I turn the wheel left and right, it shorts something and blows my turn signal fuse. I can't help but think this extra play in the steering wheel is allowing it to pinch something in the turn signal switch.
so the question(s): how concerned should I be about the stress i put on the column, and do you think this back-and-forth play could be the cause of my electrical short?
thanks,
robert
1988 Bronco XLT, 5.8
Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 254
Likes: 0
From: Colorado
Alright, some more information:
The short is occuring because the steering wheel is sitting too low into the column housing. It is rubbing against the outer edges of the housing and grooving it, at the same time it is touching electrical contacts on the turn switch assembly.
I can pull the steering shaft in and out about 1/8 to 3/16", it seems that this slack is what is allowing the steering wheel to sit so low. Is this slack normal? This slack makes me worry that something is really wrong with the joints in the shaft. What are your thoughts on this?
The short is occuring because the steering wheel is sitting too low into the column housing. It is rubbing against the outer edges of the housing and grooving it, at the same time it is touching electrical contacts on the turn switch assembly.
I can pull the steering shaft in and out about 1/8 to 3/16", it seems that this slack is what is allowing the steering wheel to sit so low. Is this slack normal? This slack makes me worry that something is really wrong with the joints in the shaft. What are your thoughts on this?
