bannerd

Hey all, I have a W250 that doesn't have CC. My question is can I just pop my borgeson shaft off the gear box and turn it till straight to get it back to normal?

BILTIT

Should be able to, all depends on if your steering box itself is in the middle of its travel and coincides with the steering wheel center.

Thats basically what i did after installing crossover steering, found the box centre and attached the shaft to match the centre of the steering wheel.

Other option is to pull just the steering wheel off and put it back on when centered.

Crossy's son

The steering wheel has a master spline you can't turn it. Only goes on 1 way

mopar2ya

Have to pop off the steering shaft and rotate it.

rrgrassi

It can also be straightened during an alignment.

mtdoragary

Center the steering by adjusting the tie rod ends.

BILTIT

Do not do this! Tie rod ends only adjust toe-in/toe-out.

Draglink is what adjust steering center but these trucks have a non-adjustable Draglink from factory.

mtdoragary

When the steering wheel is off center, it is almost always because one tie rod end is adjusted to short, and the other too long. Good alignment shops include this adjustment in an alignment.

BILTIT

TRE's are adjusted for TOE setting only. If the toe setting is incorrect it could possibly cause your steering to pull one way or another which would make the steering wheel off-center. Adjusting the TRE's is not the way to correct off-center steering wheel though. TRE's are used to set toe, toe is much more critical than steering wheel center.

Toe can be set at home, an alignment shop is not needed.

mtdoragary

In fifty five years of mechanicing, I've come upon dozens of cars whose tie rod ends were improperly adjusted causing the wheel to be off center. Usually, the problem was caused by an amateur adjusting toe by adjusting only one tie rod end.

torquefan

True on most vehicles, but 1st gen 4wd trucks only have one tie rod (the crossover) and adjusting that will change the toe. The steering wheel on a W250 shouldn't have a master spline unless somebody has changed parts, and moving the steering wheel is the only way to center it.

BILTIT

Yup, cars are different than trucks. These specific trucks anyway.

Erska

My Borgeson shaft installation combined with a lift turned my steering wheel on the left. I just took the original non air bag steering wheel off and centered it. There's no master spline. But then again, I don't have tilt column. Or the newer style one.

mtdoragary

Thanks for the lesson! Both of my 1st gens have been 2WD! I'm still looking forward to my first 4WD 1st gen!

bannerd

Yeah, I don't want to touch the alignment at all. I've been running the truck for awhile and it rides straight. Plus my steering wheel always returns to center.. even though my truck drives straight.. the steering wheel is cocked and just looks odd haha. I'll try to take the steering sheel off, it's nothing fancy anyways