Hello All

I noticed that my steering wheel moves very slightly up and down when rotating it is a very small movement far more noticeable when looking down from above at the section of the column behind the wheel.

First assumption was I had to much angle on the universal joint to the steering rack and it was binding up but removing all the linkages leaving just the column the moment is still present.

So is this normal or have i mounted the column incorrectly or it is actually bent ?
(if it is bent how do you bend a steering column would have to have been if a serious smash and I drove the donor for 6 months and never saw signs of
that level of damage when stripping it.)

Car is a Phoenix with Sierra column.

Thanks

Don't know what the Phoenix is like, but my old MK Indy used a Sierra steering column and made use of the Sierra bush/bearing part way down the column. If yours uses that the bush/bearing may be worn and allowing movement.

You can see the part I refer to in this photo - metallic part at the top of the drivers footwell, just above the brake line.

quote:

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Originally posted by ArAKern
Hello All

I noticed that my steering wheel moves very slightly up and down when rotating it is a very small movement far more noticeable when looking down from above at the section of the column behind the wheel.

First assumption was I had to much angle on the universal joint to the steering rack and it was binding up but removing all the linkages leaving just the column the moment is still present.

So is this normal or have i mounted the column incorrectly or it is actually bent ?
(if it is bent how do you bend a steering column would have to have been if a serious smash and I drove the donor for 6 months and never saw signs of
that level of damage when stripping it.)

Car is a Phoenix with Sierra column.

Thanks

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The bush has some play in it but if I measure from a hard-point to the column at the bush it is running true

But at the wheel end I can see the whole ignition barrel indicator assembly move by about 1mm.

CosKev are you saying this is normal?

quote:

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Originally posted by ArAKern
The bush has some play in it but if I measure from a hard-point to the column at the bush it is running true

But at the wheel end I can see the whole ignition barrel indicator assembly move by about 1mm.

CosKev are you saying this is normal?

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Yep, mines the same and all the bushes etc are in good nick.

well it looks like the inner shaft can be removed

inner shaft

steering diag

If it can be removed then i can give it some percussive maintenance to rectify the situation but at a casual glance I cannot see how it separates.

Well managed to pull the inner shaft and can confirm is is bent.

Reading a thread on a ford forum evidently a common issue and i quote "caused by fat bas****s pulling themselves up on the steering wheel"

So off to find a large hammer plus re-grease the upper bushings now just hope they have not gone too oval...

I wouldn't use a hammer, much better if it is straightened in a press using a couple of veve blocks , just rotate it in the blocks until the highest point is uppermost before applying light pressure until it is straight. Any decent garage or machine shop should be able to do it for less than a replacement part would cost after "fixing" with a hammer

It was a metaphorical hammer as the car is starting to get to me..
Straightened the shaft best i could with a vice and a large pipe and v-blocks but putting it back in the car saw some improvment but the origional iss is still present.

Get the feeling now the upper mount and the lower bushing are not aligned causing it to run out of true.

Do a search on here, think it was self aligning bearing from Simply Bearings to replace the lower column bush . Made a huge improvement on my car , self centring vastly improved.

The car steer's beatyfully can take your hands of the wheel and it will track straight.

It's just low speed manovering that you see the wheel move.

Will look at replacing the bushing at the winter layup