Thread: Another Pontiac for the firebird

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Today was 70 degrees, and I'm off work this weekend.

Tried to take a spin on the Indian Chief, it refused to start. So, I pulled plugs, spun the cylinders dry, put in new plugs.
Put the battery on charge and let it sit in the sun. When the battery had charged hours later, it fired right up.

What might be done about the cold - start issue? It simply won't start below 60*

In the meantime, the dash installation was started. I've been putting it off, driving it without instrumentation.

I completed nearly all wiring, except for the radio. The tempest headlight switch had tricks. The purple wire which i used for tail lights only goes hot at first position. It turns back off at second position. What did it power?

Going to be a tad cooler tomorrow, but I'll plan to finish it out.

I'll hazard a guess that the purple wire was for parking lights that turned off when the headlights went on.

On the Indian, I'd put a Battery Tender on it between rides.

The chief gas a mega expensive glass matt bat always kept on a smart trickle charger as per specified by the battery mfg. It's a dual-coil pack, and I notice the front cylinder doesn't fire until after it starts. Wires looked good, maybe throw a new coil in it? Makes me wish I had a scope to see what the signal to the coil looks like. I gapped the plugs down to .025 from. 030

I'm getting a can of start fluid, see if that helps.

How old is your AGM battery? A while back I was having terrible starting issues with my coupe and while the battery showed full voltage it had only about 50% capacity and the voltage dropped with the first crank - not enough for a hot spark and not enough to fire injectors. I'd take the battery to someone who can load check it (I used a Batteries Plus store). If your battery is good then your idea on the coil pack is reasonable. Are you running pure gas, no Ethanol? You might think about getting a carburetor kit and rebuilding your carb(s) if the coil swap doesn't help.

The dash is in, everything works after a couple bugs were worked out. That is, except for the horn. It seems the wire has lost connection at the slip ring. Also, it appears the steering wheel center is plastic with a metal insert for the splines. It doesn't have the usual threaded bolt holes for the puller. Anyone know how to remove it? I sure don't want to break it.

Fools boldly go where the brave not dare follow.

The steering wheel is a banjo type. The bottom section broke out from the plastic center so I decided a repair was in order. I pried up the bottom section end, and applied some two part epoxy to adhere it back in. Then I drilled and tapped for a 10-32 screw, angling the bit so as not to punch through the plastic. I screwed in the fastener tight, then applied some two part epoxy putty over the top to approximate the original plastic.

I've got to research how to pull the steering wheel so to service the horn mechanism, else add a horn button.

Well Firebird, I was really hoping that someone would post an alternative because this is my least favorite way to pull a steering wheel. That being said it has always worked.

This works best with a friend and 2 ball peen hammers.

Loosen the steering wheel nut until the first thread or 2 of the nut is off the shaft (Normally I prefer to find a nut the same size as the steering wheel nut and use that so there is no chance of hurting the original nut but using the original nut works too).

Sit in the car and grab the steering wheel with your hands 180 degrees apart (if the spokes are 180 degrees apart that’s a good place to grab). Have your friend place the head of one hammer on the steering wheel nut.

As you pull firmly on the steering wheel have your friend sharply rap the first hammer with the second one.

For me it’s always worked in a pinch. You will have to determine definition of “pull firmly” and “sharply rap”. Keep in mind the age and condition of the wheel.


Hope this helps.



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Originally Posted by Mike P

Well Firebird, I was really hoping that someone would post an alternative because this is my least favorite way to pull a steering wheel. That being said it has always worked.

This works best with a friend and 2 ball peen hammers.

Loosen the steering wheel nut until the first thread or 2 of the nut is off the shaft (Normally I prefer to find a nut the same size as the steering wheel nut and use that so there is no chance of hurting the original nut but using the original nut works too).

Sit in the car and grab the steering wheel with your hands 180 degrees apart (if the spokes are 180 degrees apart that’s a good place to grab). Have your friend place the head of one hammer on the steering wheel nut.

As you pull firmly on the steering wheel have your friend sharply rap the first hammer with the second one.

For me it’s always worked in a pinch. You will have to determine definition of “pull firmly” and “sharply rap”. Keep in mind the age and condition of the wheel.


Hope this helps.

Mike,
I was feeling exactly the same, thinking of the first time I pulled a steering wheel, the same way you described!

This method would destroy my 73 year old banjo type wheel, but thanks for the input! My fault for not showing a picture, the "spokes" are very frail.

The inside is plastic, it would never take the abuse.

I've been trolling Youtube, and a very similar technique is shown, with pressure applied to the rear of the center of the wheel.

At this point, I am leaning towards an auxiliary horn button in lieu of making a custom jig to accessorize my wheel puller tool.

Ok, so I picked up a horn button from O'Reilly $5. I put it on the box that holds the add-on turn signal switch, mounted on the column. Looks good and the horn works fine. Also the ebay hood pull cable installed very nicely. A tad too long but it tucked in ok. It's pretty interesting that this car was factory with that feature. No more poking the latch with a screwdriver!

Without going back multiple pages, when you pulled the steering wheel off the firebird using the hex-headed screws, did you not see the following below?

Steering.hub.78.jpg

If so, those two screw holes are what you need to screw the bolts into to remove the hub from the column. A typical auto parts store puller will not work, I'll check my back garage and see if I have the GM sourced puller for it.

Bill S.

Originally Posted by mrmustang

Without going back multiple pages, when you pulled the steering wheel off the firebird using the hex-headed screws, did you not see the following below?

Attachment 74331

If so, those two screw holes are what you need to screw the bolts into to remove the hub from the column. A typical auto parts store puller will not work, I'll check my back garage and see if I have the GM sourced puller for it.

Bill S.

No dice, struck out, sorry......

However, a quick call to a friend in NJ (he has a dozen such toys) came up with the following suggestion
Puller

Additional suggestion is to lightly spray (remove battery cable first) the splined hub with penetrating lubricant and let it sit for a few days.

Bill S.

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

This method would destroy my 73 year old banjo type wheel, but thanks for the input! My fault for not showing a picture, the "spokes" are very frail. The inside is plastic, it would never take the abuse.


Ok, so I picked up a horn button from O'Reilly $5. Looks good and the horn works fine.

I know that you're happy with the auxiliary horn button installation and no longer need to pull the wheel, but thinking about it and for future reference I really doubt that the splined center is just an insert floating in plastic. The plastic would never take the forces of steering & bumps, and would be dangerous at best. I suspect that there is a metal base with a plastic overlay surrounding the splined center and filling the hub assembly to provide electrical insulation for the horn. Granted, the spokes are somewhat "frail", but I expect they're mounted to metal in the center. Just my $0.02 after thinking about it too much.....

Thanks much for the input guys, you're all great!

I would absolutely think there was a metal core in the center, but when I drilled and tapped the screw to repair the bottom spoke, I only got plastic shavings, and I drilled in about an inch deep.

The button will work, but in a pinch the stock horn button would be better! I might re examine this issue later. Next big items are sealing the windshield halves and install the heater control valve and cable.