whats the deal with replacing this thing? do i need to completely remove the steering box and replace the arm on the bench? i tried all evening to even just get the jam nut loose and got no where. i unbolted the box to try to get to it and had no luck. the whopping 3/4 of an inch between the crossmember and sector shaft is just great [:@]

 

tell me about it in the process of doin the same thing to my '94 took some work but got the nut off finally (same thing had to unbolt steering box they don't give you any room at all in there) only now my problem is the stupid pitman arm wont come off (got the puller on but it's bein stubborn) 3 foot long breaker bar on the end of my wrench and all i manage to do is slide myself across the floor so far lol. been soaking it down pretty heavily with pb blaster several times a day since sunday gonna give it another go here in a couple hours hopefully i get lucky. Makes me wanna cry 3 inches of snow here in ohio and im stuck in a little shoebox (98 cavalier) cuz my baby is all torn apart =x

 

Yes.
You're going to need about 200 ft/lbs of torque to get that nut off, and probably just as much torque to pull the arm off. (assuming you have to correct puller) A good air impact gun is really necessary here. I use a 24v battery powered impact gun for everything, and this was the first nut I couldn't break loose with it. It's a son of a gun for sure.
I believe the torque spec on that nut is 180 lb/ft IIRC.

 

yep, ended up yankin the box to get at that freakin pitman arm. what a pain in the ****!

 

Is this the most common reason for play in the steering?

I just noticed mine is a little loose.

 

It's one of about a dozen things that could cause the steering to feel loose. You'll have to jack up the front end and check for play to see where it's coming from.

 

I should have my garage cleaned out by the weekend. If the crappy weather gives me a break. i will check then.

Thanks