Hiya needs some help , ive been told i have too much play in the factory tilt steering column, at the top , just behind the steering wheel, theres loads of "play" left & right and slightly less up and down . How do i fix this? IS there an after market top bearing repair kit?? Help Mo 71 Riv London England PS any1 put one of those HELIX chrome steering columns in , from ebay ??
Not sure about the 71s, but the 69 is a "shock absorbing" column which is designed to break in an accident. When I got my Riv the front had hit something. Not too hard as it was just a bent bumper, damaged grille and warped fender. But it was a hard enough impact to have caused the column to "break" right at the tilt knuckle. Just make sure the column is not broken first. And there are "repair procedures" to tighten up a loose column. In fact I even read in in a magazine a while back where they did this repair. It might be easier to just replace the column.
There are 3 screws which become loose in many GM columns. They can be tightened and as long as there isn't any other damage, you will be good. There are 2 special tools required to get to those screws. You will be taking most of the top portion of the column apart to acces them. There are many write ups of how to do this. Any search on the subject should lead you down the right path.
Check the top set of bearings, under the round steel plate. I had the same problem before I changed mine.
Someone has a little shop set up at a local junk yard here that deals with steering components. I took my column there with the same problem you have and he charged $50 to fix it. It will be more expensive at a more reputable shop.
