M.H. Yount
Active member
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2008
- Location
- Charlotte, NC
"....he will certainly be impaled by it." Made me chuckle. The old days of 'being impaled by the steering shaft' stem from old American iron that had a big, long one piece shaft that ran all the way from a recirculating gear/box down on the frame up into the steering wheel. Yup - that one would impale you. On the 240, you've got two u-joints (some V8'ers add a third) between the rack and the firewall that are designed to give before the shaft does anything harmful. The only way to get impaled in the 240, with or without the rubber filled intermediate shaft, is if the collision collapses the front of the car all the way to the firewall AND then keeps on deforming. In which case you've got way bigger problems than the short shaft from the firewall to the steering wheel. The rubber filled lower steering shaft is for NVH reduction, not safety. Lots of other vehicles use two solid shafts and a "rag joint" for NVH. Opinions vary I reckon.
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