Locking Pin for Steering Column on 2005 I6

[Petnatcar]

Hi Guys,
I'm changing the rack & pinion and got the pencil sized tool to lock the steering wheel,
problem is the pin won't go into the column no matter how big a hammer I use.

I can see up in the hole under the shroud on the column but it looks like there's something going across way up in there.
( Yes, it's in the right hole and I had the key in the ignition but not on???)

Anybody used one of these tools before?

Thanks for your help,
Peter

 

[m.mcmillen]

I’ve never used the tool. I just point the wheels forward and fasten the seat belt around the steering wheel.

 

[Petnatcar]

Thanks M.
I've never done this procedure before so I'm trying to be as careful as I can but it looks like all I needed to do is wrap the seat belt around the wheel to keep it centered.

 

[lenlo]

The tool (j42640) is not necessary and does not hold the wheel dead center. You can accomplish the exact same thing as the tool with a 6" long 3/16" allen wrench, or anything roughly 3/16" wide and 6-8" long.

Center the wheel visually. Slide the long end of the allen wrench in the center hole of the lower steering wheel cover/shroud. You will know when it's completely in when you can only turn the steering wheel roughly 1/8 to either the left or right. There is a metal tang that puts pressure on the allen wrench it so it won't slide back out. I would have thought it would lock the steering wheel at dead center for things like alignments, steering parts replacement, etc.. The only real value in this that I found was when I was doing my steering angle position sensor. It keeps the wheel from spinning freely when you remove the intermediate steering shaft.

 

[Petnatcar]

Thanks Len,
I never could get that pin in the hole so I used the tried and true seat belt method which worked fine. The wheel was a little cockeyed due to the new tie rod ends but that straightened out after the front end alignment.

 

[lenlo]

I put the allen wrench in there with the lower steering wheel shroud removed so I could see where I was putting it. There is a metal tang that provides friction and then will seat itself in the groove of the tool, to help it stay put once fully inserted. That same tang also provides enough friction to keep your allen wrench snugly in there too. With the shroud on, I could see how that would be difficult to navigate around without being able to see where you are inserting the shaft. My suggestion would be to insert the tool/allen wrench at an angle toward the instrument cluster and when you hit the top, pull back a little bit to orient the tool perpendicular to the steering column before trying to insert it into the hole. See picture below.