steering sucks, need parts list

[ocbaud]

well, since the truck is now home, and i have a garage and time and money to work on it, i figure, why not work on it, better it going into the truck than the mustang....

my steering is subpar. lots of play in the wheel and just not very responsive. i would like to replace the front suspension components that pertain to the steering. if someone could find me a diagram/picture/list of the front end steering components, i would appreciate it

[Slonaker]

Off the top of my head...

Upper and lower balljoints
Inner and outer ttierod ends
Pitman arm
steering box
rag joint between column and steering box
idler arm

I have replaced all of these except the box and rag joint (they were replaced shortly before I bought it). It made all the differene in the world. I can actuall keep it between the lines in a curve...

Did you see that I FINALLY lowered mine 2.5/4?

Slonaker

[ocbaud]

Originally Posted by Slonaker

Off the top of my head...

Upper and lower balljoints
Inner and outer ttierod ends
Pitman arm
steering box
rag joint between column and steering box
idler arm

I have replaced all of these except the box and rag joint (they were replaced shortly before I bought it). It made all the differene in the world. I can actuall keep it between the lines in a curve...

Did you see that I FINALLY lowered mine 2.5/4?

Slonaker

i think i remember seeing that thread, havent been on here a whole lot since i havent had the truck.

Inner and outer ttierod ends
Pitman arm
idler arm

those are what need replaced the most. the balljoints are worn, but not awful.

[79BIG10]

Eric have you tightened up the steering box adjustment screw? Try doing this before all that. After I redid my front end I still had play. I adjusted the screw and made it much better.

If you look at the top of the steering gear box you will see a nut with a allen head screw in it. Loosen the nut and tighten the screw with the allen head. Tighten 1/8-1/4 turn only. A little goes a long way. Then tighten the nut back up and test it out. Repeat as you need to. Try this to see if it helps.

[beaterC10]

If you are going to replace the inner and outer tie rod ends, you should probably also get a set of tie rod adjusting sleeves. They are cheap and you won't have to use the rusty old sleeves on the new rod ends.

[MylilBowTie]

Sometime the center link needs replaced also. Just depending on how bad the old parts having more play and more wear on it. It is on the very neglected side of things so it shouldn't need replaced. Though I would check it out just to make sure.

Before I bought any new parts I would get out the grease gun. Make sure all of them are full of grease. Sometimes that is all it needs.

[boxrodz]

OC-
I agree with what the guys are suggesting. But, you may find that once you replace the steering components, your steering may still be sloppy. I replaced all of my front suspension components and when I took it in for an alignment, the mechanic said afterwards that the only play i had in it was coming from the steering box. Like Brandon said, you may be able to adjust the tolerance in the gear box, but use caution. Over-adjusting may damaged the gear box. Here's a parts pic. (Ignore the bushings.)

[ocbaud]

ok, i can tell by looking at the trucks parts that the following are in need of replacement:

idler arm
pitman arm
center link

those are all sloppy as hell, and i'll end up replacing the tie rod ends and the sleeves too.

[Slonaker]

Oh yeah. I forgot about the control arm bushings. I did those, too. It made a huge difference. My truck has 235,000 miles on it, so everything was pretty much shot. As they say, your mileage may vary...

Slonaker