MatraSport Forum

Hi Lads

Can anyone tell me if there is a company who overhauls the uj on the steering column,apparently there is but who?.Seems ridiculous the whole shaft has to be replaced for the sake of a UJ,and not cheap by all accounts. Is the airbag in the steering wheel  disabled by disconnecting the battery ?

Kind Regards

Jim

Never heard of one myself, i think they are a renault only part. i have started to give my uj a dose of wd40 because my steering gets stiff. its ok then until the wd drys up, next time i will get some spray grease.

Have yours seized up then ? 

Hi There

No it's the exact opposite.The previous owner told me he had problems with stiff steering up to the point they replaced the box,turned out it was the uj.They slackened it off ,unsure of the method,but it seems it's worn now anyway.Bit of play on the steering wheel and I presumed it was a case of replacing the uj ,but it appears it's the column ,and uj combined,just interested if anyone has had it overhauled.

jim

I don't know about the UJ, but about airbag: Yes, it's disabled by disconnecting the battery. Good luck :)

Thanks Anders

Jim

Hello
Sorry to bother you, but what is UJ?
I could guess that "J" is from joint    ???  ??? ??? ???

Thank you

Hi There

Yes ,Universal joint known as other things too,universal coupling etc, amongst others.


Jim

Never knew you could slacken them off. when i worked in the motor trade, i could get steering racks and drave shafts reconed. i will try to find out about the UJ .

cHEERS pETER

Hi Peter

You are right you can't slacken them off.Theyre sealed for life but wear and tear and moisture, heat, prevails in the end. In my case I think the joint had probably been partially seized, in itself causes wear, and been freed off with lubricant  and greased,once "freed" this shows up the wear in the joint,the previous owner actually told me about it when i purchased the car. Priced the  column today £366 +vat for the column +integral uj, scandalous really for a part that probably costs about £20.

Regards Jim

hi Peter,
I have had to replace the UJ at the bottom of the steering column on my Espace, and was told much the same story as you. I couldn't afford the Renault price so I sourced a complete column from a breakers, about £60 as I remember. When I had dismantled half the insides of the car, including the steering wheel airbag, I realised that the UJ is attached to the steering column by a spline, and if you prise off the spring clip at the top of the slined section of the UJ it can be removed from the remainder of the steering column. This is assuming that the pinch bolt that clamps the UJ to the steering rack has been released, and the bottom end of the UJ knocked clear of the steering rack drive stub. I have a donor Espace that I am using as spares, so if you need a photo of the rack-UJ assembly showing the way it comes apart, just let me know.
I have sent some photos to Anders in the past but I have never been able to find where he stores them. if you want to let me have your email address I will send them directly to you.
Hope this is of some help.
Regards
Ross

Hi Jim,
          I have put wd40 on mine a couple of times now,i will use spray grease next time. i just asked my mate who still works in the motor trade, he said the place he use to work for sometimes did uj's but they have to look at them before they could tell you if it could be done. yes i know they are expensive, that is daylight robbery.
                        Cheers Peter

Hi Ross,
             Thanks for the info i will keep that in mind.we have got espace down are scapper but its on the floor with no wheels, which is a shame.
                               Cheers Peter

Hi Ross
That's interesting that the uj is actually splined to the shaft which makes you wonder why there isn't a separate replacement.Mine is actually slightly worn and to be honest would probably replace it had it been a replacement part.I'll probably go down the route you've gone down and try and source a replacement if it comes to that.It seems ridiculous that someone putting their car in for something as straight forward as a worn uj could end up with a bill for something like £800,no wonder on my visits to the scrappy I keep saying to the wife that half the cars in there are better than mine,it really is a shame.
Regards jim

Try Car Builder Solutions

http://www.nfauto.co.uk/steering_uj.htm

for steering column UJ parts.

They offer various options including splined UJ's, weld-in UJ's and even cut-to-length splined shafts

Martin

Perfect Martin ,looks the job.

Regards Jim

The column splits into two. It is joined with two pins that slot together. So you can just replace the lower half without stripping down the steering wheel etc. I'm doing this at the mo so will do some photos & post them later.

Thanks Brian

Failed mot on uj yesterday ,thought it might ,hence the query.Took it home last night,yes removed the airbag steering wheel,stereo remote.it got dark,and working today so back to it tomorrow,probably just caught me in time.Will now look to split at centre as you suggest .Much better option.Ross suggests bottom uj splined to shaft so going to remove first then see what i have.

Regards Jim

Hi Brian

I removed the uj this morning without splitting the shaft.The bottom 6" of shaft with uj atatched  has an internal spline which in effect attatches to the steering column which has an external spline,so all that needs removing is bottom 6" of shaft uj atatched.Now to source a new UJ.When i find the camera I'll post some pictures.

Regards Jim.

Hi Brian

That's it repaired locally and  refitted ,£60 a snip compared to the £450 of a new column.

Kind Regards Jim