Re: {Chrysler 300} Steering boxes.

Hi all:

My experience with my F is that when I purchased the car, to maintain originality, I installed a new set of bias ply tires. As I drove down the highways, the car would suddenly move from groove to groove. I had to pay close attention. Later I installed radials and the problem disappeared. I could set the steering and remove my hands from the wheel. The car maintained its' path. As far as I am concerned, problem solved.

Hope to see some of you at the Meet in October.

Dan Reitz

Bell Canyon, CA

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In a message dated 8/5/2022 8:11:09 AM Pacific Standard Time, jkg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:

Really sincere thanks Don for this. Extremely valuable information .
While my experience on problems with this setup have been with 67 dart and 02 jeep , the process in FSM in the jeep for instance requires box removal to set a certain in/lb drag torque on a bench setup ( are they serious ? Can’t be !! ) Two days of work to adjust the nut 1/4 turn?

I have done both cars by carefully noting screw position like a clock and turning in about 1/8 turn at a time having somebody rock steering wheel while looking at pitman arm for very slight motion as it takes up steering linkage play — once lag is imperceptible then stop. Clearly that can’t work if rubber is shot or loose on 300 .

. Also I noticed one can feel the adjusting nut very slightly increase in torque as gears inside touch . For sure go no more . Car ( dart ) was jumping lanes it was so bad , 300k miles .

It fixed it .

But a nagging doubt remained — did I do something very wrong ? Should it be done with engine on or off ?

On jeep it was too tight after that , felt wrong so backed off slightly . Both have been ok .

On 300 , I agree totally that rubber thing with copper “ jumper “ plastic etc is a flat out bad design , I say that as an engineer (in my former life , I was used to arguments defending bad designs—-) !

Rubber should never have that high or type of compression load on such a short radius . Later “ rag joint “ design fixed a bad design .

Maybe we should repro that rubber coupling in Delrin , I care less about minor road vibration in column — Compared to play in steering —- happens before you even get to steering box!

Ps heads up between 60-61 box era ,the side facing column changes projection ( length toward wheel ) by about .75 “ , THAT can wreck your week . Easy to mix wrong jackets / shafts too , not obvious till in car . Been there .

I believe boxes stayed the same across many cars after 61 — it that true?

J

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 5, 2022, at 9:36 AM, 'Donald Verity' via Chrysler 300 Club International <chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On the subject of steering boxes.
Leaking seals is not the only thing that goes wrong with these 58 and up steering boxes. The main needle bearings that support the cross shaft also wear, and can actually break. The cross shaft and the piston housing which has the worm gear inside, do not wear that much. They are also adjusted to have a pre-load, and if properly adjusted are not the source of play in the wheel. There will normally be somewhat more pre-load on center that at the extreme left and right, because there is less stress on center than while steering. Most of the play problems with this system are where the column shaft attaches to the box by the rubber insulator. The insulators wear badly after 60 or so years of service, and get even worse if there is a leak in that area. There are also 2 plastic sliders that separate the rubber from the metal shaft to lessen friction. These also wear out.

With the way these steering boxes are designed, you are always going to have play in the wheel with the engine off. When you turn the wheel, a flexible disc moves and in turn moves a valve which controls the power distribution. What you feel with the engine off is the disc flexing. The response is immediate with the engine running. I have seen one instants of the disc cracking.

See your shop manual for even more in depth information.

Don Verity

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