Hey Everyone.

I thought I'd share a strange problem that I managed to solve.
Hopefully this will help anyone that encounters this same problem.

1996 Chevy Blazer LT 4.3L 4x4

I've been working on this PIG for about a year now. One of those, needs two of everything types. But this particular issue that I decided to tackle was extremely weird or otherwise rare.

Since the day I got it, the Steering had alot of slop in it, Slop meaning: you can wiggle the Steering Wheel back & fourth about four - five inches before you would feel the tires even begin to move. This blazer did alot of bucking when driving, especially on the highway. Secondly, this Steering Wheel was never lined up correctly meaning when driving in a straight line the Steering Wheel looked as if it was turning Right. Of course some other things wouldn't work properly like the turn signal cut off.

I got up underneath it & found the typical problems:
PITMAN ARM
IDLE ARM
Both INNER TIE RODS
Both OUTER TIE RODS
Adjusting Sleeves Welded themselves to Tie Rods
**All Shot** Go Figure Right

Now of course EVERYTHING had welded itself to EVERYTHING. Had to cut & torch everything. I pulled the Steering Box out of course to replace the Pitman Arm. (And before you ask me why I pulled the Steering Box like everyone else has... This Truck has a Cross Member. The Shaft from the Steering Box where the Pitman Arm mounts to is right on it. Not touching but you can't get a finger between the two. Let alone even get the nut off the shaft. I'm told there is a special tool for this but I'm still waiting to see it) After completing the the replacements, there was still a boat load of slop in the Steering Wheel. And still the Steering Wheel was NOT lined up correctly. Of course, it was properly aligned. A good one & a half turns in both directions left & right. I dropped the project.

After a month, the Steering Slop got even worse. Everything I had replaced was SHOT again. And I didn't use cheap house brands either. I'm big on A/C Delco, Monroe & Raybestos. I wasn't gonna just replace everything over again & waste money. I really wanted to know what is causing this & the slop. I re bought everything over again this time including, all four Ball Joints, (Uppers & Lowers) & Wheel Bearing/Hub Assemblies.

When I took the Steering Box out again, I caught something I missed the first time. On the Steering Box, I noticed between the Steering Wheel Shaft & the Piman Arm Shaft, they were not in sync w/ each other. I was pretty sure I found the reason for the slop.

I went to B&H & got another Steering Box. Sure enough, no where near as much slop. Slight bit but nothing serious. I'm told there should be a tiny tiny bit due to the Gear Reduction. I went ahead & a bought new Pressure & Return Hose as well since they looked pretty ratty.

After all said & done, everything replaced & put back together, It's now all in check. Steering Wheel is aligned straight forward & there is no slop. The slightest twitch of the Steering Wheel, you can feel the tire's starting to move. Drives like a brand new truck down the highway.

I've shared this because I've never heard of a Steering Box taking a dump like that. Everyone I've talked too, didn't believe me until they saw the Steering Box for themselves.

Hopefully this helps anyone who will encounter this weird issue.

 

to make it even better,replace the shaft that comes out of the steering column that runs down to the gear box. it has a ragjoint made of leather that wears down not alot of people know about. you can buy ragjoints at the auto place for like 10 bucks. Some has rivets,some is bolt on.


Also,not sure on a 96,but on a 91 4x4,when i did the pittmann i was able to pull the bolts off the box,and turn it slightly enough to get the arm off,without disconnecting hoses.

 

Hmm, thanks for informing me of the name of that part. I noticed that in there. It look extremely raggy. I didn't know you could buy that part individually without buying a new reman steering box. Although its riveted in. I'll do that next time the pitman needs replacing. Thanks Bud --- I tried that & the box would not budge. Had no choice but to remove it. My Dakota was just like your 91, remove bolts & twist.

 

On top of the steering box there is a nut with an allen head in the middle. I loosened the nut, tightened the allen screw then backed it off a little, then re tightened the nut. This is the gear lash adjustment, took all the play out of mine.

 

id suggest not to adjust that box that way. you usually do more harm then good. that tapeworm in there tears up if just the slightest too much is applied. I learned from a truck i had.

 

Thats a lot of good info. I have the same problem on my 2001 ZR2. Do you think simply replacing the steering box first would have solved the problem? Seems like the other stuff you replaced was shot but I dont know if it would have made the steering so sloppy.

 

smaiwald, it always was kinda sloppy from the day i bought it. however, i had to replace the idle, pitman & tie rods twice over. after replacing, a month later they were all destroyed again. like i said, i didnt wanna spend more money just for the same issue to take place again a month later. didnt matter how much adjusting or tightening i did, the steering was always sloppy as hell. Thats why this was so strange. Steering box's are usually the last thing to go

 

Gotcha. I did the ball joints soon after I got my Blazer. Once it gets warmer Im going to take a look at the steering box. Its worth a shot anyway. It would be nice to have my steering tighter.

 

hey so all you really did was change the steering box and everything was ok cause im having the same issue but my steering wheel is turning to the left

the wheels are straight but this is what my steering wheel looks like

is this something i might need to change

 

I would suggest you start a new thread. You'll get more help that way.