250mph

Testing the column outside the car there is enough force to push the retainer off. No sense putting back in car at this point. That is why I'm asking for further help/guidance.

Unless there is near frictionless movement of the shaft elements there is no way the flimsy SAS retainer cap is going to hold the bearing in place. Unlike other photos I've seen, the bearing is not retained but center in a cup. In other words, some designs seem to have a bearing retainer and SAS retainer snap details, while on my column there is only the SAS retainer to hold everything in place.

Bearing retaining differences: Member AzMotorhead on Left and mine is on the right. I believe AzMotorhead's is a 2009 also.

***Added in edit 24+ hours later*** All three plastic bearing snap details are broke. Found one piece in the carpet. After removing SAS and bearing it is much easier to see they are broken. (6/13/19 @ 3:27 PM EST)

Ahrmike

Its not comforting to know so many of us had the same issue. 250, i've PM'd you some more info.

Ahrmike

your retainer clip broke. **** plastic that GM uses.

Carvone

Ahrmike - I wanted to give a shout out to you for your posts in my linked threads, your info helped me start this which seems to be snowballing into some useful threads for others. So thanks.

250 - I had never seen Azmotorheads thread before now but it looks like he removed the sensor, that purple snap ring and the bearing and allowed the shaft to collapse inside the column? That's the only way it could drop down that far. Did you ever get it reinstalled?

250mph

Root Cause: The root cause of my bearing becoming dislodged is due to too much friction in the two piece shaft the bearing rides in and is predominately located inside the aluminum extruded housing. With the shaft binding the electric motor has enough force to extent the shaft and the bearing is well supported in this direction, but when the shaft is retracted the force required is too great and the 3 spindly locking tabs break. My steering wheel continues to move in and out at the driver, but this shaft remains extended with the bearing no longer supported. What is moving smoothly is the collapsible shaft located in the engine compartment that connects to the steering rack itself. All the grease I can see in various locations within the steering column does not looked dried out or hardened.

Current State: I haven't had much time to work on it yesterday, other than to apply lube and work the shaft in and out a few times. It's getting looser, but still too much force is required. Other videos show them moving the shaft with minimal force which is not my situation.

I'm planning on fabricating some type of bearing holder, hoping the rack can be salvaged. Worse case I'll defeat the telescopic function or replace the entire rack.It will likely be a few days before I have time to fabricate and install the rack. I will definitely report back.

***Added in Edit*** Found one of the three broken bearing retaining tabs, proving they broke. Also called the dealer and the square black plastic bearing retainer is NOT available and a new steering column must be purchased. Quoted approximately $1,2000 for new column.

All suggestions are welcomed.

Thanks everyone!

Ahrmike

Not a problem. It was a pretty scary experience and I wanted to make sure everyone knew about this potential problem... GM really needs to get a recall done on this. This WILL cause deaths.

I've been toying with the idea of 3D printing a replacement but I really don't want to get into any liability issues if the replacement also fails. Could be an idea though... Best case: if someone is savvy with a CNC they can make a billet piece for a few hundred. I'd definitely be first in line for one. Honestly, the binding is probably due to metal-metal contact welding but the grease is supposed to prevent it... the grease fails and the rack binds. My grease was barely pliable and noticeably degraded. I threw on wheel bearing grease instead of the white lithium stuff and it seems to be working fine now.

250mph

I'm in the process of creating something out of sheet metal and will welded it into one piece to act as the bearing holder. Using 0.125" for the side supports and 0.090 for the top as that is the max given the minimal distance to the SAS.

With the bearing removed it is easier to see inside the aluminum housing and the troublesome extending shaft. To look at it you wouldn't know there is a problem. With the bearing removed the shaft can be displaced further and I'm hoping it will become much looser as I work on it.

Below are some pictures of what I'm doing.

250mph

Had an opportunity to weld up the bearing support and test if it is capable of holding the bearing in place when the column is retracted. Success! Even with the high frictional forces the shaft currently has it was able to retain the bearing without visible deflection of the plate.

Started to liberally apply PB blaster while working the shaft in an out. Every several cycles of PB/stroking I add a bit of oil since PB Baster isn't much of a lubricant. I'll keep working it this way and ensure it is fully lubed before reinstalling in car.

How stiff is the shaft? With the shaft extended it can easily support the weight of the column and additional downward force is needed to collapse the shaft. When it can no longer support the weight of the steering column, I'll reinstall.

250mph

After a few days of lubing the shaft, exercising the shaft full stroke and letting the lube penetrate in no particular order, the shaft is at high but acceptable levels of force to move. The steering column is back in place and a quick test ride indicated their were no issues. Yahoo!

In the end two of the three black plastic bearing retainer tabs were found in the carpet.

I feel very confident the bearing holder will work even if the shaft becomes harder to move.

Very frustrated this happened, but glad I was able to resolve without resorting to a new steering column.

Thanks for all the input and guidance along the way!