Skipjack Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 I need to reposition my steering wheel. As I drive down a straight road my wheel Points to 10 O’clock. The coach does not pull to either side, and just had it aligned when I had the rear trailing arms replaced. I just forgot to ask them to look at the steering wheel location. can this be done without adjusting my steering box, like perhaps on the steering column? Has anyone had this issue, and found this can be done? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powersltc Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 53 minutes ago, Skipjack said: I need to reposition my steering wheel. As I drive down a straight road my wheel Points to 10 O’clock. The coach does not pull to either side, and just had it aligned when I had the rear trailing arms replaced. I just forgot to ask them to look at the steering wheel location. can this be done without adjusting my steering box, like perhaps on the steering column? Has anyone had this issue, and found this can be done? I have the same issue. Answer would be helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan K Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 (edited) Extend or shorten your draglink, much easier and precise that way on a diesel coach. That should also return the gearbox to a center position as before. Edited September 21, 2021 by Ivan K 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary M Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 (edited) I don’t know if this applies to diesels. But the first thing I learned was to determine if steering wheel was placed correct. First turn your steering wheel in one direction till it stops. Then turn your wheel the opposite way and count the revolutions. Divide that by two and return steering wheel that many revolutions and that will supposedly let u know if steering wheel was placed correctly. Then work from there. Old school stuff. But I am not an alignment guy. Who's next to comment. Edited September 21, 2021 by Gary M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan K Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 I agree with you Gary and the slightly excentric gear relation to steering wheel should have been done in the factory and left alone, along with the pitman position. With most cars, final steering wheel centering is done along with toe settings, the steering wheel is locked straight ahead and then each front wheel adjusted to spec.Our drag link brings an other adjustment option on diesels with this arrangement. And then comes the road crown predictive adjustment to throw a wrench into it... Stabilizer may need readjustment if used too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr4Film Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 When Josam's replaced my Sheppard Steering box with the TRW they removed the steering wheel and re-centered it correctly. Not sure which steering wheel you have in your coach. Posting that information would help as all coaches are not the same. I am going to assume you have the VIP Smart steering wheel. You need to have a metric (can't remember which size) Allen wrench. There is a hole in the driver's side portion bottom of the center cover where you insert the wrench at an angle to engage the metric Allen Head Bolt. Loosen that bolt until the cover is loose enough to remove. Remove the large nut holding the wheel to the threaded steering column shaft. Now you need the appropriate sized and shape Steering Wheel Puller to attach to the steering wheel with the center pointed bolt positioned on the center of the main threaded shaft that holds the wheel. Now start turning the center bolt of the puller until the steering wheel is free from the tapered shaft. Reposition the steering wheel on the taper and start the nut that holds the wheel onto the steering column. Make sure that the nut is torqued down to the proper specs before installing the cover. I am guessing around 50 ft/lbs. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McHughes Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark B Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 18 minutes ago, McHughes said: To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. Mike McHughs is correct, easy and you don’t have to adjust linkage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary M Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 58 minutes ago, McHughes said: To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. Wow! Easy peasy. When I settle into my next spot, I will check it out. My steering wheel center is at 10 o’clock. Just a plain old steering wheel on mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipjack Posted September 21, 2021 Author Share Posted September 21, 2021 thanks for all the great info. I removed the cover from around the steering wheel, and it was exactly as described. That is what I was thinking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr4Film Posted September 21, 2021 Share Posted September 21, 2021 While you were there did you happen to see any Zerks on the U-joint? The column in some coaches have a couple of Zerks in that area which need to be lubricated periodically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipjack Posted September 21, 2021 Author Share Posted September 21, 2021 No sir, I did not see any Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivylog Posted September 22, 2021 Share Posted September 22, 2021 22 hours ago, McHughes said: To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. Finally a correct and easy solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Pumphrey Posted September 22, 2021 Share Posted September 22, 2021 22 hours ago, McHughes said: To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. This will center the wheel, but you should first check to see if the steering box is centered, as mentioned above. Turn wheel lock to lock, center should be the same # of turns each way. If it is not, adjust the drag link to center it first, then center wheel as needed. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipjack Posted September 22, 2021 Author Share Posted September 22, 2021 Thanks for the info. That is what I will do first 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Cole Posted September 23, 2021 Share Posted September 23, 2021 (edited) Interesting post. I'm thinking that whether or not your steering wheel is centered when driving down the road is a good indicator of the general health of your suspension and alignment state. Mine is still perfectly centered at 41000 miles so maybe I'll worry about something else taking a dump for a while. 🙂 Edited September 23, 2021 by Gary Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary M Posted September 23, 2021 Share Posted September 23, 2021 12 hours ago, Gary Cole said: Interesting post. I'm thinking that whether or not your steering wheel is centered when driving down the road is a good indicator of the general health of your suspension and alignment state. Mine is still perfectly centered at 41000 miles so maybe I'll worry about something else taking a dump for a while. 🙂 When I bought my (DW) coach, the first thing I did was have the alignment checked, only because my previous coach I bought and drove 450 mi and tires were almost bald on one side. For whatever reason I did not pay attention to current steering wheel till someone brought the subject up. Must be the OTD in my old age. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampy OG Posted September 25, 2021 Share Posted September 25, 2021 On 9/21/2021 at 6:54 AM, McHughes said: To center the steering wheel on a Monaco you open up the plastic around the base of the steering column, remove the pinch bolt on the u-joint, drop it down, center the wheel, pull it up and re-insert the bolt. Takes about 10 minutes. I just completed this yesterday. Thanks for pointing us in this direction. I have been loathe to remove the smart wheel on the chance I would introduce more problems. Break a wire, etc. Thanks Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoadTripper2084 Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 I took my rig into a local heavy truck mechanic to have the drag link ball joints replaced, as one was flagged as being loose during a previous insurance inspection at a different shop. Turns out the drag link joints were fine, and they replaced the right side tie rod tube which was sloppy, and set the toe in. Wow, what a difference! My coach now drives like a dream on the highway, comparatively. Tracks straight down the road, one handed steering is relaxing, etc. Much improved over how it handled before where just taking your hand off the wheel to grab a drink of water could be er, "interesting". Unfortunately, now my steering wheel is out of centre, sits at about 2 and 9 o'clock. Which bolt in your picture is the pinch bolt that you loosen to adjust the wheel position? The one on the top marked "LE"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lake49068 Posted February 19, 2022 Share Posted February 19, 2022 Noticed in the pictures that there is a boot that seals the hole in the floor. Guess they forgot to install one in my coach and it is the main entry point for mice...no boot but a good trap located there during storage! Anyone know of a split boot I can install there? And yes, you should find zerks on the U-joints and slip joint. Adam 2010 Neptune 37PDQ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dl_racing427 Posted February 20, 2022 Share Posted February 20, 2022 I wouldn't move the steering wheel in relation to the steering box until I verified that the box was centered when the wheels are straight ahead. Left/right travel "may" be limited by stops on the spindles, or the steering box itself, so just turning the wheel left to right might not find center. Best way IMO is to note the wheel position when driving down a straight road, then park with the wheel in that position, slide under the front end and make sure the centering mark on the box output shaft is in alignment. If so, move the steering wheel to correct the position. If the marks are not aligned, then adjusting the drag link would be the correct way to recenter. My guess is in most cases if the steering wheel has not been removed, the error will be in the drag link. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Cole Posted February 20, 2022 Share Posted February 20, 2022 (edited) I agree with David that I would want to know why the steering wheel was not centered before I started playing around with it. It is reasonable to assume that it was centered when new. Even a few degrees off is indicative of a significant change somewhere. One can roughly check toe in and camber easily enough. Caster is a little more difficult but do-able. Reducing the amount of caster , rolling the axle back, is oftentimes a solution for a vehicle that has a tendency to wander. Verifying that the suspension, front and rear, and axles are square and parallel with the frame rails is a first step. The frame rails should also be level with one another and parallel. If your math is a little rusty trig calculators are available online. A handy tool is an electronic 2' level. If you want to find center when driving take into consideration the crown of the highway. High crown highways will cause a pull to the right. Edited February 20, 2022 by Gary Cole 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoadTripper2084 Posted February 20, 2022 Share Posted February 20, 2022 (edited) On 2/18/2022 at 7:43 AM, RoadTripper2084 said: ...replaced the right side tie rod tube which was sloppy, and set the toe in. I appreciate the advice guys, but the drag link hasn't changed, the shop replaced the right side tie rod tube and set the toe in. The coach now tracks perfectly and there is essentially no slop in the steering at all. I can check the the steering mark on the steering shaft sometime, but currently there's a foot of new snow on the ground so won't be anytime soon. In any case, I'm very pleased with the current tracking and steering behaviour, but I just want my wheel centered when straight. I assume the bolt I need is located behind that cover? Edited February 20, 2022 by RoadTripper2084 Expanded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dl_racing427 Posted February 20, 2022 Share Posted February 20, 2022 12 hours ago, Gary Cole said: I agree with David that I would want to know why the steering wheel was not centered before I started playing around with it. It is reasonable to assume that it was centered when new. Even a few degrees off is indicative of a significant change somewhere. One can roughly check toe in and camber easily enough. Caster is a little more difficult but do-able. Reducing the amount of caster , rolling the axle back, is oftentimes a solution for a vehicle that has a tendency to wander. Verifying that the suspension, front and rear, and axles are square and parallel with the frame rails is a first step. The frame rails should also be level with one another and parallel. If your math is a little rusty trig calculators are available online. A handy tool is an electronic 2' level. If you want to find center when driving take into consideration the crown of the highway. High crown highways will cause a pull to the right. Actually. increasing caster will help with self-centering and stability, though it increases steering effort somewhat. Agree with everything else you said. 2 hours ago, RoadTripper2084 said: I appreciate the advice guys, but the drag link hasn't changed, the shop replaced the right side tie rod tube and set the toe in. The coach now tracks perfectly and there is essentially no slop in the steering at all. I can check the the steering mark on the steering shaft sometime, but currently there's a foot of new snow on the ground so won't be anytime soon. In any case, I'm very pleased with the current tracking and steering behaviour, but I just want my wheel centered when straight. I assume the bolt I need is located behind that cover? Toe adjustments will affect centering. If the only change was the tie rod, then adjusting the drag link to re-center would be the correct method, as it will bring both the steering box and steering wheel back to center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoadTripper2084 Posted February 21, 2022 Share Posted February 21, 2022 8 hours ago, dl_racing427 said: If the only change was the tie rod, then adjusting the drag link to re-center would be the correct method, as it will bring both the steering box and steering wheel back to center. So to do that I'd have to remove the ball joint at the steering box end and try to get the the 25 year old rusty threads to turn where it attaches to the steering-box, correct? I don't think I'd be comfortable attempting that myself, and not really wanting to drop it back at the shop for another $500+ to have the do it. I think I'd rather just adjust the steering wheel position, which I should be able to do myself, and call it a day. 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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