Dead spot in steering + discontinued part.

mattbta said:

Nice, looks like they have one that accommodates the position sensor mine has. I even replaced that when I was chasing some issues!

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My brain stopped braining. The sensor is there and the correct bearing gets ordered tonight.

6/28 Update: A bracket to depress the lock plate was simple to make and worked well. Access to the bearing was granted. Removal of the remaining plastic bits for shift lever, ignition housing and a turn indicator plate that blocked accessing two more bolts became a breeze.

Now that the column is stripped to this point I'm left with two choices:
1. Removal of two peened and threaded thick grub type screws that the tilt unit pivots on. That will allow separating the tilt housing and extracting the steering shaft. The procedure needs to then be done again on the '04 column.
2. Pull the '04 column, begin reassembling the donor column with '04 parts and then reinstall an essentially renewed unit.

Choice #1 is preferred as the original column stays in the vehicle and I avoid handling many electrical connections, bundled wires, retaining clips and a metal shield beneath the column. That path now literally hinges on whether or not those big grubby type screws play nice and come out with the resources at hand .... four times. (last photo)

This feels like preparing to operate on a hip joint while the experience level is that of clipping toenails.


Tidbit: I'm curious why the steering shaft I seek was offered solo and with a portion of the tilt unit attached before both were discontinued. Perhaps solo = more labor $$, and as a unit = considerably more $$ yet less time to replace.

Roilux said:

I have JL4 but no sensor and the end of the column.
Being the third owner, I'll need to explore under the dash and see if an incorrect bearing had been previously installed before I replaced it.
To date (4 years now) no codes, no lights and no DTC. StabiliTrak light is operational when button is pushed.

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Marky Dissod said:

Just to be sure, use an excess amount of tire shine on your tires, get some on the treads, and go test your StabiliTrak ...

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Roilux said:

You are a baaaaaaaaad influence! *snicker*

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Thank you, but it's not quite as bad as you think. Point is to EASILY induce MILD slides at manageable road speeds and not stain your britches.
It's how I taught many teens how to handle snowy conditions in June. And by the way, taught them in a '94 Chevy Caprice LT1, with no 'stability' or 'traction' control.

Marky Dissod said:

Thank you, but it's not quite as bad as you think. Point is to EASILY induce MILD slides at manageable road speeds and not stain your britches.
It's how I taught many teens how to handle snowy conditions in June. And by the way, taught them in a '94 Chevy Caprice LT1, with no 'stability' or 'traction' control.

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Mild slides you say? I started driving in WWW .... ... .. . Windy Wyoming Winters where momentum was King, traction was Queen and poor vehicle choices brought out Jacks & . Now that I'm in SoCal I tend to stay inside when it starts to rain. Idiot drivers abound here.

Having shared that, I've never tested StabiliTrak on vs StabiliTrak off aaaaaand now I'm curious.

An earlier post lamented about swapping steering shafts vs transferring components between columns being the better choice.
Apparently, pivot pins in the tilt mechanism are pressed in. This tool is used to remove them.
Once both pivot pins are out, the tilt mechanism separates and the shaft can be removed.

Alrighty then, choice #1 it is.