steering column out of alignment after removing steering gear

[persistent]

i'm nearly done with fixing this car, and i now have a steering alignment problem that has come up. with the wheels dead straight, the steering gear knuckle is notably off center, forcing the center mark on the steering wheel bolt 30 degrees to the left.

when i have the wheels straight, steering column assembled, and the steering wheel off, the bolt at the bottom of the intermediate steering shaft is about 30 degrees to the left of lined up with dead ahead. with the rest of the steering column connected, this translates to a large offset in the steering wheel bolt "block tooth".

i was pretty careful with the steering gear when i removed and reinstalled it, so i wouldn't expect the steering gear to be damaged.

any ideas on how to fix this alignment issue? i suspect this could be fixable with a steering calibration process or something else electronics-driven because this steering gear is electric.

 

[swathdiver]

There's a pin that goes into the bottom of the steering wheel to lock it into place. I don't know how you'd fix your particular car, but you can get access to the shop manual at AllDataDIY for $20 for a month.

 

[persistent]

i pulled the steering gear to check it and take some measurements. i found that it was indeed properly centered as-is, but my inference is that the game to get it aligned is to adjust the (inner?) tie rod nuts.

i counted threads to the tie rod nut on both L and R sides, along with the distance from the top of the corresponding boot. L had 11 threads and 14 in while R had 12.5-13 threads and 14.25 in. seeing these asymmetric settings suggest adjustment here is the way to get the alignment centered.

 

[persistent]

after removing the steering gear and confirming it was indeed properly centered by marking the stops and the center, i reinstalled it yesterday and reconnected the rest of the steering column and steering wheel.

surprisingly, i found that after reinstallation of the steering gear, the large misalignment was gone. considering how the steering gear, gear knuckle, and intermediate steering column connect, i have no idea how this happened. i setup a laser level, got it parallel to the rear wheel on each side, and set the toe on both front wheels to 1/16 in. the car drives pretty well post alignment.

the inner tie rod nuts took some extra effort to break loose. it took penetrating oil, heat gun for ~2 min, penetrating oil, propane torch for ~2 min, and a lot of elbow grease. i strongly recommend going straight for the propane torch after doing 1 or 2 rounds of penetrating oil, and the dewalt cordless heat gun was not up to the task. i needed less than 1 full turn on the inner tie rod on both sides to get the toe set properly.