steering adjustment 1980 c3
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 21
Likes: 0
From: birmingham
steering adjustment 1980 c3
hi guys,
in a bit of trouble with my steering,left car at repairers to replace ball joint off pitman arm on steering cylinder,he had it apart & now the steering throws itself to one side.got car back now and sortin myself.
can any body tell me how i adjust this cylinder. i can get perfect power assist on one side but then the car wants to steer itself to the other.really desperate with this now. thanks
in a bit of trouble with my steering,left car at repairers to replace ball joint off pitman arm on steering cylinder,he had it apart & now the steering throws itself to one side.got car back now and sortin myself.
can any body tell me how i adjust this cylinder. i can get perfect power assist on one side but then the car wants to steer itself to the other.really desperate with this now. thanks
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,192
Likes: 27
From: Boca Raton Florida
steering control valve is what your after. the business end is just behind the drivers side front wheel. Jack the front wheels just off the ground. Remove the cap on the end of the valve, start the car. Adjust the screw in until the wheel starts to move, stop and note the position. Adjust out til the wheel starts to move, stop and note the position. Now go back in to the center between those points and you should be good.
Instructor
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 193
Likes: 0
Turn the adjusting screw slowly because of a time delay you'll find the rod will start moving all of a sudden in the other direction. If you keep going back and forth you will eventually ruin the adjusting mechanism.
Instructor
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 193
Likes: 0
And......if you just replaced the cylinder the PO cut out with a sawsall and threw away and had your car still up on ramps, be careful when you start the car just in case the wheels turn hard one way or another......gives a whole new level of excitement to an otherwise uneventful day.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 21
Likes: 0
From: birmingham
many thanks for the info guys.fitted a replacement cylinder now,so i know its definately piped up correctly.i am now in the following situation
perfect power assist on left lock,very stiff on right lock.at idle the wheels stay straight and also when i build up the revs a little,however when you pull it in drive & accellerate,it pulls over to the right.Ithink now it is purely gonna be down to fine adjustments of th nut on the end of the cylinder(I hope).if not i will have to settle for driving round in circles lol.again many thanks for your replies.not always easy to get good info here in uk,its appreciated
perfect power assist on left lock,very stiff on right lock.at idle the wheels stay straight and also when i build up the revs a little,however when you pull it in drive & accellerate,it pulls over to the right.Ithink now it is purely gonna be down to fine adjustments of th nut on the end of the cylinder(I hope).if not i will have to settle for driving round in circles lol.again many thanks for your replies.not always easy to get good info here in uk,its appreciated
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 113
From: Saginaw Michigan
With respect to installing the power steering lines incorrectly, you get a beast that thrashes around and wants to steer itself.
With respect to your original problem. Normally I would say that you have to adjust the control valve. HOWEVER, you say that you didn't touch the control valve, just a new assist cylinder. Changing the cylinder shouldn't cause the control valve to go out of adjustment. This leads me to think that you may still have some air trapped on one side of the cylinder. I would jack the front end up and rotate the steering wheel lock to lock a couple dozen times - WITH THE ENGINE OFF! Check to see if your fluid level in the reservoir goes down a bit and look for any air bubbles coming up into the reservoir. Refill if needed.
Jim
With respect to your original problem. Normally I would say that you have to adjust the control valve. HOWEVER, you say that you didn't touch the control valve, just a new assist cylinder. Changing the cylinder shouldn't cause the control valve to go out of adjustment. This leads me to think that you may still have some air trapped on one side of the cylinder. I would jack the front end up and rotate the steering wheel lock to lock a couple dozen times - WITH THE ENGINE OFF! Check to see if your fluid level in the reservoir goes down a bit and look for any air bubbles coming up into the reservoir. Refill if needed.
Jim
