I have a 15 year old roadster. I notice a small amount of play in the steering column. The play is where it comes into the engine bay. The shaft that slides inside of the outer has play between the two. After it clamps to the first u joint. After that there is no play. Is this normal. IF not is it the steering column I need to purchase? It is a mk3. I guess it would be a 90's mustang part?
Thank you
Jim
edwardb
10-27-2020, 06:16 AM
Not Factory Five tech, but will respond anyway. No, it's not normal. You shouldn't have any play in the steering column. And no, it's not a Mustang part. Play between the inner and outer steering column parts is a somewhat common problem. There are two cone shaped washers, called Belleville washers, in that joint. Some builders forget to install them. That's the first thing I'd check, but unfortunately does require disassembly. Or sometimes they are installed but there's still some play. I've used thicker ones in the past that helped. There are also other mods that some have done including adding set screws, which I've also done. IMO, just don't do anything that would keep the column from collapsing like it's designed to do.