Steering Column Swap

[85 CA SIERRA 1500]

Hi Gang,
Has anybody ever swapped a steering column from a vehicle other than a Square Body into a Square Body for example Impala,Caprice, Camaro etc...
The reason I ask is because my local Pick a Part seems to have a shortage of Square Body trucks but an abundance of everything else.
Thanks in advance for sharing,
Tracey>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

[Usmczo6]

I have swapped second gen Camaro to second gen Camaro, it was a pain in the butt, I'm also trying to find a tilt column for my 88 square, there's not many in the junk yards but a lot on Craigslist and other internet Auto parts places

 

[MisterB]

I don't know about using one from a car, but I have heard of using one from a similar year GM van. Do a search first, but I remember hearing that. It's really a fussy project, even swapping from a non GM squarebody tilt column to a tilt GM squarebody column. I did it over the summer, and it was pandora's box. Glad I did it, but I had to keep ordering more parts to get it to work right.

Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

 

[Vbb199]

I will say, a later 80's or early 90s s10 pickup/blazercolumn has some similarities to a squarebody column.

Just a thought.

 

[Rickf]

Measure from the under-dash mounting bolts to steering wheel, then the bolts to firewall and finally the firewall to rag joint on the truck, then go hunting.

Just a thought

 

[Matt69olds]

Measure from the under-dash mounting bolts to steering wheel, then the bolts to firewall and finally the firewall to rag joint on the truck, then go hunting.

Just a thought

This is the best advice.

I built the steering column in my Olds from a bunch of old columns. I wanted the cruise control, wiper control, dimmer on the column, etc like the new cars. I found there are TONS of similar looking parts that will bolt in, but won’t function correctly. For example, once it was all together, it would not tilt below just under the straight position. It tilted up fine, but wouldn’t tilt down. The pivot stops are different heights, limiting how far it tilts down.

I had similar issues with the GMC truck, with the difficulty of the Olds still fresh in my mind I paid much closer attention to details. Chances are there will also be changes needed to wiring, or maybe just moving wires position in connectors for accessories to work correctly.

 

[TPISly-C10]

I will say, a later 80's or early 90s s10 pickup/blazercolumn has some similarities to a squarebody column.

Just a thought.

agree on that!

and swap a square column is not that hard!

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[AuroraGirl]

1975(1973-1975, ish, that gen) a body with floor shift and tilt. Shorter to the dash i would think but with the right length components you could have it work. as olds said a lot of interchange if you have the patience and swear vocab

 

[Galane]

Some RWD Mopar column parts for the 70's and 80's will interchange with GM since both companies bought their columns from the same manufacturer. The four mounting nuts welded onto the bottom of the tube are the same so GM and MoPar mounts fit each other's columns. Pretty certain made by TRW. Ford columns of course are Ford and work with other Ford parts.

The steering wheels use the same splines. When dad and I built a 1941 Hudson pickup hotrod we used a 1984 Mopar tilt column with a mount from an 85 Cimarron. Also used the 85 Cimarron wheel because it was an inch smaller diameter and flatter. Took out all the steering/ignition lock stuff that didn't match up between the wheels but one of the horn contact slip ring pieces fit right in. Ground off the column shift stick mounting lumps on the shift collar, filled the hole with JB Weld then turned the outside smooth. With hammertone paint it looked like it was made that way. Kept the wiper controls and intermittent wipers on the Mopar stick. Pried out the Cadillac emblem on the horn pad and bought a large enamel Hudson hat pin with two pointy bits to poke in and completely cover where the Cad emblem had been.

What would be very interesting is to find a common GM 4 speed auto tilt column from some non-truck vehicle that will easily swap into a Rounded Line truck.

The truck 4 speed auto columns are very hard to find and nobody has yet got the bright idea to manufacture 4 speed shift gate retrofits for the 3 speed columns, tilt or not. Can only get the 3 speed shifter to line up with a 700 R-4 in *one spot*. Make it sit right in Park and everywhere else is wrong, has to depend completely on the detent spring in the transmission.

Alternatively, if the non-truck tilter has a not right tilt range, will swapping tilt parts from a 3 speed truck tilter make its up and down range suitable for a truck?

Figure this out and whatever the source column is will become as much of an unobtanium item as the 4 speed truck tilters have become.

 

[AuroraGirl]

Some RWD Mopar column parts for the 70's and 80's will interchange with GM since both companies bought their columns from the same manufacturer. The four mounting nuts welded onto the bottom of the tube are the same so GM and MoPar mounts fit each other's columns. Pretty certain made by TRW. Ford columns of course are Ford and work with other Ford parts.

The steering wheels use the same splines. When dad and I built a 1941 Hudson pickup hotrod we used a 1984 Mopar tilt column with a mount from an 85 Cimarron. Also used the 85 Cimarron wheel because it was an inch smaller diameter and flatter. Took out all the steering/ignition lock stuff that didn't match up between the wheels but one of the horn contact slip ring pieces fit right in. Ground off the column shift stick mounting lumps on the shift collar, filled the hole with JB Weld then turned the outside smooth. With hammertone paint it looked like it was made that way. Kept the wiper controls and intermittent wipers on the Mopar stick. Pried out the Cadillac emblem on the horn pad and bought a large enamel Hudson hat pin with two pointy bits to poke in and completely cover where the Cad emblem had been.

What would be very interesting is to find a common GM 4 speed auto tilt column from some non-truck vehicle that will easily swap into a Rounded Line truck.

The truck 4 speed auto columns are very hard to find and nobody has yet got the bright idea to manufacture 4 speed shift gate retrofits for the 3 speed columns, tilt or not. Can only get the 3 speed shifter to line up with a 700 R-4 in *one spot*. Make it sit right in Park and everywhere else is wrong, has to depend completely on the detent spring in the transmission.

Alternatively, if the non-truck tilter has a not right tilt range, will swapping tilt parts from a 3 speed truck tilter make its up and down range suitable for a truck?

Figure this out and whatever the source column is will become as much of an unobtanium item as the 4 speed truck tilters have become.

i see what you are saying. I can understand this. I would think the early 90s columns from gmt 400 then should work, yes? or maybe that is too new. the vans as well.
If not that, then i would think late 80s CBOP, maybe early on models that kept old body styles?(90 estate wagon, 96 caprice, 92 roadmaster, 90 cutlass supreme)

hell, if i decide to chop up my 90 olds.. i can show you column. i have fsm, want pics of the column?