I have looked at a few of these trucks and the steering columns are are worn out to the point of not being drivable at this point, loose bearings, tilt either doesn't move or doesn't lock into place, shift indicator cable is broken, etc. Has anyone actually ever fixed one? I feel like would want to know that parts are still available to repair one before deciding to buy a truck in that condition because I would not be able to drive it otherwise.
Semi-common repair on them, or at least it was at one point. I think Ford incorporated fixes into the parts you get from them.
My '93 had the bearings worn enough that the shaft was about half worn through from where it had been resting on the aluminum of the column. I could lift the steering wheel about 1-1/2" from where it rested to where it hit the top of the worn out hole.
Got it replaced around 215k and at 387k it is still nice and tight.
My experience is also post-'91; my '97 (holdover HD, so old body style, not the "new" '97) had one of the bearings disintegrate and drop balls down the column, which took me a while to diagnose since the wheel didn't actually move around much, but the binding felt like dying U-joints, or P/S problems, or... Anyhow, parts were a bit of a pain to chase down (two dealers and a lot of research). Replacing the bushings on the shifter made a giant difference to shifting (and just getting out of P).
Not cheap, but looks like you can get a rebuilt column. I was actually searching for more generic replacements (was expecting to find Ididit, Lokar, Flaming River or one of those places doing something that would work).
I just did this repair on my '97 obs truck. What a world of difference. I used an ebay "kit" that had new bearings and clips. I think it was about $50. Very simple to do. If it hasn't been too long there shouldn't be any damage to the shaft. Mine was about to get to that point. All the ball bearings had dropped out but hadn't rubbed through the race yet.
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