I replaced the shaft without too much ado. Wasn't fun getting it out since the telescoping action was frozen so that was a bit of back and forth trying to figure which end I could get off easier.

ANYWAY...

Now that I am putting it together I am having a hell of a time getting the boot to go back into the firewall and 'lock' in like the oversized grommet it is. I have tried every type of slippery liquid (Mostly Dishsoap) to try and coax it in but so far nojoy. Doesn't matter if I try from the top first or the bottom first, it's a no go.

I have taken the shaft off the back of the steering column to allow more lateral/up and down moving of the shaft but no luck.

FYI: I did note the position of the boot which points more at the accelerator than straight down so I I am not fighting against that alignment.

I just came in to type this out and allow my spine to (somewhat) straighten back out.

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

You have to squeeze the sides point the arrow straight down and flip the top into position then work the seal at the firewall hole to push it into place , I use a screw driver to help.

 

I have never done it. Have you tried the Cord trip, like when putting a windshield in? Put a length of cord in the groove and pull it out to flip the edge over.

 

You’d have to work around on the engine side of the fire wall and the brake booster is in the way, but I’ll try that next time

 

I tried squeezing the sides with a large channel lock pliers but did not try pushing the top in first. I will give that a go, thanks! And point the arrow STRAIGHT down and not (slightly) towards the accelerator pedal mount?

I will keep the rope trick as a secondary method.

Thanks!

 

Easy peasy!

 

I too recently replaced the steering shaft and also had a helluva time getting that boot seated back in properly... Honestly, that was the thing I had the most trouble with on that whole repair. The human body isn't meant to twist and contort into the positions I had to get into to get it put back together inside the car...

 

Tell me about it! After replacing the intermediate steering shaft due to the frozen telescoping portion, I determined the rack was bad as well.

As sore as I was I HAD to wait a couple of days for my ribs and spine to stop hurting before tackling the rack.

Tell you what, the fat man in the red long underwear is leaving a 120v mid rise lift under my tree this year. I am done with jack stands and laying on my back in the driveway. I do not consider myself 'old' but I have too many miles on my odometer to continue laying on my back on the concrete doing this kind of stuff.

And by the by, thanks top everyone who responded in this thread and gave suggestions for the intermediate shaft boot. You folks (and this forum) rock!!

 

For future readers, don’t beat on the intermediate shaft to collapse it , just bust out the sawzall and a new metal cutting blade , cuts like a hot knife thru butter! And! You don’t kill the rack and pinion! My old one is at the curb now waiting for the local metal scraper to pick it up!