Steering Column Gap

[money pit]

Can anyone tell me why there is such a large gap between the lower part of the steering column and the upper part (crush can?). I bought this car a couple of weeks ago. It's a 70 Barracuda AAR clone. It has manual steering. I don't know if this was originally a power steering car. I know it was originally a 383. It now has a 340. Could it be they replaced the steering shaft? Thanks

 

[EV2RTSE]

Anything's possible, so many of these columns were monkeyed with over the years. It could be just that someone pulled the can for some reason and put it back in place but didn't tighten it back down to pull it all back together? Hard to tell from just the one pic.
Another possibility, the shaft is comprised of two pieces and is collapsible in an accident, nylon shear pins break away which help collapse it and prevent impaling the driver. It could be that these pins have broken and one of the pieces of the shaft is moving in and out. It can be repaired however, no need to replace it if that's the case.

Watch Cuda Cody's youtube videos on steering columns for openers.

 

[Katfish]

Take off the steering wheel and post a pic.
Should be obvious if the nut is seated or not.

 

[money pit]

Anything's possible, so many of these columns were monkeyed with over the years. It could be just that someone pulled the can for some reason and put it back in place but didn't tighten it back down to pull it all back together? Hard to tell from just the one pic.
Another possibility, the shaft is comprised of two pieces and is collapsible in an accident, nylon shear pins break away which help collapse it and prevent impaling the driver. It could be that these pins have broken and one of the pieces of the shaft is moving in and out. It can be repaired however, no need to replace it if that's the case.

Watch Cuda Cody's youtube videos on steering columns for openers.

I'm going to convert to power steering. I guess that means I will need to replace the column also. In the meantime, I'm going to pull the steering wheel and see what's going on. The horn doesn't work and the turn signals don't cancel. The video was very helpful. Thanks

 

[EV2RTSE]

You can use the same column, a manual steering shaft will need to be collapsed a bit to the proper length, and you'll need a power steering coupler, but those are readily available. Otherwise the columns are the same, the only differences are between floor and column shift. If you haven't already, watch the other 3 parts to that video series as well.

Power Steering Coupler-
Steering Coupler Body 66-93 Car and Truck With Power Steering 3 1/2 kit | Roseville Moparts

 

[money pit]

Take off the steering wheel and post a pic.
Should be obvious if the nut is seated or not.

The nut was seated, I lightly taped the steering shaft and it went down easily. The crush can and the column now fit properly. Thanks

 

[money pit]

You can use the same column, a manual steering shaft will need to be collapsed a bit to the proper length, and you'll need a power steering coupler, but those are readily available. Otherwise the columns are the same, the only differences are between floor and column shift. If you haven't already, watch the other 3 parts to that video series as well.

Power Steering Coupler-
Steering Coupler Body 66-93 Car and Truck With Power Steering 3 1/2 kit | Roseville Moparts

View attachment 136502

Can you collapse the shaft or will I need to cut it? I was planning on converting to a Borgensen unit. I just finished watching the other videos. Thanks

 

[EV2RTSE]

You can collapse a longer manual shaft to make it the length of the power steering shaft, or vice versa. I think cutting the shaft comes into play if you use the coupler that comes with the Borgeson box, but from what I understand Bergman Auto Craft makes a coupler that fits the Borgeson box that doesn't require cutting.

Some info on repairing the shaft so that it doesn't move as freely-
Steering Column Shaft Repair Kit in Wheels, Tires, Brakes, Suspension & Steering
and
Best collapsed steering shaft repair? in Wheels, Tires, Brakes, Suspension & Steering

 

[money pit]

You can collapse a longer manual shaft to make it the length of the power steering shaft, or vice versa. I think cutting the shaft comes into play if you use the coupler that comes with the Borgeson box, but from what I understand Bergman Auto Craft makes a coupler that fits the Borgeson box that doesn't require cutting.

Some info on repairing the shaft so that it doesn't move as freely-
Steering Column Shaft Repair Kit in Wheels, Tires, Brakes, Suspension & Steering
and
Best collapsed steering shaft repair? in Wheels, Tires, Brakes, Suspension & Steering

On my last Barracuda I had, I converted to a Borgesen steering box and used a "no cut" coupler from Bergman. The difference was, I went from a power steering car to a Borgesen power steering unit. The Bergman coupler looks and works like the original coupler except you don't have to cut the steering shaft. The Bergman coupler is a little longer so I think it makes up for the additional length of the steering shaft.

 

[EV2RTSE]

Right. So in this case with a manual column, the shaft, which is comprised of two pieces, should currently be somewhere around 43 1/8" as in the pic above. To make it the same as an original power steering shaft you'll only need to tap on one end to collapse it to 40 3/4" and you should be good to go to. If the two pieces are moving back and forth too freely then you'll want to use something to help prevent movement as in the links above.