Steering Shaft Clamp-6mm Allen Bolts

[mo-mon]

I was wondering if any of you know if these bolts go thru the body & can be accessed from below?

Someone over tightened the bolt closest to the a/c evaporator & rounded it out. I am having a hard time loosening the bolt. Tried everything. Thanks.

[Sebscst]

Yes same thing happened with mine. I drilled it out and then used a through bolt. It comes out in the drivers footwell area.it does come out at a weird angle so I used some thin washers followed by a heave duty washer so it would seat correctly against the body.

[Jonny042]

You could try drilling the head off - then once the clamp is gone, in theory, the bolt will no longer be "tight" and it will be easier to remove. Vise grips, easy-out, etc.

[faapgar]

As a rule of thumb after 50 years now.Especially cars with A/C just take a medium chisel and give the bolt a whack counter-clockwise then a second whack.Then take your allen wrench and loosen it.You can always buy new bolts so it is pretty.Comes off easily with this method.The allen bolts on every one I have done are tighter than a crabs behind.Fred

[faapgar]

Important part of the equation.Hammer must a 5lb. one at least to create the shock to crack it loose.Happy whacking.No comment needed from The Guy with scabs on his Knees.Ciao Fred

[HaroldMHedge]

Besides the good suggestions above, have you tried Kroil and heat?

What about using a stripped bolt/stud extractor?

[mo-mon]

Thank you all for the responses. I was at the chisel and hammer stage and it wasn't budging. Will try a bigger hammer & also take a peek at the footwell area.

[steely]

Get a damaged bolt extractor kit - and an impact hammer.
Those bolts are a complete pain, but this worked like a charm for me.
I think I posted the same question here once and that idea worked.

[Dpmulvan]

[Snitzler]

I just did this and ended up using an easy out on one of the bolts. The heads were trashed and the bolts were way over torqued. One thing is my bolts are M8 and not M6, the parts list also shows them as M8. I couldn't find any 8.8 locally but they did have 12.9. I torqued the bolts to 20 inch lbs.

[KTL]

Anybody doing this job, simply because they're removing the clamp to remove the steering rack or shaft, would be VERY wise to take a look at the needle bearing inside the clamped rubber piece. This bearing is notorious for drying out, rusting and seizing on the shaft. I've got a seized bearing spinning in the rubber piece of my '86 911 I need to fix real soon.

Porsche seems to have a knack for using needle bearings where they are not a good application. I'm no bearing engineer but i've heard that needle bearings like high speed operation. But yet Porsche chose to use needle bearings in the steering shaft and the G50 clutch release fork and both these bearing locations are known to fail.

This thread is a good one that has some nice tips for replacing that bearing. Steering Shaft Bearing

[mo-mon]

I hear you Kevin! Been wanting to do this for a week but have been stymied by that nasty 6mm allen bolt. I have the needle bearing & seals ready.

[steely]

I was there 8 years ago - I hope this thread helps (and yes, check the needle bearing as KTL mentioned!):

Stripped allen bolt head (not threads)

The EZ-out I used is called a Bolt-out or extractor. There's no drilling.

[mo-mon]

Thanks Dan. Just ordered a damaged bolt extractor kit. Will try this before using the chisel and bfh route.

[mo-mon]

Success, but........
Took out the other bolt as a sample to bring to the hardware store & as I pulled it out, I wiggled the clamp & it moved! Oh shlt!!!




I'll put some JB Weld & see if it works, if not, I'll drill thru the body & use a longer bolt with washers & a nut. Thoughts?

[Dpmulvan]

Originally Posted by mo-mon

Success, but........
Took out the other bolt as a sample to bring to the hardware store & as I pulled it out, I wiggled the clamp & it moved! Oh no!!!!




I'll put some JB Weld & see if it works, if not, I'll drill thru the body & use a longer bolt with washers & a nut. Thoughts?

Should have used this would have taken literally 3 minutes

[Dpmulvan]

Have somebody tig weld it if possible, jb weld on your steering not a good idea. Spend the $30 and get yourself an impact like above for stuck bolts and screws, tool pays for itself first time you use it.
A little heat a couple whacks and it's loose.

[wrxnofx]

Originally Posted by Dpmulvan

Should have used this would have taken literally 3 minutes

While the OP seems to not have the condenser in the way to deal with, most people don't have that luxury. Consequently, you can't use one of those. You can't even get a normal allen socket in there with a 3/8" ratchet. I used a 1/4" drive ratchet and the shortest allen I could find (from gearwrench). Then I had to use a 2 foot pipe before I could get enough leverage to bust that thing loose.

Kicking a guy when he's down, ouch.

[mo-mon]

Wrxnofx, I am the OP & I did have the a/c evaporator to contend with. You're right, the bolt closest to the evaporator gives one few choices on methods of extraction.

[mo-mon]

I did the same thing Sebscst did. Drilled a hole & used a through bolt with an angle beveled washer & a nut. Posting the pictures as a future reference for those with a/c who might be in the same predicament.

Was able to replace the needle bearing & oil seals. Taking out & re-installing the steering shaft was a challenge! Nothing is easy.