Tilt column looseness

[mike n]

I've got a tilt column in my 80 K20 that's loose at the tilt joint.

Today I decided to pull it apart to see what's up. I got down as far as four inverted torx bolts, and found them all to be loose as a goose. So, I added loctite to each of the four bolts and tightened them, and put the column back together.

Problem is the column is still somewhat loose. not as bad as it was before, but still has side to side slop that it shouldn't.

What did I miss?

 

[4X4HIGH]

there is a bearing just below the blinker assembly, is it still there? You should find a bearing then and inner race then the lock plate spring.

 

[sweetk30]

some times if the 4 bolts were loose to long it will crack the parts. best thing is rinse out holes with brake cleaner and lock tight them and reinstall if all parts are good.

p.s. where in ny state are you?

 

[mike n]

Yes, the bearing is still there. (luckily I didn't have any spare parts after re-assembly )

Another thing I noticed was the upper part of the column (where the lock cylinder goes) appears offset versus the lower part (where the shift lever is).

It was like that when it was looser, and even after tightening the bolts it's still like that.

I've been trying to find a decent exploded diagram of a tilt column to no avail.

 

[mike n]

I shined a light down in there looking for anything that didn't look right, but it all seemed ok (to me, at least).

I'm in Rochester.

 

[sweetk30]

cool local kind of person. i am not alone hear in ny state.

 

[dyeager535]

Been awhile since I messed with one, but the only thing I can think of that will change the relationship side to side before/after the tilt "joint" are the two pins that hold it together right there.

I agree with the broken piece theory, neighbor had the same problem, took it apart, found that the screw holes were actually cracked becuase it had been let go for so long.

Tip to not have this happen (if you or PO did it) is to not use the column to pull yourself in the vehicle. Only the trucks have this problem to a large extent, and they use the exact same column as a car, except the car is lower to the ground.

 

[mike n]

All the bolts seemed to tighten ok, so I think if the holes were stripped or broken they probably wouldn't have tightened.

The tilt pins are ok, still fit the holes tightly, so I'm not thinking they are the problem.

The column was loose when I bought the truck, and I have no idea how long it was like that for. My guess (based on how loose it was) would be a long time. I'm sure something down inside is broken, I just don't know what. I'll probably just wind up swapping a straight column in there, as I don't use the tilt option anyway.

+1 on not using the steering wheel to pull yourself in the truck. Never have, never will.

Thanks everyone for the replies.