Steering Failure - saved by providence

[Michel]

Hi Michel, no, there's nothing to weld - I would imagine that there needs to be some movement, but I would also hazard an 'educated' guess that the sliding feature of the two shafts is the be all and all as far as collapsible steering safety is concerned.

In any case, as long as the coupling is fitted 'properly'. the problem as I have experienced should never occur.Hate to say it, and there ought to be some excuse, it is the fault of both operators, viz. the previous mechanic initially, and now myself. Regards Styria

I was merely being sarcastic Godfather, never wishing you any harm, but worried that this occurence could have happened twice in such a short time.

Something that should NEVER happen in the first place.
Glad you are safe

 

[Des]

Not sure why I haven't seen this thread about,

Styria that is really bad, as you say....what could have happened.



I am very fortunate myself getting my steering coupling replaced some months back, it was quite scarey as the car gets faster you loose feeling in the steering wheel.


Sounds like something everyone should have inspected on their car annually

 

[BenzBoy]

I'm not sure that I really understand why the steering failed or what one should look for to evaluate such a problem in another car. Perhaps Styria, you can give some more details when you have spare time?
Regards,
BenzBoy

 

[Des]

I'm not sure that I really understand why the steering failed or what one should look for to evaluate such a problem in another car. Perhaps Styria, you can give some more details when you have spare time?
Regards,
BenzBoy

Well I can tell you how it "feels"

You should be able to feel the wheels through the steering wheel, even at high speeds, the steering wheel should be firm but not tight, you should not be able to wobble the wheel around when the car is stopped.

With my car, the steering wheel was all wobbly, driving above say 60k's it felt like the steering wheel was not connected to anything.
There was also "play" in the steering, that is you could turn the wheel a bit ether way and nothing would happen, new steering coupling and adjusted steering box fixed all this for me.

Once you have driven a car with brand new bushes, steering parts and then drive a worn out car the difference is like night and day.

 

[Styria]

Hey guys, there are two distinct differences between the points that Des raises, and the situation (or problem) that I struck with Gleaming Beauty. The main difference, Des, is that the coupling on Gleaming Beauty was brand new when originally fitted by the other mechanic initially and its condition is still quite satisfactory and therefore perfectly useable.

On the other hand, the problem with Gleaming Beauty is that the inner shaft with the square end is a loose fit allowing the shaft to slide in both directions quite easily inside the outer shaft - incidentally, both are square. With the one tested on the bench at my friend's place, we actually had to use hammer blows to move the inner shaft at all. There is no retaining nor fastening pin in any way connecting the two shafts to each other.

Therefore, say you have to replace the steering box and/or the coupling, it is best to fit the coupling to the shaft first and secure it with the locking bolt. After that, you would offer up the splined shaft of the steering box to the coupling and manouever it into position to start fitting the long bolts that hold the box to the inner chassis rail. Thus, with the coupling locked to the inner shaft of the column, there is no way that the coupling could be moved from its required position.

This is the sort of job that can catch out anyone- as I said, both the mechanic and myself got caught out - I don't really think it was anyone's fault because, under normal circumstance, the inner shaft should not slide so easily. Regards Styria

 

[Des]

Thanks Styria, now I understand, sounds like the lessons to be learnt from this then is that with your timing chain it should be inspected annually?
Maybe it is already a part of the maintenance schedule?

 

[Styria]

Hi Des, I am not quite sure what you're referring to - I am a bit confused about Timing Chain, maintenance and Steering Coupling ? Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

Hi everyone, my apologies for logging in as Moderator. Completely forgot to log out. Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

It would seem that Gleaming Beauty is not the only 116 with a loose inner steering shaft. I have just observed another car with exactly the same set-up - in other words, a loose inner shaft that allows it to be pushed upwards towards the interior of the car. Undoubtedly, this has to be the feature commonly described as a collapsible steering column.

Really having an extremely careful look at the whole arrangement, some refitting procedures need to be re-evaluated. In my humble opinion, and without taking responsibility for the procedure recommended, the steering coupling should be fitted to the splined shaft of the steering box first - this is after determining the exact centre position. Also, the steering wheel itself should be secured in the centre position, such as it can be determined.

It is then necessary to locate the inner shaft by clamping vise grips against the fire wall to stop it moving upwards away from the steering box. That had been the problem with Gleaming Beauty all along without me being aware of this idiosyncracy, obviously not prevalent in ALL 116s. With the vise grip in position, one can now offer up the steering box without running the risk of the shaft moving away from the box and giving a false reading. So, please be acutely aware of what can happen. Once the box is in place, remove the vise grips and check your steering wheel for centre alignment. Regards Styria