11 sep 2000 - To get my 1963 1C back on the road I have dropped the subframe (for blasting, coating and waxoyling). While it is off I thought it a good idea to clean the steering idler box and put a new seal and new grease in and a new nipple on. This is "heavy metal" and needs good big and strong tools (what I call a Russian tool set) to dismantle. Note, that you should be able to pick up a tool to get the top off without damaging it for very little in a tool shop.

Note carefully how the washer under the top flange of the shaft is positioned! Both sides are NOT exactly identical. On one side the edge of the hole in the washer is machined a bit under an angle of 45°. This side goes towards the flange. The reason is simply that it is not possible (or rather very expensive) to machine an exact 90° between flange and shaft without a small transition. No transition would also weaken the construction.

The size of the seal at the bottom is 29x42x7. Cost is in the order of € 2.00 to 2.50 . On this particular idler box the grease nipple has a thread of M10x1.00. Cost is less than € 1 .

When you have cleaned everything, assemble it carefully with good grease.

I am also doing the steering box. See that section.

Huib, huib@viva-lancia.com

Q: On my 1976 Fulvia I have a steering idler box with metal bushes instead of plastic and no grease nipple.

A: I am surprised to hear you found metal bushes in the idler box without the grease nipple. Obviously someone thought to replace the plastic ones before. How did you open the idler box? Again there is a special tool to undo the castellated ring nut.
- Andrea -

Q: Any details you could provide regarding the replacement of the Series 2 steering idler box bushes would be very welcome.

A: As you probably know the main trouble with the Fulvia steering idler box comes from worn internal bushes. Removal of the steering idler box (SIB) is not difficult but a bit fiddly because access is very restricted. It is helpful to remove the wheel (and the shock absorber) and the battery.
Disconnect the joints with the tie rod and the track rod with a suitable balljoint separator (you may have to go through the large slots in the battery tray, this is way it is useful to remove the battery).
Then remove the SIB by carefully unscrewing its fixings to the car body. It is necessary to remember that these components were possibly kept together for more than 25 years and exposed to road dirt. Hence, undo them with care avoiding brute force otherwise they might just snap off.
Clamp the SIB in a large bench vice interposing lead sheets to avoid damage. To remove the drop arm at the bottom (after undoing its nut and noting its position with the respect to the SIB) you need a puller. Lancia had a special puller (which is also used for the steering box arm) because the special shape of the arm and the small space available really require a dedicated tool. However, with a bit of ingenuity it should be possible to find or modify a puller for this purpose.
It is worth noting that the nut and the drop arm are fixed quite tightly so that any tool should be strong and of high quality.
The only real problem is to remove the castellated ring nut at the top. Here there is no solution except to have the proper tool or to make it. This tool is not sold anymore and the best way might be to fabricate it. Having removed the top nut (and the grease nipple if fitted) it is possible to extract the shaft and the two bushes. Plastic ones are easy to remove while metal ones may require a bearing puller.
After cleaning and repacking with grease, reassembly is in reverse order of dismantling. At the end of the job use the top adjuster for eliminating free play and check the wheel tracking at a tyre garage.
If you need information on the steering box overhaul this was published in a long article of mine (Lancia Motor Club Magazine, spring 1990).
Good luck, Andrea

Q: Which grease should the unit be packed with?

A: I would prefer a 50/50 mixture of lithium based grease (the type used for wheel bearings) and molybdenum based grease (the black stuff you would use for CV joints). Even if one would normally use the lithium based grease only, this is quite "running" and adding the second type will improve its stickiness to metal surfaces. Of course, the lithium grease has a high melting point, but I doubt that unless you are frantically steering during a night stage of the Montercarlo Rally you will notice any difference.
Good luck and best regards, Andrea

Q: When I turn the arm of the steering idler box, there is a LOT of resistance. What can be the cause of this? - Huib -

A: I know I must be very boring by repeating myself but... to get the arm off the steering idler box you need a special Lancia puller (or something very similar) and you must tap strongly the puller pinion with a mallet as you apply force. If there is some resistance in the steering idler box this is certainly wrong: I wonder if this is caused by any attempts to open it. You should investigate it very carefully.
- Andrea -

R: After investigation I found the excessive resistance was caused by excessive pressure of the grease. I had dis-assembled the box, put grease in, insterted the pinion and associated parts and then filled it up with grease till the rim. By screwing the cap on the grease was compressed. When I took some grease out, the movement was very light again.
- Huib -