I have checked the junk yards around me and no body has a steering wheel for my 87 jeep Cherokee lerado any suggestions on whare I can find one or is it possible to fix mine it flops around Like a broke neck chicken lol

 

Is it the steering wheel or the tilt column flopping around?

Any wheel from 84 to 90 will work BTW.

 

It is flopping around at the tilt section of the colem

 

Classic loose column/tilt, a new wheel won't help you. There's a write-up on tightening the bolts in the column somewhere, gimme a minute to find it...

 

you can go through the painful task of tearing it apart and fixing the problem.

but i went the easy way and just replaced the whole column with one from a parts jeep. it was easy and start to finish in less than an hour.

i have 3 other spares just incase this happens again.

i tried to tear one down just for giggles, but couldn't get anywhere near the tilt knuckle with simple tools, including the use of a bfg.

 

I, on the other hand, had no problem getting to the bolts that clamp the tilt mechanism. It took me a couple hours to disassemble and reassemble everything but it cost me nothing and as a bonus, I found and fixed the cause of my uncanceling left blinker! I can't find the write up so I'll post my own shortly. I did this repair a few months ago and for now, everything is still rock solid.

 

Either that or pay a shop to do it. Very common as the column is a GM unit anyways.

 

http://www.fieros.de/en/articles/steering.html

Good walk thru here

 

I got an 89 that is doing the same thing but I never could find the write up. But I can get a column for a hundred bucks but would rather fix it myself.

 

Thanks y'all

 

Alright, so my '89 was suffering from a severe case of Floppy Tilt. So much so that it was awkward to drive because I was afraid the whole column and wheel assembly was gonna come off. I searched the webs and found enough bits and pieces of info to make an attempt at fixing it myself.

For starters, Jeep/AMC/Chrysler sourced this column from GM and there are quite a few resources out there that cover this steering column under various GM brands. Significantly more than there are for this column in the Jeep application but it doesn't matter, they're all the same column.

Here is what my steering column looked like before I tightened the Torx bolts in the tilt mechanism...


As you can see from the video, I'd already torn into the column. Here's how I did it...

Start off by removing the steering wheel.

For n00bs: There are four philips-head screws on the back of the steering wheel that hold the horn button and rubber chevron to the wheel, remove those screws then unplug the horn from the column.

After you've removed the nut from the wheel, use a steering wheel puller to remove the wheel. If you don't have one, they can be borrowed from Auto Zone or you can make your own. I made my own.

Now remove the round plastic cover that sits between the wheel and the steering lock disc. I used my homebrewed steering wheel puller to compress the steering lock disc in order to remove the retaining clip from the column shaft.



I'm sure someone makes a special retaining clip removal tool but I just used a machinists scribe (looks sort of like a big dental pick) and a little flathead screwdriver to wiggle it out of the channel it sits in, onto the column shaft where it was pushed off when I released tension on the spring holding the steering lock disc. Just be careful to not lose the clip.

After the steering lock disc was off I could now see the multi-switch that controls my blinkers and hazards. I noticed right off that there was a spring stuck in the dielectric grease at the bottom of the switch. It didn't belong there. I found where it went, put it back and now my left blinker cancels! Bonus. You'll need to remove the multi-switch now. Start by removing the four Philips-head screws and the black multi-switch lever bracket (that holds the turn signal stalk).



Next, remove the turn signal stalk by firmly (but carefully!) pulling it away from the column. It just presses on there but it can be kind of tight and you want to limit it's travel when it finally does come loose since your windshield washer control and cruise control wires run down that stalk.

Now you need to locate the cruise control harness and the multi-switch harness under the dash and disconnect them. Once done, you can pull the multi-switch off of the column shaft. You may need to feed the harness up the steering column in order to have enough slack to get the multi-switch over the end of the column.



With the multi-switch out of the way, it's now time to remove the lock cylinder. Locate the black Torx retaining screw and remove it, you should now be able to pull the lock cylinder out of the column. You may need to insert the key and turn it slightly to pull it out.







Now we need to remove the three silver Torx screws (sorry, I don't recall the size) that hold the lock cylinder housing. Also, you will need to remove the hazard flasher ****. Just insert a small philips into the hole in the center of the **** and unscrew it.



We've now reached the point where the video at the beginning was shot and have access to three of the four Torx bolts that secure the tilt mechanism. The fourth bolt is difficult to access and I did not tighten that one. Locate the three accessible bolts and tighten them as much as possible (within reason, don't break the heads off). I believe I used a standard 8 mm socket for this. I know it was a standard socket (rather than a fancy Torx socket) but I don't recall the exact size.





I don't have a picture of the third bolt but it is above the one in the last picture, you'll just have to look around in there and tighten as many as you can find.

Now reverse this process, put everything back together, and enjoy your floppiless steering wheel. I can't guarantee this procedure for all XJ models/years but it worked on my '89. Also, I did this a few months ago so I may have failed to mention a few things in my write-up. If anyone sees something amiss, please let me know and I'll fix it.

 

Of course NOW I find the write-up by huntingman2706217. His wheel and steering lock disc are a little different than mine and he also mentions something I forgot which is that there is a small, white part with copper contacts located near the lock cylinder, I think it's a relay piece for the horn circuitry. This will come out when you remove the lock cylinder, make sure you don't lose it

 

I just realized that I don't think you have to disconnect the cruise control wires from the cruise control module under the dash. I did, but I don't think it's necessary. If anyone attempts this based on the above write-up let me know, please.

 

I have a spare column with steering wheel. A botched attempt at stealin' my XJ two winters ago forced me to replace it. Being it was winter, I didn't have time to try and fix it. Needed the XJ for transpo'. Saved the broke one for possible spare parts. PM me if you need any parts.