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Yikes!

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tdskip

Yoda
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Had some time this AM before work/kids got started and decided to dig into how the horn-a-matic got created. Also had the somewhat vague steering in mind and HOLY COW.

First - found the horn issue. One of the electrical ground rings came off so it was only making contact when the column was pushed forward;

couplingwithbrokengroungstrap.jpg


But who cares about the horn - why could the column be pushed forward. Look at this tear I found in the coupling!

couplingtear_arrows.jpg


couplingtear2.jpg
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That tear was allowing the column to flex, re-establish the ground, and also making the steering vague. I don't want to think about what would have happened if not caught.

Lesson learned - if you haven't checked your coupling(s) recently do so. If they show signs of cracking you need to do careful review of their state.
 
About 6 months after I got my 4A, it was stolen. It was recovered at the side of the road a few miles away. Two things stopped the thieve. The first was that there wasn't a water pump installed at the time, the other was that one of the steering couplers came apart. It didn't completely disconnect the linkage, as the metal ears where still engaged. They also managed to wrap the speedo cable in them, too.

Perhaps more amazingly, after installing the new water pump and adding coolant, the engine seemed no worse for the wear!
 
tdskip said:
Oh man, how "lucky" is that Darrell? Had you been working on the coupler or did it just let go?
Click to expand...

No, the coupler just let go. After comparing it to the replacement, the old one (which would have only been 15 years old at the time), didn't have any rubber around the outside of the metal blocks. So it was on its way out.
 
when you get the new one, use a large metal hose clamp around the part and tighten it down, that way you can get the holes to line up

Hondo
 
Darrell - sounds like your car really didn't want to leave your stewardship.

Thanks Hondo.

Got the new coupler on and steering is more confidence inspriring, but it didn't fix my horn-a-matic issue. Sigh.

Looks like column bushing now eh?
 
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