I have a 1968 427 restored Corvette. The steering doesn't feel very tight and concerns me when I'm driving it. Are there any adjustments that can be made or is it time to rebuild the steering box? Thank you for you response.

 

Hi VH,
Welcome!
What a great looking 68 convertible!
Lot's of reasons for sensing loose steering.
What to you see… can you turn the steering wheel a bit without the wheels turning?
Does the car have power steering?
When was the restoration done? Did that include restoring the steering components?
How long have you had this car? Has it always been this way?
Again, terrific looking car!
Regards,
Alan

 

Yes a beautiful car . Could just be the rag joint at the end of the steering column under the hood if it is still the original . The rubber on the joint deteriorates with age and splits. Could be dangerous if bad. I would start looking there and proceed to the rest of the steering components if that is ok.

 

Thank you. I've owned the car for over forty years. It's all original except piston ration which I went down on to run unleaded gas. I've probably put less then 10,000 miles on it since I bought it. Never had problems with the steering before but Had to wait until I started collecting my SS before I could afford to restore it. I've never rebuilt the steering box as the car only has 75000 original miles on it. It does have power steering. I can move the the steering wheel a little before tires turn. I finished the car two years ago and tow it where ever I show it. I live outside Santa Barbara.

 

Yes, the flex coupling between the steering column and the steering box is the first place to look for "slop". If that is the original factory part, the flexible disc is probably "toast" by now. Have someone else turn the steering wheel (car does not need to be running) and watch for relative movement between the two ends of that coupling.

If bad, you can rebuild your existing coupling with a new flexible disc or buy an aftermarket replacement. If you do the repair work, you need to know that the two clamping bolts (one at each end) need to be COMPLETELY removed in order to disassemble it from the shafts. Those are "capture" bolts which will not allow disassembly until they are removed.

If not the flex coupling [ragjoint], it could be looseness in the steering box, a loose idler arm knuckle or loose steering arm joints, ball joints, and or suspension bushings.

Lastly, I should mention that if your car is just 'darting around' when at highway speed, your front wheel alignment may be the issue. On a small car with wide tires, the front wheels must have a bit of "toe-IN" applied or the car will wander around. Something like 1/16" - 1/8" of toe-in is required to keep the front end pointed straight.

 

Thank you, good place to start. I appreciate your input

 

I should probably get that checked out first. Really appreciate all the good ideas I got from you all.

 

[QUOTE=7T1vette;1594383318]Yes, the flex coupling between the steering column and the steering box is the first place to look for "slop". If that is the original factory part, the flexible disc is probably "toast" by now. Have someone else turn the steering wheel (car does not need to be running) and watch for relative movement between the two ends of that coupling.

If bad, you can rebuild your existing coupling with a new flexible disc or buy an aftermarket replacement. If you do the repair work, you need to know that the two clamping bolts (one at each end) need to be COMPLETELY removed in order to disassemble it from the shafts. Those are "capture" bolts which will not allow disassembly until they are removed.

If not the flex coupling [ragjoint], it could be looseness in the steering box,a loose idler arm knuckle or loose steering arm joints, ball joints, and or suspension bushings.

Lastly, I should mention that if your car is just 'darting around' when at highway speed, your front wheel alignment may be the issue. On a small car with wide tires, the front wheels must have a bit of "toe-IN" applied or the car will wander around. Something like 1/16" - 1/8" of toe-in is required to keep the front end pointed straight.
Appreciate all your help and knowledge on things to look out for. Nothing like expedience. Thank you friends.

 

I had a similar issue with my 72 recently. It has original 68k mls on it and the steering wheel had some play (however, due to perfect chassis alignment the car runs perfectly straight on the highway without wandering... and... I have 225/70 tires... no fat 255s).

All steering interfaces were fine... so I checked the steering gear. Some special steering gear lubricant was missing (check you tube for that procedure... not too difficult) and most important I turned the screw on the top cover 1/2 in (be careful, it must not "tighten" the gear inside at all otherwise this will result in damage).

Now, it is absolutely great... no free play!

Cheers...
René

 

Rene' beat me to it, there's a nut with a flat head slotted bolt in it at the top of your steering box. I've tightened that up on a 71 Jeep CJ that I restored years ago and it took out a good 90* of slop. Do not tighten it if the rag joint is good and the drag link below the steering box is good. You will need a second person and access under your car to see where the slop is. If it is the box, check you lube level inside the box and then tighten just enough for most of the slop to go away. If its not leaking or grinding a total rebuild wouldnt be necessary.

 

The steering box 'adjustment' screw is how excess looseness is removed from the box. BUT it needs to be done properly. Just tightening it up is NOT the way to do it. If the box is worn near the center position, removing that slack will cause the steering to bind when turning left or right.

If you need instruction on how to do that, request it in this thread.

 

Hi guys,,

thanks for the responses.

Regarding the free play in the steering gear... I have checked the entire linkage with two people and it is ok. The only free play is about 3/4" from the center position. The coupler is great as well. So we turned in the adjustment bolt by a quarter... checked play... added another 1/4... and now the free play is down to 1/4". We tightened the nut... play is still 1/4" and the steering wheel does not feel "meaty" so I believe we did not "tighten" the steering gear. When driving it feels more precise and the steering wheel does not bind.

 

Check for Jim Shea's paper on how to adjust the C3 steering gear box. There are two adjustments that will tighten up the steering gear box. They are detailed very well in his paper. Jim Shea is a retired GM engineer that worked in the Saginaw Steering division of GM. No one better to get the information needed from. These are serious adjustments that need to be correctly done, very little room for error. Just Google Jim Shea Steering papers. Lots of luck, Russ.

 

Good job