Van Tilt- Whats involved to install? - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

jakeslim · 10-31-2004, 11:52 PM

Looked in faqs section and did not see anything.. what exactly has to be done to make the fit right?

thanks
jakeslim

Tx Firefighter · 11-01-2004, 08:25 AM

Couple of things....

1) Relocate the neutral safety switch. See HERE for the FAQ on how to do that. I used that FAQ personally, and it walked me right through the process without any problems.

2) Remove van rubber boot and retainer ring from bottom of column and install truck rubber boot and firewall retainer ring onto van coulmn. I always slightly bend the van shifter arm deal a little until the new retainer ring will slide over, then bend it back straight.

3) Bolt the column into the trucks dash, just like the old stock one. Reuse original hardware.

4) Shorten the intermediate shaft. It's the shaft that goes from the steering column to the steering box. It is collapsable. There are two plastic pins that hold it together. Drill through these pins and bang on the end of the shaft to collapse it some.

The van column will stick a little further out of the firewall than the truck one did. You shorten this shaft to compensate. Just whack it a little at a time until it will fit in between the column and box.

5) Last item, is some van coulmns use a curved electrical connector. If so, you need to buy the adapter harness from GM. It's a little thing that connects the curved van plug to the straight truck plug. Cost is under 10 bucks.

Tx Firefighter · 11-01-2004, 08:26 AM

Forgot the picture.

This is the intermediate shaft which you shorten to allow the longer vn column to fit.

JimKshortstep4x4 · 11-01-2004, 08:33 AM

To add to TX Firefighter's instructions, the light in the shift indicator has a gray wire with a female end on it that plugs into the fuse panel at the instrument light location.

Jim

PS: The link "here" works for me and is very good for the neutral switch relocation.

purple gas · 11-01-2004, 03:06 PM

when I shortend my lower shaft, I just put on a pair of gloves and whacked the bottom part straight down on the cement floor a few times, didn't have to use the drill. Maybe I was just lucky. Good way to vent some of the inevitable frustration invoved with these projects.

jakeslim · 11-01-2004, 04:40 PM

cool. I assume the "on the floor" would just be to connect the rounded plug with a straight adapter, then hammer int at the base to right length. Seems easy. Thanks, PS, this should be a FAQ item.

bluec10 · 11-04-2004, 11:17 PM

Thank you for this post. Just located a good van column myself.

dinnut · 11-04-2004, 11:31 PM

couple of questions... where can you get the truck ring and boot?

do you have to shorten the shaft?
and all you have to is drill in the plastic pins and knock it against the floor?

sounds good to me. i already have one... just need to paint it and install new wiring inside of it

Longhorn Man · 11-04-2004, 11:39 PM

dinnut, you get the truck ring and boot off your old column you are pulling out of your truck.
Yes, you have to shorten the shaft...no way around it. I also have never drilled anything out. I normally put a block of wood on the cement to keep from chipping it, but yeah, just slap it down and it'll shorten on its own.

Tx Firefighter · 11-04-2004, 11:39 PM

You get the ring and boot off of your old non-tilt truck column. New boots are available if yours is beat.

Yes, you have to shorten the shaft. The van tilt is several inches longer than a truck tilt.

Read my description and see picture I posted about shortening the shaft. You can do it in under a minute.

Tx Firefighter · 11-04-2004, 11:40 PM

Crap, out typed by Andy!

kxmotox247 · 11-04-2004, 11:42 PM

Great info...explained well. Thanks! I'll be putting one of these in my 68 in the next few weeks.

JimKshortstep4x4 · 11-05-2004, 12:43 PM

Tx Firefighter,

Andy is quick!

Jim

bigskiohio · 11-05-2004, 06:45 PM

I had to take the intrmediate shaft apart and clean up rust and crud for shaft to slide and i cut some off the bottom so it would have room to collapse and fit.

Longhorn Man · 11-05-2004, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kxmotox247

Great info...explained well. Thanks! I'll be putting one of these in my 68 in the next few weeks.

You'll need to locat the intermidiate shaft off a 69 - 72 truck. The 67/68 were not equipped with this feature.

I may have beat you to the post tex...but I am anything but a fast typer. A one fingered blind man with an old mechanical type writer can out type me.
I just started typing my post 20 min before you did.

glock35ipsc · 11-05-2004, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Longhorn Man

You'll need to locat the intermidiate shaft off a 69 - 72 truck. The 67/68 were not equipped with this feature.

Andy.......The 3-on-the-tree column out of my 68 has the collapsable shaft. Do I have an odd-ball, or do ya think it was replaced at some point

Longhorn Man · 11-05-2004, 10:53 PM

Hmmm, maybe it was 67 only...or 67 and early 68... I've seen a couple 68's that had a solid shaft.

68w/sbc406 · 11-05-2004, 11:45 PM

my 68 has a colapsable shaft too, just FYI

Tx Firefighter · 11-06-2004, 08:11 AM

Andy, don't beat yourself up too much. I have a 68 with the solid shaft originally. It must be a hit or miss deal on 68's.

Longhorn Man · 11-06-2004, 08:26 AM

phew..I thought I was wrong...I guess I was mistaken.

J/K
68 seems to be trasitional for a few things.

glock35ipsc · 11-06-2004, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Longhorn Man

phew..I thought I was wrong...I guess I was mistaken.

J/K
68 seems to be trasitional for a few things.

I had always thought that the 67 frames were not indented so they would easily accept a power steering gear, and the 68-on were. I noticed AFTER I tore down my 68 that my frame wasn't indented. So I think you are right, 68's were transitional.

busterwivell · 11-06-2004, 10:28 AM

What year vans are you getting columns from?

glock35ipsc · 11-06-2004, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by busterwivell

What year vans are you getting columns from?

Up until the mid-80's the vans still had the ignition on the dash. Some may have had cruise control on the turn lever, but that can be swapped out.

68w/sbc406 · 11-06-2004, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by busterwivell

What year vans are you getting columns from?

73-81 and early 82. the early 70s ones have the horse shoe concetor still and the later ones have a straight conector. and the later ones have a shorter gear selector so they wont stick out as far with a small wheel

kxmotox247 · 11-06-2004, 11:15 AM

I'm pretty sure my 68' has a colapsable column. My 67' has one also but that may have been something that a PO put in themselves since it already has a van tilt installed.

10-31-2004, 11:52 PM	#1
jakeslim Premium Level Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Northern CA Posts: 829	Van Tilt- Whats involved to install? Looked in faqs section and did not see anything.. what exactly has to be done to make the fit right? thanks jakeslim

11-01-2004, 08:25 AM	#2
Tx Firefighter Watch out for your cornhole ! Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Azle, Texas Posts: 14,162	Couple of things.... 1) Relocate the neutral safety switch. See HERE for the FAQ on how to do that. I used that FAQ personally, and it walked me right through the process without any problems. 2) Remove van rubber boot and retainer ring from bottom of column and install truck rubber boot and firewall retainer ring onto van coulmn. I always slightly bend the van shifter arm deal a little until the new retainer ring will slide over, then bend it back straight. 3) Bolt the column into the trucks dash, just like the old stock one. Reuse original hardware. 4) Shorten the intermediate shaft. It's the shaft that goes from the steering column to the steering box. It is collapsable. There are two plastic pins that hold it together. Drill through these pins and bang on the end of the shaft to collapse it some. The van column will stick a little further out of the firewall than the truck one did. You shorten this shaft to compensate. Just whack it a little at a time until it will fit in between the column and box. 5) Last item, is some van coulmns use a curved electrical connector. If so, you need to buy the adapter harness from GM. It's a little thing that connects the curved van plug to the straight truck plug. Cost is under 10 bucks. __________________ I'm on the Instagram- @Gearhead_Kevin

11-01-2004, 08:26 AM	#3
Tx Firefighter Watch out for your cornhole ! Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Azle, Texas Posts: 14,162	Forgot the picture. This is the intermediate shaft which you shorten to allow the longer vn column to fit. Attached Images __________________ I'm on the Instagram- @Gearhead_Kevin

11-04-2004, 11:17 PM	#7
bluec10 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Manitoba, Canada Posts: 663	Thank you for this post. Just located a good van column myself. __________________ Present: 2015 Tacoma. Yeah, not a GM, but I love it. 1969 GMC 32,000 - fix, drive, relax, fix... 2019 BMW R1250 GSA - Yahoooooooo 1979 Honda GL 1000 - retro touring at its best. Past: '05 Sierra 4x4 - Had 270,000 KM and running well when it was written-off by a stop sign runner. '94 F-150 from the "F word" company. I'll admit it...good truck. Sold what was left of it for $800 to a guy who came to pick it up at 11:00 PM with cash in hand. Hmm. '79 Sierra Grande (Black) organ donor - perfect rebuildable 4-bolt 350 and a good TH350. '76 Sierra Grande (Orange) - hate isn't too strong a word. Kid who bought it turned it into a hot rod. '68 C-10 R.I.P. - Dad's old truck...too far gone to resurrect. '59 C-50 - with hoist. Truck is gone, wife isn't. Nuff said.

11-04-2004, 11:31 PM	#8
dinnut Registered User Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: missouri city, tx Posts: 4,486	couple of questions... where can you get the truck ring and boot? do you have to shorten the shaft? and all you have to is drill in the plastic pins and knock it against the floor? sounds good to me. i already have one... just need to paint it and install new wiring inside of it __________________ 70 longbed 496/th400/Ford 9"

11-01-2004, 08:33 AM	#4
JimKshortstep4x4 Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Muskegon,MI,USA Posts: 6,026	To add to TX Firefighter's instructions, the light in the shift indicator has a gray wire with a female end on it that plugs into the fuse panel at the instrument light location. Jim PS: The link "here" works for me and is very good for the neutral switch relocation.

11-01-2004, 03:06 PM	#5
purple gas Registered User Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: saskatoon, planet earth Posts: 686	when I shortend my lower shaft, I just put on a pair of gloves and whacked the bottom part straight down on the cement floor a few times, didn't have to use the drill. Maybe I was just lucky. Good way to vent some of the inevitable frustration invoved with these projects.

11-01-2004, 04:40 PM	#6
jakeslim Premium Level Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Northern CA Posts: 829	cool. I assume the "on the floor" would just be to connect the rounded plug with a straight adapter, then hammer int at the base to right length. Seems easy. Thanks, PS, this should be a FAQ item.

11-04-2004, 11:39 PM	#9
Longhorn Man its all about the +6 inches Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Hilliard Ohio Posts: 2,693	dinnut, you get the truck ring and boot off your old column you are pulling out of your truck. Yes, you have to shorten the shaft...no way around it. I also have never drilled anything out. I normally put a block of wood on the cement to keep from chipping it, but yeah, just slap it down and it'll shorten on its own.

11-04-2004, 11:40 PM	#11
Tx Firefighter Watch out for your cornhole ! Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Azle, Texas Posts: 14,162	Crap, out typed by Andy! __________________ I'm on the Instagram- @Gearhead_Kevin

11-04-2004, 11:42 PM	#12
kxmotox247 Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Champaign, IL Posts: 1,396	Great info...explained well. Thanks! I'll be putting one of these in my 68 in the next few weeks. __________________ Baby Blue's Build Thread: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=652776 Project 68's Build Thread: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...17#post8442117 www.stonecolumnclassics.com Email: Josh@stonecolumnclassics.com

11-05-2004, 12:43 PM	#13
JimKshortstep4x4 Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Muskegon,MI,USA Posts: 6,026	Tx Firefighter, Andy is quick! Jim

11-05-2004, 06:45 PM	#14
bigskiohio Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Ohio Posts: 127	shaft I had to take the intrmediate shaft apart and clean up rust and crud for shaft to slide and i cut some off the bottom so it would have room to collapse and fit.

11-05-2004, 10:53 PM	#17
Longhorn Man its all about the +6 inches Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Hilliard Ohio Posts: 2,693	Hmmm, maybe it was 67 only...or 67 and early 68... I've seen a couple 68's that had a solid shaft.

11-05-2004, 11:45 PM	#18
68w/sbc406 Got Light Emitting Diode? Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Newberg, OR Posts: 2,485	my 68 has a colapsable shaft too, just FYI __________________ 1968 1/2 ton 2wd lwb 6 lug disc and bags up front. Next c notch and rear bags '02 Chevy Silverado LT ext cab short bed 2WD 5/7 drop on 22's(the family car) 1993 Cherokee work ride/weekend wheeler



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11-06-2004, 08:11 AM	#19
Tx Firefighter Watch out for your cornhole ! Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Azle, Texas Posts: 14,162	Andy, don't beat yourself up too much. I have a 68 with the solid shaft originally. It must be a hit or miss deal on 68's. __________________ I'm on the Instagram- @Gearhead_Kevin

11-06-2004, 08:26 AM	#20
Longhorn Man its all about the +6 inches Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Hilliard Ohio Posts: 2,693	phew..I thought I was wrong...I guess I was mistaken. J/K 68 seems to be trasitional for a few things.

11-06-2004, 10:28 AM	#22
busterwivell Registered User Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Sahuarita, AZ USA Posts: 2,033	What year vans are you getting columns from? __________________ Bill - Tucson, AZ 47 Chevrolet 2 dr sedan 56 Chevrolet 210 2 dr sedan 66 Chevrolet Malibu 2 dr 4 speed 71 Chevrolet C30 Longhorn 86 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS (Sold) 01 Chevrolet Tahoe IM - BUSTERWIVE@aol.com

11-06-2004, 11:15 AM	#25
kxmotox247 Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Champaign, IL Posts: 1,396	I'm pretty sure my 68' has a colapsable column. My 67' has one also but that may have been something that a PO put in themselves since it already has a van tilt installed. __________________ Baby Blue's Build Thread: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=652776 Project 68's Build Thread: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...17#post8442117 www.stonecolumnclassics.com Email: Josh@stonecolumnclassics.com

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