steering rack - flange tube?

[Keith Lawyer]

Hey Tony, thanks for the reply.

All I'm trying to remove is the steering rack...........and I got it out last nite (YAY!).......BUT I got the impressions from the write-ups that the flange tube somehow comes out once you remove the bolt at the steering rack pinion splines.  Well, my flange tube is still happily hanging under the dash and doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

All the write-ups say "practice fitting the flange tube" before you put the new rack in, but since my flange tube seems to still be attached to the car, I don't see this as very realistic.  Is there another bolt elsewhere under the dash I need to remove?  I ass-umed the practice fitting is supposed to be on the bench?

Bentley's description is as expected: "remove flange tube"

I'm also confused by all the talk of the steering wheel moving and/or being spring loaded and setting the gap at 3mm..........my steering wheel hasn't moved one bit.

Has anyone ever fit a new rack w the flange tube still in place?  It seems that *theoretically* you could push the pinion in thru the firewall while a helper guides from under the dash and rotates the steering wheel until the keyway lines up?  Or do you risk the steering wheel no longer being centered?

Keith L

>>> Tony Hoffman <tfh400036 at yahoo.com> 6/26/2005 8:40 AM >>>
What exactly are you trying to remove? If it's the lock assy, you have to take off the clip that holds the steering column in place. It is at teh very end, once you remove the steering wheel. 
 
Let me know if you have any other questions.
 
Tony Hoffman

Keith Lawyer <LawyerKG at co.laplata.co.us> wrote:
So I'm confused on the flange tube. I removed the bolt under the dash entirely and tried to pry back on it, but nothing really happens. The flange tube is free on it's splines because I can pry it back maybe 1/8", and the steering wheel appears to move an equal amount, but it doesn't appear the tube is just gonna drop out of there at the moment.

Is this normal? All the write-ups I've read seem to indicate the flange tube can be removed even if the rack is still in place?

http://www.ovalking.e7even.com/SteeringRack.html 

An archive search for "flange tube" came back w nothing relevant but the write-up in the KB.

Keith L