Hi all I bought a 66 wildcat a few years ago,it was built in southgate ca, and i bought it from a wrecker.Since i moved to Dallas, I havent had anything done to it other than a tranny rebuild. My problem now is that the steering column is tilting to the left a little, which is causing vibration to the shifter which puts it out of gear(from what i can gather). Once in drive its great and shifts fine,but if i come to a stop it pops out of gear, i then i have to find which gear(the indicator plastic connector broke when i was messing with the dash to re-install the radio)its in and pop it back into drive.what do i do? should i take out the entire column?
This may sound odd but one thing you need to check is to put a block under the oil pan and lift up slightly with a jack. When the Wildcats break an engine mount(common issue) the engine leans over and changes gears. When you start to lift the engine with the jack pay attention to the drivers side mount and watch as you apply pressure. If the mount opens it is bad. I have a bunch of 66 Wildcat parts if you need something.
thanks so much john,once i get the nerve to do so i will post(its too hot to do anything out here 103 is the high today),now should i replace the motor mounts?
Do you have a regular speedometer or a speed-minder (additional needle). I am parting a 4dr 66 Wildcat. I will pull the speedometer cluster if you need it to repair your shift indicator. The Cat is going away tomorrow morning so let me know if you want me to pull the dash..
no it has the cruise control option which i cleaned up and "restored",my speedometer works pretty well. it jumps just a little bit.what i do need is the door pillar plastic cover,lower trim molding,and a new cabel for the cruise(its a rubber tubbing with a spring that runs through it) oh and the wildcat block lettering(i lost most of them during the move).The car is pretty complete, the previous owner was a kid who didnt have any business messing with the car,he cut all of the vac lines and painted the car primer grey(some of the primer is chipping away and you can see the original silver),he also took off the vinyl top,uninstalled the original am fm stereo,rear defroster,and cut the pwr window lines because of a charging issue(the pigtail for the alt is near the upper a arm and its jimmy rigged now but since you pointed it out the cause may be the whole motor mount issue). this cat was optioned out to the max,the only thing i think it doesnt have is the pwr vent windows.
Is your indicator for gear range broken? if so I will take the one off this car. This 4dr is a post car so it is a little different than yours on the interior. I will see what I have for the block letters.
here is a before and after of the cruise control unit.did i mention the kid also painted everything in the engine bay flat black except the engine which has a orange color, so when i saw the advert on craigslist the wresker said it was a 350 because of the color..but i was happy to inform him it was a 401.
I'll go take the cluster out. Lube the speedo cable and clean it internally and re-lube. That should stop the bounce in the needle. No package tray as all my cars are 2 door except this one and the package tray is toast. Send me a PM with your contact info and best time to call.
Also John do you know of where i could get the vac lines for the pwr doorlocks in the rear? they are square tubing.mine are pretty good but there is an elbow fixture that rusted underneath the front carpet.
