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Streering box replacement???

1K views 4 replies 0 participants last post by  SixSpeedtobe 
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#1 ·
Anyone have any quick notes to pass along before I replace my steering box? I never replaced one before but it looks straight forward. TIA

Murray
 
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#2 ·
I hate to say it 'cause I know you're not an abuser of asking but, do a search. Up to two months ago there has been discussion of different boxes and ratios and before that there was a small "group" of guys that swapped or replaced their. You shouldn't have to go back very far.
 
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#3 ·
I was one of those guys. The job's pretty straightforward. This is also a good time to replace your power steering hoses if you think they might need it. I do have two suggestions. Don't even try this without a good pitman arm puller. When I did mine I had no clue how !@#%ing hard it was going to be to get that thing off and I got nowhere with the separator that I was trying to use, which was kind of like a big balljoint or tierod separator. I didn't have enough room to swing a hammer very effectively, but the puller worked like a charm. Note that your mileage may vary, as other guys have broken pullers and have had to resort to heat to get the arm off. Also, if you have access to a lift, that would make a difference here. The other suggestion is, when you bleed the power steering have the front wheels off. On my car, at least, with the wheels on the steering wheel won't turn completely lock to lock and I couldn't bleed the system completely, which resulted in some groaning from the pump. HTH
 
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#4 ·
Funny you should mention this, I just swapped mine LAST NIGHT.

Here's a rundown:

I selected my box from THIS chart. The chart shows different boxes, all 12.7:1 ratio with the different steering stops and resistance in in-lbs.
I selected the '96 9C1 box from Autozone $177.99 Part# 6566

Jack the car up and place jackstands on the frame rails behind the rear wheels. Leave the floor jack under the front crossmember holding a little weight for safety. Pickle fork the pitman arm off the drag link. Unbolt the pitman arm from the steering box (I used a 1-5/16 socket, it's probably really 33mm) use a pitman arm puller to remove the pitman arm. (the pitman arm can go on ONLY 4 ways. It's pretty obvious when doing it, the arm is supposed to point to the rear of the car with the box in the middle of it's travel). Unbolt the rag joint (it's a 7/16 bolt, it's easier to pull the shaft off if you take the bolt all the way out. You dont HAVE to unbolt the upper end of the shaft, but you certainly can (it's 15mm I believe). (on my '92) there is a stud that holds the ABS module down to the top of the steering box, I believe the nut for that stud was 13mm. Loosen and remove the hoses (both are 18mm). You'll need a second set of hands to hold onto the box while you unbolt the 3 5/8" bolts that hold the box on. I didn't even remove the tire for this. The box WILL fit past the sway bar, but it's tight.

Intstallation is just the opposite. Remember to move the ABS stud onto the new box, mine didn't come with one. I loosened them, but left the little plugs in the fitting holes to keep crap out until I was ready to hook the hoses back up. Bolt the box back to the frame, attach the pitman arm, hoses and steering shaft. Make sure the box is in the center of it's travel, I think aligning it is pretty much idiot-proof, but better safe than sorry.

With the car still up in the air, fill the PS reservoir with fluid up to the FULL COLD line on the dipstick and run the wheel lock-to-lock about 20 times. Recheck the fluid level, start the engine and do it again. and again and again and again until the box has a smooth feel, the pump doesn't make any noise, and until the level on the dipstick stops dropping.

That's it, if you have any questions, feel free to email me: dvander@go-concepts.com
 
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#5 ·
Thanks for the advice. I am not changing ratios only swapping out another Impala box for mine so I didn't think a search was needed. I did follow that thread fo a while anyway. I had forgotten about taking the weight off of the tires when bleeding the system.

One more quick question:

How should the box "feel" when moving the pitman arm by hand? Should it have a slight catch in the center or should it move through the motion from stop to stop smoothly bit not losely?


Murray
 
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