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Car Forum / Dodge / Dodge Trucks / March 2006idler arms 79 B100
The idler arms on the van are making it hard to steer. Pretty stiff. These are "permanently lubricated" so they say. Can I drill and tap for 4 grease fittings and expect that to work? New ones would cost about $200.00 for the parts alone from a supplier on the web but I havent gotten a price from Weaver yet or any other parts house. I can still steer the van ok and its not dangerous but I want to catch this before I put too much load on the steering box. Thanks. Paul in Wi. Usually they get loose. You should be able to find them for $50-60 each. If you van has a lot of miles it probably also needs a new drag link. Stock steering box will last a long time, after about 60K miles they start to get loose > Usually they get loose. You should be able to find them for $50-60 each. > If > you van has a lot of miles it probably also needs a new drag link. > Stock steering box will last a long time, after about 60K miles they start > to get loose Thanks for the info Lynn. I figured as much that theyd get loose. The van has about 300k miles on it so I guess its time to replace them. In fact theyre on order right now and thetre going in on Monday. I had to do this quickley as I need the truck for work. The steering box I adjusted last year and it fine. Very little play. Bud C has helped me with this van several times when the warped manifold was driving me nuts. It had a very slight leak. I replaced it and the old slant 6 has been running great. Thanks to all on this great board. Where else can you go for the quality of advice you get here. Paul in Wi. Hi Bud. The van is a zoomin. So far.............. Hey, Paul!!! I wondered how ya was doing. Glad to hear the Leaning Tower of Power is doing well for you. Are you sure your problem is in the idler arms? If you got the adjustment wrong on the steering box it'll feel just like too tight idler arms. IIRC, that's a Saginaw (GM) box. Drop the link loose from the pitman arm and try moving the steering ( wheels off the ground of course) by hand If it moves pretty easily then the problem is in the steering unit. You may want to do some checking as there may be a variable ratio unit available you can interchange you old unit for like you can do on the pickups. I did that on my D-150 and it made a big improvement, especially when parallel parking. Also check your frame rail around the gearbox for cracking as it cause the van to wander a heck of a lot and / or cause binding.  SignatureBudd Cochran >> Usually they get loose. You should be able to find them for $50-60 each. >> If [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > Hi Bud. The van is a zoomin. So far.............. > Hey, Paul!!! > [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > Also check your frame rail around the gearbox for cracking as it cause the > van to wander a heck of a lot and / or cause binding. Hi Budd. Were doing just great and the old beast is still plying the corn country county roads. But the steering was getting a little stiff as of last fall. I do all the work on the van but Im not set up for the bigger items. Ive never done front end work so I took it to a local guy. We disconnected the box from the steering gear and found that the idler arms are what is causing the problem. The box is fine. Ill check the frame at the box for cracking. Good tip. Ill keep as eye on that one. So I never did drive the van out to Arizona. I was going to stop by and buy us a pizza but things got too busy for me. I also dont think I trust that the van would be as dependable anymore. Its still a great work truck but if I get 2 or 4 more years out of it, Ill consider myself ahead of the game. I still owe you that Pizza. Thanks, Paul. >> Hey, Paul!!! >> [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > the idler arms > are what is causing the problem. The box is fine. Ok, good. I had a friend that adjusted his steering box and got it a bit tight. Three front end shops said he needed a complete rebuild but said the box was fine. > Ill check the frame at the box for cracking. Good tip. Ill keep as eye on > that one. The trucks were notorious for this problem, but the vans put the battery right above the steering components and spilled acid can get onto everything so it's still a good thing to check. > So I never did drive the van out to Arizona. I was going to stop by > and buy us a [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > of it, Ill consider myself ahead of the game. I still owe you that > Pizza. Thanks, Paul. <LOL> 30 years ago I was told to not drive a 65 Dart from Indiana to Colorado. It took 16 quarts of oil thru the /6 and a bunch of ridicule because it was super ugly, to get there, but it made it and I drove that engine for another 20 years. The Dart, on the other hand had suffered too much at the hands of Indiana road salt and an upper control arm rusted in two. Them old Mopars will amaze ya at times. Budd > The trucks were notorious for this problem, but the vans put the battery > right above the steering components and spilled acid can get onto > everything so it's still a good thing to check. No acid leaking up front. Pretty clean. > <LOL> 30 years ago I was told to not drive a 65 Dart from Indiana to > Colorado. It took 16 quarts of oil thru the /6 and a bunch of ridicule > because it was super ugly, to get there, but it made it and I drove that > engine for another 20 years. The Dart, on the other hand had suffered too > much at the hands of Indiana road salt and an upper control arm rusted in > two. Id love to drive that old bucket out there and on down to Ut, Ar, and and up Mt. and back here. Nose to the grindstone here. Everything is going into a piece of ground right now. Busy busy bloody nuckles. Hope to buy a place in the sticks next year. 16 quarts of oil? Thats about 75 miles per quart isnt it? Maybe somebody forgot about putting in the pan gasket. Hopefully the salt will leave it alone for a few more years. I spray on 2 coats of boiled linseed oil every two years. Seems to help. That plus a half gallon of fiberglass and no bondo. Brush on the flat black on the lower 12 inches and the tank is back on the road. I think Ill be checking back into this newsgroup. Paul in Wi. Make sure you used the facory cone washers on that exhaust manifold. they are designed for heat expansion other wise the manifold may crack Thank you for the help, but we got that fixed quite some time back and with the proper washers. Btw, it's the level of torque applied to the nuts that allow for heat expansion, not the washer design. SignatureBudd Cochran John 3:16-17, Ephesians 2:8-9 "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other." (John Adams) > Make sure you used the facory cone washers on that exhaust manifold. they > are designed for heat expansion other wise the manifold may crack > Thank you for the help, but we got that fixed quite some time back and with > the proper washers. > > Btw, it's the level of torque applied to the nuts that allow for heat > expansion, not the washer design. LOL, are you sure about that??? SignatureIf at first you don't succeed, you're not cut out for skydiving It bothers me to see you going from thread to thread to try and start an argument, Tom. But I'm glad to say you failed again. SignatureBudd Cochran John 3:16-17, Ephesians 2:8-9 "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other." (John Adams) >> Thank you for the help, but we got that fixed quite some time back and > with [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > LOL, are you sure about that??? It is not an argument or even an attempt to start one. Dodge used those washers for a reason, do you know what it is? SignatureIf at first you don't succeed, you're not cut out for skydiving > It bothers me to see you going from thread to thread to try and start an > argument, Tom. [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > *** Free account sponsored by SecureIX.com *** > *** Encrypt your Internet usage with a free VPN account from http://www.SecureIX.com *** |
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