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Maybe it's just me but i find it hard to trust the little "notch". I could be wrong, but if it slips, will your steering wheel not spin out of control?
Edit - I think the 98+ upper joints are compatible with the third gen steering shaft? At least it kind of looks like it. If so, could i just get an astro shaft, 98+ upper joint, and bolt right in? (no "notching" needed)
The metal won't magically strip and the steering shaft fall off. Physics disallow that
The astro shaft, along with the wonderbar, has been the best steering upgrade I've done for the car.
Do you have a link for the wonderbar? ive heard of the wonder bra but ages ago.
I was looking over the history of my car. Apparently they added or replace a "Moog Sway/Stabilizer Bar Link".
There are a couple versions of the Wonderbar. There is a GM version (2 bolt), and TDS made a 3 bolt version that is easier to install due to that third bolt.
Any of you running the Astro shaft have a little wiggle between the two pieces? That little set screw doesn't seem to do anything on mine. There is a slight movement between the two pieces that makes it feel like an old worn out rag joint up at the steering wheel. I wonder if running a small bolt and nut through the two shafts would work out better.
Ive had mine well over ten years, no issues ever.You can also use the 4th gen f-body for the upper, that's what I'm using & don't forget the bearing from the astro.
So I ran a couple of small stainless steel machine screws with allen heads and nylock nuts through my shaft. Hopefully this will fix the play between the two shafts.
I found that a 4th gen column uses a bearing on the output end also. It fit right into my thirdgen column.
So I ran a couple of small stainless steel machine screws with allen heads and nylock nuts through my shaft. Hopefully this will fix the play between the two shafts.
I found that a 4th gen column uses a bearing on the output end also. It fit right into my thirdgen column.
So I ran a couple of small stainless steel machine screws with allen heads and nylock nuts through my shaft. Hopefully this will fix the play between the two shafts.
I found that a 4th gen column uses a bearing on the output end also. It fit right into my thirdgen column.
Great info here!!!!
I will attempt this upgrade with the 4th gen steering shaft end and bearing!
I will attempt this upgrade with the 4th gen steering shaft end and bearing!
It may also be helpful to know that the upper bearings and bearing housing from the 4th gen column was the same as the one on my 1991. Actually the whole 4th gen column may be the same for the later thirdgens that had airbags. I didn't try to due a full on swap though. I pulled one from a junk yard a couple years ago and it sat in my shed until about a week ago. My stock 91 column was worn where the pivot pins are pressed into the housing. Meaning the housing was shot. The pivot pins wouldn't stay pressed in anymore and kept working themselves loose. I used the parts from the 4th gen column to get my 91 column back up to snuff.
It may also be helpful to know that the upper bearings and bearing housing from the 4th gen column was the same as the one on my 1991. Actually the whole 4th gen column may be the same for the later thirdgens that had airbags. I didn't try to due a full on swap though. I pulled one from a junk yard a couple years ago and it sat in my shed until about a week ago. My stock 91 column was worn where the pivot pins are pressed into the housing. Meaning the housing was shot. The pivot pins wouldn't stay pressed in anymore and kept working themselves loose. I used the parts from the 4th gen column to get my 91 column back up to snuff.
Did you get new u-joints with the swap?
I cant find any parts stores online (like autozone) that have only the ujoints.
Thanks to 66chevelle66 on ebay (hes a user here also i believe) i got an astro shaft, and another dude on ebay a 2000 transam shaft. If I can get a machine shop to take the astro ujoint off and weld on the transam ujoint, then it should bolt right in, no notch needed.
Hey 84 1LE. I noticed your brake lines are moved to the inside of the Astro shaft further away from the exhaust heat. Any issues? Did you just push them over or bend new ones? I have the Astro shaft ready to install from MC87SS. Putting on Hookers like greenyone did.
Ive got one on mine and its improved the response of the steering greatly, my stock one was pretty wobbly with the rag joint.
HOWEVER.....since fitting it when i turn the wheel i can hear a hissing sound which is really weird and i dont know where it would be coming from, almost sounds like vacuum or air escaping from somewhere. Its also really annoying and i need to get it sorted out.
HOWEVER.....since fitting it when i turn the wheel i can hear a hissing sound which is really weird and i dont know where it would be coming from, almost sounds like vacuum or air escaping from somewhere.Any ideas?
It's steering box/pump noise (which was dampened by the rubber of the old rag joint). I wrapped mine with hose but the noise is still there, though to a lesser extent.
I got mine from MC87SS here on the board. Fresh paint and it bolted in easy. Had to dremel a bit but only took a few minutes. It looks so much better too.
In some other post, I put info on a new bearing, an actual bearing, as opposed to the factory GM plastic / grease unit... (for the bottom of the steering column)...
No issues with the astro shaft or bearing, much tighter feel than the stock stuff...
So they got rid of the rag joints in 98 and newer... Do owners of those cars complain about road noise, etc (and wish they had rag joints lol)
Factory units use a damper on the "box" end.Some guys don't bother with that & just use two plain u-joints.Maybe that has something to do with it.I have the damper & no noise/vibrations, plus its still a very tight feel.
Ah right, well as long as its nothing to worry about, im guessing as its just all metal now the sound travels right up through the steering column now.
Its quite loud when going slow and if im doing a tight turn but generally on the road its not too bad. I might try the rubber hose trick then and see if it quietens it down
Sorry for reviving this old thread but i am kind of mad becuase i spent money on astro shaft "upgrade".
If your stock shaft doesn't have play there is no improvment, the only "upgrade" you will get is really anoying power steering fluid noise at low speeds... I really hate it because third gens already have enough rattles and noises and now i have another one...I am switching back to stock shaft.
Driving screws through it like that will prevent the column from collapsing in an accedent and could result in serious injury that was designed to protect against.
Originally Posted by klein
Sorry for reviving this old thread but i am kind of mad becuase i spent money on astro shaft "upgrade".
If your stock shaft doesn't have play there is no improvment, the only "upgrade" you will get is really anoying power steering fluid noise at low speeds... I really hate it because third gens already have enough rattles and noises and now i have another one...I am switching back to stock shaft.
Correct, if you don't have any slop in your rag joint it doesn't help anything, and does add significant noise, I can hear my power steering pump under load even with the cutout open. I also know that tons of people have gotten away with this, but technically this is done incorrectly, the 2 u-joints are 90* out of phase and will cause an acceleration/deceleration as you spin the wheel (mostly you feel heavier and lighter spots in the steering), it's a super picky thing to worry about in a low-speed u-joint application but it is there.
On an older car I took the ******* approach and drove some drywall screws through the rag joint when it got sloppy (the drywall screws are self-tapping) and it tightened it up and didn't cause any extra noise. Admittedly it was ugly but you couldn't see it with the cover back on.
[QUOTE=83 Crossfire TA;6222413]Driving screws through it like that will prevent the column from collapsing in an accedent and could result in serious injury that was designed to protect against.
Any impact severe enough to cause the column to collapse would most certainly shear a couple of .125 diameter mild steel machine screws.
I have felt that also, the steering doesnt feel as smooth as with rag joint. People say that rag joint setup is junk but it is actually superior design compared to modified astro shaft. Kind of the same story is with poly bushings or poly engine mounts they always ruin your car...they are an upgrade if you drive your car on the edge all of the time but for a daily total no-go.
Driving screws through it like that will prevent the column from collapsing in an accedent and could result in serious injury that was designed to protect against.
Any impact severe enough to cause the column to collapse would most certainly shear a couple of .125 diameter mild steel machine screws.
Really? Take a tube in a tube, drive 1 such stainless screw cap screw in it put anything you want on the end of it to distribute the load, even a real steering wheel. Poke yourself in the ribs with it till the screw breaks. I guarantee you break your ribs before you break just one screw.
Now try it again with 200# of force moving 60mph driving it. I'd bet you still don't break 2 screws and you'd mess yourself up good.
In the real world on that shaft assembly, I know 2 people that turned their steering wheel into a taco in an accident before the collapsible column moved.
Before airbags injuries like "contusions to the heart" were common causes of death in accidents. What do you think in a car can hit you hard enough in the chest to cause a bruised heart?
Even better, I just looked up the shear strength of the stainless used in an allen bolt, I couldn't find any numbers for a bolt that small but the N/mm^2 is 384, so multipied by the crossection of an 1/8" bolt, converted to imperial that works out to 13,522Lbs per bolt, and then stainless galls and sticks in that kind of situation, meaning that even after you shear the bolt it will stick some before moving.
So we're looking at something like >13tons of force to shear those 2 bolts. You want to test what a 13ton force applied to your chest will do?
I finnaly got parts and was so happy to install them but...
First i went to install the bearing upgrade...And it just fits soo loose, the bearing isn't fixed into the plastic cup...but instead it moves a lot. The bearing actually doesnt do any work, inside part of it its fixed on to the shaft like its supposed to be but the outside isnt fixed it turns and moves in the plastic cup... Seller said there seems to be something wrong with it and he will send me another one...but in this time i wait i will just make another plastic bushing to be a nice tight fit.
Next thing is the shaft...omg... The fitting at the end its about 2 mm bigger than the original one and ofcourse you cant tighten it enough on the column, it has lots of play... I tried to narrow it in the vice but it doesn't go much and it will probably just become egg shapped... Very bad copy... The rag joint setup also looks so cheap and the plastic shroud is longer and because of that harder to install... for this price i was expecting a bit more quality part. Ofcourse it says on it "Made in Taiwan"... Seller refunded me full price for the item so i am fine with that.
Original shaft and new replacement together.
Original shaft says 19 mm opening
Replacment says 21 mm
So i am back with the astro shaft, i put some nice snug rubber hose on it and its a lot better with the noise...
I showed this bearing kit to two coworkers today, both mechanical engineers...None of them couldn't understand what the bearing does if it spins free in the plastic adaptor.
no ,it wont.this is a terrible idea my friend.
find a safer fix please like moving the screws up towards the u-joint and away from the portion of the column
that's supposed to move and collapse.i use screws like this in holders to hold end mills,drills,taps in a milling
machine and spin them 3-4000 rpm and make large cuts.they are exceptionally strong.
it would suck if you got hurt due to the sheer strength of stainless bolts being ridiculously high
Last edited by 1986BANDIT; Sep 9, 2019 at 09:17 PM.
I've been using the Astro shaft in my 92 without issue.
About 10k miles so far.
I Autocross my 92 RS and if the shaft was weak, I would have broken it by now.
My local AutoX courses are made by a SCCA national champion who drives a tiny 60s Lotus. So her courses tend to be rather narrow for a huge car like a 3rd gen. I have to manhandle the sheering wheel to get through. That's probably the most stress anyone's shaft is gonna encounter.
As far as backing off, I doubt it.
I had to hammer mine on.
Even without the bolts, it's not good anywhere.
(But ensure the bolts are torqued down and have lock tight on em)
Hi all, new member from Perth Western Australia. I have a 1984 Camaro with the factory 305 and auto trans. I have been considering the Astro Van steering swap but have no idea what that translates to here in Oz. We don't have Astro vans! Any suggestions? Thanks
Hi all, new member from Perth Western Australia. I have a 1984 Camaro with the factory 305 and auto trans. I have been considering the Astro Van steering swap but have no idea what that translates to here in Oz. We don't have Astro vans! Any suggestions? Thanks
Hi all, new member from Perth Western Australia. I have a 1984 Camaro with the factory 305 and auto trans. I have been considering the Astro Van steering swap but have no idea what that translates to here in Oz. We don't have Astro vans! Any suggestions? Thanks
You guys have ebay though. Might be your easiest solution if they dont import the astro van over there.
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