just picked up an 88 iroc . the steering wheel was facing up and down even when the wheels were straight . i figured the steering wheel was on wrong but it is not . the car drives straight so it is not an alignment issue and i checked the steering wheel so i know it is on correctly .
it does look like the column may have been replaced before , is it possible it was from the wrong year or installed wrong ? if it is an installation problem where do i need to start to get it lined up right ?

 

how bout a picture? you confused me

 

this is not an actual pic , but this is how the steering wheel faces while you are driving straight .

 

prob installed the spline wrong, isnt it a square drive? just take it out and turn it 90* and bobs your uncle

i know it sounds simple but its prob not, seeing as to how ive never done it before, i would imagine whatever goes into your steering columb that attaches to the steering box can be removed without removing the columb or the steering box. look under you hood, or maybe a manual. but im sure its a square drive and it can slide for easy removal.

 

ive done it a few times before. you could try dropping the steering column pulling it back and turning it 180*, but if the pic above is correct it wouldnt help. there has to be some way to take the steering wheel off and turn it. i havnt taken off a stock wheel in a long time, so i dont remember what it looks like under there. i would take it off, be careful of the airbag, and try to mount it back on in a different position.
if i can possibly answer any more q's for you let me know

 

could it also be the connection at the steering box or steering linkage. possibly a little further down than the wheel. possibly the pitman arm was replaces and splined on incorrectly?

 

the only connection i know of is between the firewall and the steering box. however, when taken out it can only turn 180 degrees

 

There are about 6 torx screws holding the wheel to the adapter that is attached to the column. If you remove them the wheel comes off turn it 90* and put back on. This only works for the IROC wheel. If you have the RS wheel then I don't know what to tell you.

 

did every 1 just wake up today ? lol . this was the input i was looking for .

the steering wheel only goes on 1 way , so that is easy to rule out . i have dam near replaced everything in 1 of these darn 3gens but the column and the steering box , that is why i am lost . i will look at everything suggested tomorrow and post the results . thanks for the input ...

 

If you have a genuine IROC wheel it can go on 6 DIFFERENT ways. I know for a fact. So if you're correct and it can only go 1 way then it's not an IROC wheel. I just checked and there are only 6 torx screws holding it onto the metal (HUB) I'm not sure of it's proper name.