power steer gear box

[glider_6969]

Hi all,

have a problem, the seal in the gear box is leaking bad and I need to replace it, anyone here replaced theirs. Can I get this seal alone or is there a rebuild kit that I would have to get, any help would be great, hopefully the pic I post is visible.

[JimKshortstep4x4]

The seals are available as a kit from NAPA.

Jim

[ChevLoRay]

Good info. Mine is setting on the bench at my sons' house....so I'll be checking it out before it gets painted and goes back onto the chassis.

[68gmsee]

Just replaced mine a few weeks ago. It's not hard to do with the right tools.

I removed the gear box on mine since I had to replace the steering shaft seal and the pitman shaft seal on mine. The biggest problem you will encounter is removing the old seals. They're recessed into the shaft and you can't reach them with a simple seal puller.

There's a lot of info on youtube and the internet. Google "pitman shaft seal replacement" and read or view first so you can get an idea of the tools you need and what you will have to do.

example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3vph3uhCAk&feature...

[Katrina/10]

I was told to crank the engine with the snap ring removed from the seal, and steer back and forth till pressure blows the seal out. Works great but makes a big mess.

[Autoblueprint]

Originally Posted by glider_6969

Hi all,

have a problem, the seal in the gear box is leaking bad and I need to replace it, anyone here replaced theirs. Can I get this seal alone or is there a rebuild kit that I would have to get, any help would be great, hopefully the pic I post is visible.

Seal kits are available but you need special Kent Moore tool # J-6219 Pitman Shaft Seal Installer to put 'em back in. A thin wall deep socket MIGHT work as a seal installer...Snap-On has the seal installer tool...but of course...it is not cheap.

Originally Posted by Katrina/10

I was told to crank the engine with the snap ring removed from the seal, and steer back and forth till pressure blows the seal out. Works great but makes a big mess.

Yep. Remove Pitman Arm ( requires special tool J-6632 Pitman Arm Puller but I believe some parts houses rent these out ) then remove snap-ring...then place big pan below...then turn steering to full left or right lock and those seals just blow right out.

You might be better off just to just replace the box with a reman unit...if the shaft seals are leaking then probably the other seals inside are not too far off from being done either.

Whichever way you go...make sure you use GM power steering fluid...the GM fluid is CLEAR not RED. Contrary to popular belief, transmission fluid IS NOT a substitute for power steering fluid...tranny fluid makes the power steering rubber disolve and thus you have leaks and poor performance...spend the extra couple of bucks for the GM fluid and you will have happy days.

[leddzepp]

I have used Dexron transmission fluid for years in both of my trucks' power steering units, never had a problem or leak because of it. It even says to use transmission fluid on the reservoir cap on my remote big block setup. If transmission fluid would cause a seal to leak in a power steering unit, would it not cause a leak in the transmission as well? Is there some kind of special rubber used in steering box seals only?

[Autoblueprint]

Originally Posted by leddzepp

Is there some kind of special rubber used in steering box seals only?

A little mechanical trivia:

There are teflon seals on the spool valve that don't like the detergent in tranny fluid. Back when I was working in Cadillac dealerships, the dealer sent us techs to the GM Training Center to attend classes to keep our skills updated...and in the steering courses the GM engineers teaching made it a point that GM P/S fluid has different properties that work more efficiently with the heat and pressures found in P/S systems than tranny fluid does. The most obvious difference I have found with using GM P/S fluid in my own vehicle is that there is not that funky smell that tranny fluid has when it is used in a P/S system. The other thing I've noticed is that I don't have any more "sweating" of fluid at pressure connections like I experienced before I switched to the GM fluid. Bottom line is that the GM engineers really did not say "don't" use tranny fluid but rather strongly recommened that we use the GM P/S fluid.

[leddzepp]

interesting...if i ever develop any problems i will definitely switch to gm power steering fluid. i had a problem once with the reservoir hose sweating a long time ago...but that is because the po used a heater hose, lol. i switched to a proper hydraulic hose and the problem was solved.
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[glider_6969]

Thanks for all the input guys,, Hopefully it doesn't turn out to be a big mess, but then again I have had to do worse.