Steering Component Trouble Shooting

[traben27]

I've been having some problems with my steering being very loose. I noticed I had a bent idler arm with very worn out bushings so I replaced that a few weeks ago. It seemed to help a little, but not enough. Today I jacked up the front and pushed on the tire at 12 and 6 and got no movement. When I pushed at 9 and 3, it went back and forth a lot. Just confirming, this means it's either idler arm (not in my case), pitman arm, or tie rods correct?

-Casey-

[Robinhood4x4]

I think the only thing you can do is take a look at where the movement is coming from. It could be all of the above. Did you have the center link replaced during the recall?

[traben27]

I think the only thing you can do is take a look at where the movement is coming from. It could be all of the above. Did you have the center link replaced during the recall?


Yep I sure did. I also got the outer tie rod ends done a few months ago and checked the bearings a month ago when I first noticed the problem. I guess that really narrows it down to inner tie rod ends, pitman arm...all I can really think of. I'll probably just end up replacing/rebuilding them all just because I'm not sure the last time any of them were worked on at all.

-Casey-

[all_terrain17]

I had the same play and narrowed it down to the wheel bearings.

Repacked, adjusted - all was better. The end.

[RustBucket]

balljoints maybe? maybe not?

[traben27]

balljoints maybe? maybe not?


I'm pretty sure thats not it, I'm pretty sure it's the pitman arm now...it looks like the seal's all worn out and probably the culprit. I'm assuming it can be rebuilt similar to the idler arm?

[AxleIke]

balljoints maybe? maybe not?


I'm pretty sure thats not it, I'm pretty sure it's the pitman arm now...it looks like the seal's all worn out and probably the culprit. I'm assuming it can be rebuilt similar to the idler arm?


Nope.

Gotta buy a new one. Good luck, most places list it for huge money. Let us know if you find one cheap.

[traben27]

Crap...If I find a cheap one (doubt it) I'll be sure and let you know. Maybe I'll have to take a better look and it'll magically be something much simpler...:)

Edit: Found one on summit for 55 bucks, that doesn't seem right though. Do I recall something being very cheap about Moog or am I just imagining it?

-Casey

[traben27]

Problem Found: Pitman arm is pretty much useless. Idler arm (3 weeks old) now has play as well. Piece of crap one from autozone with lifetime warranty.

Question 1:
Here's what I'm thinking, is there anyway I could basically get my money back from this recent purchase? I'm assuming the warranty works by buying a new one and then getting a complete refund for the worn one. So if I bought a better quality one from somewhere (insert suggestions for this place here) and put that on, could I go buy a new one, then later bring in the old one, get my refund and then end up taking the new one back in the original packaging to a different store and get all of the money back or am I out the 70 bucks i spent?

Question 2:
I still cannot find a pitman arm for a 4wd 4runner, they all say 2wd. Where exactly can I find a good quality one besides the dealership?

I'm on my last nerve with this steering crap, something's gotta be done soon.

By the way, I'm in the process of getting my idler arm brace.

[traben27]

Picked up a Moog pitman arm today, but I'm a little confused on the installation. Does anyone know of a good writeup on the install?

Edit: Nevermind I got it.

[traben27]

I was going through and updating all of the threads I had started just to let you know what I ended up doing and what worked and figured I might as well do this one even though I'm already the last 3 posts. :hillbill:

I installed the new pitman arm and along with the new idler I had installed a few weeks prior, the steering is much better than before. After getting an alignment, everything looks to be in pretty good shape. Thanks for the help.

[all_terrain17]

Just out of curiosity, how exactly did your pitman arm fail?

[traben27]

It's not that it failed, it just had a lot of play in it. I'm thinking it had to do with the fact that my idler had been so messed up that it put a lot of stress on the pitman arm and made it wear out quickly (although I have no idea how long it had been on there in the first place).

To be honest, I think it all has to do with the lift on the front end and the strain its caused. My next vehicle will be similar to what axleike and tc on YT have done. No lift, but lots of armor, lockers, and dual cases. That seems to be the way to go on the early IFS rig.

[all_terrain17]

When you say it had a lot of play, I guess you're talking about where it connects to the centerlink? Did the hole for the centerlink just get wallowed out or something over time?

Sorry for the interrogation; just curious.

[traben27]

When you say it had a lot of play, I guess you're talking about where it connects to the centerlink? Did the hole for the centerlink just get wallowed out or something over time?


That's basically right. The boot on the end of th pitman arm at the centerlink was all smashed and leaking all over the place. Once I replaced it the steering was much more responsive.

[traben27]

One more update: The steering tightened up a lot after replacing both the idler and pitman, but I still noticed a lot of play. I ended up tightening the adjustment nut on top of the steering box and now the steering is just how I like it.

Instructions for adjusting the nut can be found at http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-buchanan/93fsm/steering.html in the "on-vehicle inspection" section.

Edit: Make sure that you tighten the nut down back all the way or else you'll end up with a fairly large leak of fluid. I couldn't figure out why I had such a large leak all of a sudden, but when I checked the nut I could see fluid coming out all around it. It turns out I hadn't tightened it down enough.