On a recent off-road excursion on boulder terrain, my steering wheel became off-center. The truck was aligned recently, and tracked fine, but steering wheel was pointing at 10-o-clock. This process is what I used, after reading through other posts, to bring the steering wheel back to center.
Make sure the truck is parked with the wheels straight, turn the key in the ignition so the steering wheel does not lock, but don't start the engine. Don't worry about the steering wheel angle, that's what you are going to correct.
Before you start, use PB Blaster to soak the bolts and rod on drag link. I did this part a day ahead of the fix to get the hardware loose. Tools I used where 17mm socket, 17mm box wrench, persuader pipe to use with ratchet handle, pipe wrench, large flat screwdriver or pry bar.
This is the drag link, the arrows point to the 17mm bolts you need to soak and the threaded area on the link itself you need to soak.
Loosen up the two bolts but do not remove the nut. Loosen them up enough so now you can use the pry bar to open them A LITTLE, just so you can rotate them as needed.
Position the pipe wrench on the drag link and rotate it. This position is to rotate the pipe wrench handle towards the rear of the truck. The steering wheel will spin to the driver side, counterclockwise from the driver seat.
This position is to rotate the pipe wrench handle towards the front of the truck. The steering wheel will spin to the passenger side, clockwise from the driver seat.
If you have a helper, have them seat on driver seat and tell you when the wheel is moved to center. After done, use the 17mm ratchet and wrench to tighten the bolts and go for a drive to test the steering wheel feel.
You may need to do the process a couple of times to get the final adjustments done, its an iterative process. I had to do it 3 times to get it perfect.
Keep in mind this just to get your steering re-centered, will not solve alignment issues, Pitman arm twisted splines, or other related maladies. But if your 80 is aligned and all you need to do is get the steering wheel back to normal, easy steps to follow.
Make sure the truck is parked with the wheels straight, turn the key in the ignition so the steering wheel does not lock, but don't start the engine. Don't worry about the steering wheel angle, that's what you are going to correct.
Before you start, use PB Blaster to soak the bolts and rod on drag link. I did this part a day ahead of the fix to get the hardware loose. Tools I used where 17mm socket, 17mm box wrench, persuader pipe to use with ratchet handle, pipe wrench, large flat screwdriver or pry bar.
This is the drag link, the arrows point to the 17mm bolts you need to soak and the threaded area on the link itself you need to soak.
Loosen up the two bolts but do not remove the nut. Loosen them up enough so now you can use the pry bar to open them A LITTLE, just so you can rotate them as needed.
Position the pipe wrench on the drag link and rotate it. This position is to rotate the pipe wrench handle towards the rear of the truck. The steering wheel will spin to the driver side, counterclockwise from the driver seat.
This position is to rotate the pipe wrench handle towards the front of the truck. The steering wheel will spin to the passenger side, clockwise from the driver seat.
If you have a helper, have them seat on driver seat and tell you when the wheel is moved to center. After done, use the 17mm ratchet and wrench to tighten the bolts and go for a drive to test the steering wheel feel.
You may need to do the process a couple of times to get the final adjustments done, its an iterative process. I had to do it 3 times to get it perfect.
Keep in mind this just to get your steering re-centered, will not solve alignment issues, Pitman arm twisted splines, or other related maladies. But if your 80 is aligned and all you need to do is get the steering wheel back to normal, easy steps to follow.
