mydatsunroadster.com

This afternoon I removed the steering column, which connects the steering wheel to the yoke and transfers the steering action from the steering wheel down to the mechanism that turns the wheels. The column is a long rod that protrudes through the firewall and therefore has to come out before the body can be removed from the frame.

When I began I noticed that the steering yoke was aligned a bit off at an angle which was preventing me from being able to access the bolt that tightens the yoke around the end of the column. I jacked up the car in the front and, with the wheels free of friction from the floor, was then able to turn the column by hand in order to oriented it so that the bolt was accessible. The steering column is held to the yoke by the clamping force of a bolt. I removed first the nut and then the bolt itself, both using a 1/2" box-end wrench. The area had too little clearance for me to get a socket in there, so it went slowly. With the bolt removed the column still didn't want to come free. I used some Liquid Wrench and gave it a few whacks with a rubber mallet to break it loose. To my surprise, with a good yank the steering column came free.