Just like all of my fellow Lmm owners, I have been more than a little disappointed with my trucks drivability, low speed turning power, and road wander. I purchased my truck used and abused. The PO had been running 33x12.50s on stock wheels for the life of the vehicle and I dont think he knew what a grease gun was.
I will begin this fix with a description of the issues before the fix.
The first thing I did was get into a 285/70R17. The width of the 33 12.50s seemed to be putting a strain on the truck.
On dirt roads I was getting an annoying rattle beneath the steering wheel as well as a really loud bang when the truck was rebounding. I determined the bang was from the PO turning the bars up to far and the shocks topping out while the upper control arms were hitting the bumpstop. This was resolved by the purchase of a set of Cognito UCAs and 2in over shocks and setting the gap at .75 in between the framestop and uca. After some drama and non alignment at the first shop I went to another and had it aligned to cognito specs.
The rattle remained. After forum searching I decided to replace the intermediate steering shaft. Purchased at the stealership.
Install was straightforward. TIE THE STEERING WHEEL DOWN FIRST. When you disconnect this shaft, the steering wheel can turn all the way around and eventually strip your clockspring, which is expensive and can deploy your airbags. There is a bolt at the firewall on the steering shaft, undo this and retain. Pop the hood and locate the steering shaft. Its just under the intercooler pipe. There is a bolt midway on the shaft, undo this and retain. The intermediate shaft can then be separated from the lower shaft as well as the upper shaft and then pulled through the cab. Install is the reverse process. This cured the rattle.
The next problem that occurred was a noticeable dead spot in my steering. This resulted in checking the tie rods, pitman, idler, and lower ball joints. The easiest way to do this is to get under the truck and have a buddy turn the steering wheel while you watch the components. Please do not put your hands anywhere they will get pinched. As your friend cycles the steering watch for parts that either do not move or hesitate before they move. MY components all had wear resulting in a complete overhaul. There are threads detailing front end component replacement, but in brief the tie rods were easy with a tie rod separator or pickle fork. My lower ball joints went to the shop. The pitman and idler arms required loosening from the frame and then use a pitman arm remover on the pitman and a wrench/allen on the idler. Everything reinstalls in reverse with no tricks. Truck was aligned again.
Small deadspot remained, followed by lack of steering power. At low speeds there didnt seem to be enough power to make even a quarter of a turn with the steering wheel. After forum searching, I decided on a hydroboost flush to check the fluid in the system. The thread for hydroboost flush is in this section. The fluid in my current system was black, no other way to describe it. After over a gallon of PS fluid I filled the reservoir with royal purple synthetic power steering fluid. The brakes were the best increase. I almost threw myself into the steering wheel by braking how I normally had. The low end steering power was somewhat resolved but I decided what it was the tire size and nature of the truck. The deadspot remained.
After several thousand miles of driving with a deadspot I decided on a new steering gear. Out of habit with previous gas 4wd vehicles, I checked with AGR. They didn’t carry a gear for me. So, without checking the forums (first mistake), I purchased a new (rebuit) gear (over 500) from the dealership. I installed the gear (Again, tie your steering wheel down), but the problem was only slightly better and the deadspot had rotated about 10 degrees on the steering wheel. The dealership told me it was the lower steering shaft , which had some merit if the u-joint in the intermediate had worn. I replaced the lower shaft (which would have been easier with the gear out of the way) and it resolved nothing. No change, not worth it. I ran this gear for two months. The low end turning power was still a problem and the road wander was excessive.
I was now constantly paying attention to how the truck steered, braked, and responded to stress. I was always flushing my hyrdoboost system when the steering or brakes seemed to weak. I began to notice that the fluid was deteriorating very quickly. One night, I was driving home with my wife. Normal driving for about 50 miles. When we started to make a left turn across traffic, The brake pedal went to the floor and the brakes locked up. I floored it and got clear of the road before the oncoming cars got to us but it was still a terrifying experience, especially for my wife. I decided that the hydroboost system had either had a grain of dirt catch or it was on the way out. I picked up a new HB system at the dealership the next day (about 213 I think). Install was disconnecting the power steering lines, the four nuts inside the cab, and the brake pedal clasp. Very simple when you consider the importance of the system. Topped the fluid level off and testdrove. The brakes were working perfectly, and I couldn’t get it to repeat the failure.
A few weeks later I noticed there was a significant hiss in about the same location as the hydroboost system while turning. I began to think that the low end crap steering and the hiss were the result of a weak power steering pump. I replaced this pump (around 200) to no avail. Still had a hiss and no-steer and deadspot. The pump replacement wasn’t difficult but the pulley removal and reinstall required a trip to Napa to borrow their tools.
The deadspot continued to get worse and now there was slight play in the steering wheel BEFORE the steering shaft. This was determined by holding the intermediate shaft while softly rocking the steering wheel. The fix was removing the plastic piece directly behind the steering wheel. This is the same piece that your hazard light button is located on. It’s all pop fit and takes some times to get apart without breaking any plastic pieces. When you get this removed you will be able to see a brass colored collar over a silver shaft. When you turn the steering wheel you will see all of this rotate. This collar is what holds tension on the steering wheel tilt. While you rotate you will see to torx type set screws. I tightened both over two turns apiece, this removed the slack in the steering wheel but made tilting it very forced. I backed both off ½ turn and everything worked perfect.
The dead spot, no-steer, and hiss fix were the result of two choices. First I got under my truck with the front end lifted off the ground, placed by back against one tire while pushing the other tire into a “turn” with my foot. I could literally see my steering linkage twist. Try this, youll be shocked. I ordered a PPE pitman/idler arm brace kit (230ish). While waiting on the kit to arrive I took my truck to the dealership to complain about the gear that they had sold me that was no good. After hours of haggling and two days in the shop they determined that the gear was bad and they replaced it (while I paid shoptime). When I picked the truck up, I almost decided to burn the dealership down. I made a right turn out of the lot and almost went in the ditch. The deadspot was all on the right side of the steering gear and NO return when turning left. Long story short the dealership claimed aftermarket causes and we parted ways. After several hours of forum searching I decided to call red-head steering gears. Gear was 235 plus core and shipping, way better than GM crap at 600. Gear showed up in two days. Install was almost the same as the pitman and idler install earlier. While I installed the gear I also added the PPE kit.
After install I made a 700 mile round trip and I have to say it was the best my truck has ever driven. The hiss was gone, this seemed to be the result of poor fluid return from gear #2. The deadspot was gone, result of poorly rebuilt gears and worn steering components. And finally the low end grunt was gone, this is probably due to the replacement of all of the above but the benefit of the new gear was undeniable.
I know this thread was long, but I thought I might be able to help others like me who are tired of chasing ghosts in their front end.
I will begin this fix with a description of the issues before the fix.
The first thing I did was get into a 285/70R17. The width of the 33 12.50s seemed to be putting a strain on the truck.
On dirt roads I was getting an annoying rattle beneath the steering wheel as well as a really loud bang when the truck was rebounding. I determined the bang was from the PO turning the bars up to far and the shocks topping out while the upper control arms were hitting the bumpstop. This was resolved by the purchase of a set of Cognito UCAs and 2in over shocks and setting the gap at .75 in between the framestop and uca. After some drama and non alignment at the first shop I went to another and had it aligned to cognito specs.
The rattle remained. After forum searching I decided to replace the intermediate steering shaft. Purchased at the stealership.
Install was straightforward. TIE THE STEERING WHEEL DOWN FIRST. When you disconnect this shaft, the steering wheel can turn all the way around and eventually strip your clockspring, which is expensive and can deploy your airbags. There is a bolt at the firewall on the steering shaft, undo this and retain. Pop the hood and locate the steering shaft. Its just under the intercooler pipe. There is a bolt midway on the shaft, undo this and retain. The intermediate shaft can then be separated from the lower shaft as well as the upper shaft and then pulled through the cab. Install is the reverse process. This cured the rattle.
The next problem that occurred was a noticeable dead spot in my steering. This resulted in checking the tie rods, pitman, idler, and lower ball joints. The easiest way to do this is to get under the truck and have a buddy turn the steering wheel while you watch the components. Please do not put your hands anywhere they will get pinched. As your friend cycles the steering watch for parts that either do not move or hesitate before they move. MY components all had wear resulting in a complete overhaul. There are threads detailing front end component replacement, but in brief the tie rods were easy with a tie rod separator or pickle fork. My lower ball joints went to the shop. The pitman and idler arms required loosening from the frame and then use a pitman arm remover on the pitman and a wrench/allen on the idler. Everything reinstalls in reverse with no tricks. Truck was aligned again.
Small deadspot remained, followed by lack of steering power. At low speeds there didnt seem to be enough power to make even a quarter of a turn with the steering wheel. After forum searching, I decided on a hydroboost flush to check the fluid in the system. The thread for hydroboost flush is in this section. The fluid in my current system was black, no other way to describe it. After over a gallon of PS fluid I filled the reservoir with royal purple synthetic power steering fluid. The brakes were the best increase. I almost threw myself into the steering wheel by braking how I normally had. The low end steering power was somewhat resolved but I decided what it was the tire size and nature of the truck. The deadspot remained.
After several thousand miles of driving with a deadspot I decided on a new steering gear. Out of habit with previous gas 4wd vehicles, I checked with AGR. They didn’t carry a gear for me. So, without checking the forums (first mistake), I purchased a new (rebuit) gear (over 500) from the dealership. I installed the gear (Again, tie your steering wheel down), but the problem was only slightly better and the deadspot had rotated about 10 degrees on the steering wheel. The dealership told me it was the lower steering shaft , which had some merit if the u-joint in the intermediate had worn. I replaced the lower shaft (which would have been easier with the gear out of the way) and it resolved nothing. No change, not worth it. I ran this gear for two months. The low end turning power was still a problem and the road wander was excessive.
I was now constantly paying attention to how the truck steered, braked, and responded to stress. I was always flushing my hyrdoboost system when the steering or brakes seemed to weak. I began to notice that the fluid was deteriorating very quickly. One night, I was driving home with my wife. Normal driving for about 50 miles. When we started to make a left turn across traffic, The brake pedal went to the floor and the brakes locked up. I floored it and got clear of the road before the oncoming cars got to us but it was still a terrifying experience, especially for my wife. I decided that the hydroboost system had either had a grain of dirt catch or it was on the way out. I picked up a new HB system at the dealership the next day (about 213 I think). Install was disconnecting the power steering lines, the four nuts inside the cab, and the brake pedal clasp. Very simple when you consider the importance of the system. Topped the fluid level off and testdrove. The brakes were working perfectly, and I couldn’t get it to repeat the failure.
A few weeks later I noticed there was a significant hiss in about the same location as the hydroboost system while turning. I began to think that the low end crap steering and the hiss were the result of a weak power steering pump. I replaced this pump (around 200) to no avail. Still had a hiss and no-steer and deadspot. The pump replacement wasn’t difficult but the pulley removal and reinstall required a trip to Napa to borrow their tools.
The deadspot continued to get worse and now there was slight play in the steering wheel BEFORE the steering shaft. This was determined by holding the intermediate shaft while softly rocking the steering wheel. The fix was removing the plastic piece directly behind the steering wheel. This is the same piece that your hazard light button is located on. It’s all pop fit and takes some times to get apart without breaking any plastic pieces. When you get this removed you will be able to see a brass colored collar over a silver shaft. When you turn the steering wheel you will see all of this rotate. This collar is what holds tension on the steering wheel tilt. While you rotate you will see to torx type set screws. I tightened both over two turns apiece, this removed the slack in the steering wheel but made tilting it very forced. I backed both off ½ turn and everything worked perfect.
The dead spot, no-steer, and hiss fix were the result of two choices. First I got under my truck with the front end lifted off the ground, placed by back against one tire while pushing the other tire into a “turn” with my foot. I could literally see my steering linkage twist. Try this, youll be shocked. I ordered a PPE pitman/idler arm brace kit (230ish). While waiting on the kit to arrive I took my truck to the dealership to complain about the gear that they had sold me that was no good. After hours of haggling and two days in the shop they determined that the gear was bad and they replaced it (while I paid shoptime). When I picked the truck up, I almost decided to burn the dealership down. I made a right turn out of the lot and almost went in the ditch. The deadspot was all on the right side of the steering gear and NO return when turning left. Long story short the dealership claimed aftermarket causes and we parted ways. After several hours of forum searching I decided to call red-head steering gears. Gear was 235 plus core and shipping, way better than GM crap at 600. Gear showed up in two days. Install was almost the same as the pitman and idler install earlier. While I installed the gear I also added the PPE kit.
After install I made a 700 mile round trip and I have to say it was the best my truck has ever driven. The hiss was gone, this seemed to be the result of poor fluid return from gear #2. The deadspot was gone, result of poorly rebuilt gears and worn steering components. And finally the low end grunt was gone, this is probably due to the replacement of all of the above but the benefit of the new gear was undeniable.
I know this thread was long, but I thought I might be able to help others like me who are tired of chasing ghosts in their front end.
