C3 Tech/Performance V8 Technical Info, Internal Engine, External Engine, Basic Tech and Maintenance for the C3 Corvette
Sponsored by:
Sponsored by:

telescoping steering lock

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Feb 20, 2008 | 08:50 PM
  #1  
76projectstingray's Avatar
76projectstingray
Thread Starter
Instructor
 
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 245
Likes: 2
From: Jersey shore NJ
Default telescoping steering lock

My telescpoing steering column will not lock? does anyone know how to fix it?
Reply
Old Feb 20, 2008 | 08:59 PM
  #2  
'75's Avatar
'75
Le Mans Master
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
 
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 6,422
Likes: 591
From: McHenry Illinois
Default

I'll try. when you pull the horn button off you will see the lever for the telescoping lock. It attaches to a star shaped bolt using a small screw. If all that is attached then you will have to move the lock lever toward lock, remove the screw and then move the lever back to line up the next screw hole and re-install it.
The star shaped bolt basically pushes on a long rod that goes on down and causes a half moon shaped woodruff key to be pushed outward to lock against the shaft to stop it from going up or down. What you will be doing is screwing the star shaped bolt in further.

If this doesn't make sense I will try to find pics or a diagrahm.

Dean
Reply
Old Feb 20, 2008 | 09:07 PM
  #3  
72LS1Vette's Avatar
72LS1Vette
Safety Car
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 4,883
Likes: 11
From: North Easton Mass
Default

If the rod is missing from the mechanism the column won't lock. I had my column out and turned it upside-down and the rod fell out and the column wouldn't lock. Jim Shea straightened me out on that problem, but I don't know if the rod shows up on diagrams. If you can turn the ring and it tightens then the star wheel is probably OK and you are missing the rod piece.



Rick B.
Reply
Old Feb 20, 2008 | 10:35 PM
  #4  
Jim Shea's Avatar
Jim Shea
Le Mans Master
Supporting Lifetime Gold
15 Year Member
 
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 112
From: Saginaw Michigan
Default

Here is a blowup of the 1976 T&T steering wheel and telescope lock. I am afraid that the picture is not the best. The star screw is called out as #3 in the picture. The rod is not shown. It would be about 4 inches long and would be right under the star screw. It would pass through all of the components and would slide right down inside the steering shaft that is just sticking out from the steering column in the picture.

Hope that this helps,
Jim
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 06:35 AM
  #5  
Fonz69's Avatar
Fonz69
Pro
 
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 688
Likes: 1
From: Stevens Point WI
Default

On my car its not loose but the opposite

It sticks and once you pull the wheel toward you it takes two guys to push it back in

Is there parts in the column that need lube or is it just out of adjustment?
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 07:27 AM
  #6  
dobroman2001's Avatar
dobroman2001
Racer
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 385
Likes: 3
From: RTP NC
Default

Originally Posted by 76projectstingray
My telescpoing steering column will not lock? does anyone know how to fix it?
Here's some pictures I took when I converted my '76 to a '75 wheel. I don't recall seeing a "rod" however the T&T function works properly.

Tab,


http://s189.photobucket.com/albums/z...oval/?start=20
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 08:41 AM
  #7  
Jim Shea's Avatar
Jim Shea
Le Mans Master
Supporting Lifetime Gold
15 Year Member
 
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 112
From: Saginaw Michigan
Default

Fonz,
Disconnect your battery.
Use a small screwdriver to reach under your horn cap and remove it.
Remove the three screws and the upper horn contact.
Remove the two screws that hold the telescope lever to the star screw.
Use a large phillips screwdriver to loosen and tighten the star screw.

Does "adjusting" the star screw allow your telescope function to work easier?

I turn the star screw in with the phillips so that it locks the telescope function.
Then I reinstall the above hardware with the telescope lever in a nearly full clockwise location. (You will have several places where you can reattach the lever to the star screw.) Now with the lever installed and rotating it CCW the column should telescope freely.

One thing to keep in mind. You can put a lot more torque on the star screw with the T&T locking lever than you can with just a phillips screwdriver. So when you tighten with the screwdriver so that the column shaft stops telescoping, you will still be able to tighten it a bit further when the locking lever is reinstalled. That is why I mentioned attaching the lever to the star screw in "a nearly full CW location."

Hope that this helps,
Jim
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 06:25 PM
  #8  
Fonz69's Avatar
Fonz69
Pro
 
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 688
Likes: 1
From: Stevens Point WI
Default

Originally Posted by Jim Shea
Fonz,
Disconnect your battery.
Use a small screwdriver to reach under your horn cap and remove it.
Remove the three screws and the upper horn contact.
Remove the two screws that hold the telescope lever to the star screw.
Use a large phillips screwdriver to loosen and tighten the star screw.

Does "adjusting" the star screw allow your telescope function to work easier?

I turn the star screw in with the phillips so that it locks the telescope function.
Then I reinstall the above hardware with the telescope lever in a nearly full clockwise location. (You will have several places where you can reattach the lever to the star screw.) Now with the lever installed and rotating it CCW the column should telescope freely.

One thing to keep in mind. You can put a lot more torque on the star screw with the T&T locking lever than you can with just a phillips screwdriver. So when you tighten with the screwdriver so that the column shaft stops telescoping, you will still be able to tighten it a bit further when the locking lever is reinstalled. That is why I mentioned attaching the lever to the star screw in "a nearly full CW location."

Hope that this helps,
Jim



Thanks for the advice, I have the column out of the car at this time but I will check out what you described
Reply
Corvette Stories

The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts

story-0

8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

 Verdad Gallardo
story-1

Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)

 Joe Kucinski
story-2

Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!

 Verdad Gallardo
story-3

Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!

 Brett Foote
story-4

Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!

 Michael S. Palmer
story-5

10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know

 Joe Kucinski
story-6

5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2

 Michael S. Palmer
story-7

2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor

 Joe Kucinski
story-8

10 Most Common Corvette Problems of the Last 20 Years!

 Joe Kucinski
story-9

5 MOST and 5 LEAST Popular Corvette Model Years in History!

 Joe Kucinski
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 07:30 PM
  #9  
72LS1Vette's Avatar
72LS1Vette
Safety Car
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 4,883
Likes: 11
From: North Easton Mass
Default

Originally Posted by dobroman2001
Here's some pictures I took when I converted my '76 to a '75 wheel. I don't recall seeing a "rod" however the T&T function works properly.

Tab,
If you take off the star screw there is a hole underneath. The rod is down in the hole. I believe what happens is when the star screw is tightened it pushes down on the rod and the rod stops the telescoping function using unseen powerful forces, possibly derived from UFO technology. I got into trouble when I took off the star screw and then inverted the column. The rod fell out onto the floor and I had no idea where it came from in the column. Thankfully Jim was able to tell me how to get things back in order. As he mentioned, the rod is not shown in the column assembly drawing.



Rick B.
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 07:51 PM
  #10  
dobroman2001's Avatar
dobroman2001
Racer
10 Year Member
 
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 385
Likes: 3
From: RTP NC
Default

Originally Posted by 72LS1Vette
If you take off the star screw there is a hole underneath. The rod is down in the hole. I believe what happens is when the star screw is tightened it pushes down on the rod and the rod stops the telescoping function using unseen powerful forces, possibly derived from UFO technology. I got into trouble when I took off the star screw and then inverted the column. The rod fell out onto the floor and I had no idea where it came from in the column. Thankfully Jim was able to tell me how to get things back in order. As he mentioned, the rod is not shown in the column assembly drawing.



Rick B.

Rick, strange... I went through changing all that stuff but I never moved the column from the table I was working which explains why I didn't see the rod. I think I see the tip of it in the picture (link) below. The method that is described is how I tightened the telescoping. I thought it was a little "rinky dinky" design... Sorry Jim!!

Later,
Tab

http://s189.photobucket.com/albums/z...lchange030.jpg
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 08:49 PM
  #11  
76projectstingray's Avatar
76projectstingray
Thread Starter
Instructor
 
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 245
Likes: 2
From: Jersey shore NJ
Default

Thanks for the advise, I will take it apart and see whats not engaging.and look for the rod. Thanks Jim
Reply
Old Feb 21, 2008 | 10:07 PM
  #12  
Jim Shea's Avatar
Jim Shea
Le Mans Master
Supporting Lifetime Gold
15 Year Member
 
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 112
From: Saginaw Michigan
Default

Here is a sectioned picture of the T&T column head. You can see the locking rod. It pushes against a half circular steel piece with a notch taken out of it called a wedge.

The star screw is threaded into the end of the telescoping upper shaft. When you tighten the star screw it pushes on the rod and the rod tips the wedge and ***** it against the upper steering shaft yoke locking the two parts together.

Reply

Get notified of new replies

To telescoping steering lock





All times are GMT -4. The time now is 06:31 PM.

story-0
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time

Slideshow: Some Corvette pace cars became collectible legends, while others perfectly captured the look and attitude of their era.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-11 09:50:51


VIEW MORE
story-1
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)

Slideshow: Ranking the top 10 Corvette engines by torque output.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-05 11:58:09


VIEW MORE
story-2
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!

Slideshow: A Corvette pace car nearly matching IndyCar speeds sounds exaggerated, until you look at the numbers.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-04 20:03:36


VIEW MORE
story-3
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!

Among a rather large group of them.

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-04 13:56:44


VIEW MORE
story-4
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!

Slideshow: the top 10 things Corvette owners want in the C9 Corvette

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-30 12:41:15


VIEW MORE
story-5
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know

Slideshow: 10 Important Corvette 'firsts' that every fan should know.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-29 17:02:16


VIEW MORE
story-6
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2

Slideshow: Should you buy a 2020-2026 Corvette or wait for 2027?

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-22 10:08:58


VIEW MORE
story-7
2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor

Slideshow: 2027 Corvette lineup vs the world.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-24 16:12:42


VIEW MORE
story-8
10 Most Common Corvette Problems of the Last 20 Years!

Slideshow: 10 major Corvette problems from the last 20 years.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-14 16:37:05


VIEW MORE
story-9
5 MOST and 5 LEAST Popular Corvette Model Years in History!

Slideshow: 5 most and least popular Corvette model years.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-08 13:25:01


VIEW MORE