I just bought a 1996 tahoe 4wd. Its going to be my drive it til it won't drive no more car. I am wondering if the slop can be adjusted out of my steering or should I be looking at part replacement? The tahoe has 304,000 miles so nothing is going to surprise me. The steering wheel goes roughly 45 degrees each way from center before it starts to work. Is this common or do I have worn parts?
Sloppy Steering
- Thread starter tonykring
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I agree with lesterl, have all of those components checked out. My guess would be that they are originals, or if not they would be do for replacement again. Those components are more likely causes for the what I would call the "Drastic" play in your steering. Replacing those worn components whould tighten things up, but I would also check out the steering gear box. Hope this helps
clkelley
Moderator
If there is THAT much play, although the parts mentioned can help, I would have to bet the steering gear box is bad altogether. I have JUST replaced one on a Dodge Cummins, Chevy Duramax and many others in the past. With the Duramax, I went ALL the way through the steering because the parts mentioned above WERE bad, but once fixed it still had a lot of play in the wheel, to the the of about 4-6 inches of play, I replaced the steering gear box and that fixed the issue. It now has zero play.
That being said, there is also a way to adjust the steering gear box by adjusting the "Allen head" adjuster bolt on the top of the gear bow. If you adjust that by tightening it and that doesn't help then the gear box needs replaced.
That being said, there is also a way to adjust the steering gear box by adjusting the "Allen head" adjuster bolt on the top of the gear bow. If you adjust that by tightening it and that doesn't help then the gear box needs replaced.
brewcity
New Member
Have you replaced your steering sensor?
I did it on my 99 Tahoe, and made a BIG difference!
Its a $25.00 part, and about 45 minutes of work. Might want to give it a try.
I'm just not sure if your specific year has them.
I did it on my 99 Tahoe, and made a BIG difference!
Its a $25.00 part, and about 45 minutes of work. Might want to give it a try.
I'm just not sure if your specific year has them.
I disagree. Sure these parts may be worn judging from the age of the rig, but they won't remedy the steering problem described. Also if these parts are bad you would hear a thud when accelerating or decelerating abruptly.
A cheap attempt at fixing the problem would be a flush of the steering fluid, and replacement with new one, followed by proper bleeding. Turn the wheel all the way to the right, wait 30 seconds for the bubbles to pop up, then turn the wheel all the way to the left, rinse, lather, repeat, good luck
do the easy/cheap stuff first!
So hard parts that can wear out wouldnt be the problem, but old fluid flushed for new is?
Notice I DIDNT tell anyone to CHANGE anything, I said INSPECT for wear.......
Last Idler arm I had shot all to hell didnt pop, but I had to saw the steering pretty badly to get it straight down the road.....
Notice I DIDNT tell anyone to CHANGE anything, I said INSPECT for wear.......
Last Idler arm I had shot all to hell didnt pop, but I had to saw the steering pretty badly to get it straight down the road.....
Sorry I heard what I wanted to hear "ball joints, and possibly control arm bushings". Back in June of 2006 one of my upper control arms popped out of the bushing and when we raised the vehicle was dangling in the wind, the steering was not effected in any way, smooth as silk, however every time we came to an abrupt stop we hear a metal on metal thud.
So it is the pitman arm and the steering gear box combo. Anyone have any tips as I will be doing the job on saturday? I only found the posts about doing the pitman arm. I need to change the gear as well. Thank you everyone in advance!
It was much easier than I was expecting! I needed an extra set of hands and since its my exwifes truck she had the opportunity to get her hands dirty. It took 2 hours to do the whole job. I bet I could cut that in half if I had to do it again.
JohnnyD8586
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What do you mean the control arm bushing came out?
Whenever im backing up and turning the wheel, then stop and turn wheel back and take off i hear a thunk or klunk. But its only when turn wheel while backing up. Ive replaced a few parts and had my front end checked. Any help bc my tahoe is almost as bad as a grand cherokee and u have to guide it down the road
clkelley
Moderator
He meant that the bushing went bad and as a result there was play where it meets the control arm or that the ball joint popped loose from the control arm altogether. Either of these issues will usually result in a popping or thud-bumping while driving down the road whether turning or not.
The symptoms you are describing sound like a CV axle that is bad. Go under there and check the boots on the axles, if they are torn or ripped then it is possible the grease in them has slung out and then the axle failed or is on it's way to failing.
You may also check the ball joints by jacking up the front and taking a LARGE pry bar/Tank bar and pry up on the lower control arm. If there is ANY play at all in the ball joint then it needs replaced. If that is the case, go ahead and replace the upper ball joint as well. If it is a high mileage truck with bad ball joint, then I would recommend actually changing all four so that both sides are equally supported.
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