MTFCA Forum

Hello,

I have a '26 touring where the steering wheel has a good two-inches of play. All connections from the pitman down are good. I suspect the play is in the steering box.

Assuming my suspicions are correct, can the problem be solved by replacing the pins, gears, and pinion?

Also, can this work be accomplished with the steering column remaining in the car?

Thank you,

Paul

Yes, if that's the problem.
But before you replace/order anything check is the underside of the steering gear cover for wear. The picture shows good ones.
The underside of the cover needs to make some contact with the top of the pinion
The 3 gears need to match the pinion (5:1 or 4:1) as well as the pins and case
Pull the steering wheel, the you need to remove a small set screw on the edge of the cover before you spin it off.
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Not sure what steering combo you have. No assumptions. There isn't a diagram for '26 so just use this as a guide, not part numbers
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Two places for slop often overlooked are between the steering case and the column tube. Then there can be wear in the bush in the bracket on the chassis. That said, with all the points for wear in the system, and the need for at least some backlash between the gears in the gearcase, 2" at the steering wheel is not excessive. Others may disagree.

Allan from down under.

Unscrew the cover, take out the three planet gears, turn them over and reinstall them on their pins.

Worked for me, reduced the play quite a bit!

brendan.hoban wrote: ↑

Tue May 20, 2025 3:34 am

Unscrew the cover, take out the three planet gears, turn them over and reinstall them on their pins.

Worked for me, reduced the play quite a bit!

With all due respect, if it worked for you then that's great, but honestly, that's not a valid repair.

Allan wrote: ↑

Tue May 20, 2025 2:42 am

Two places for slop often overlooked are between the steering case and the column tube. Then there can be wear in the bush in the bracket on the chassis. That said, with all the points for wear in the system, and the need for at least some backlash between the gears in the gearcase, 2" at the steering wheel is not excessive. Others may disagree.

Allan from down under.

This is a good point. My Fordor had too much play, turned out that god awful bushing down at the frame was the culprit. Got rid of a lot of play, still a little left but not horrible. Also, when he mentions the column tube, what I believe he's referring to is the two 3509RST rivets. Yep, they work loose and you wouldn't believe how much slop that'll produce. I know, my former '20 gave me fits running down EVERY point of wear to create slop, and it ended up being these two "half hidden" overlooked items. Replacing (I cheated and used bolts ha ha) cured it 100%. Just sayin!

Steering play is almost always a cumulative thing. Add up the wear in the tie rod ends, the draglink ends, the lower steering shaft bushing, the gearbox/column tube joint, and the gears and suddenly, a lot of small wear items become excessive steering play.