[TravisHeim]

To start off, I only have a haynes manual so I was trying to follow these directions:

Raise front end of vehicle.
Disconnect pressure and return line and drain power steering fluid.
Mark steering gear shaft and pitman arm for proper orientation.
Remove pitman arm nut and washer, use two-jaw puller to remove pitman arm.
Mark intermediate shaft and steering gear box shaft for proper orientation.
Remove lower pinch bolt.
Remove the three mounting bolts and remove steering gear box.

Now the problems I had trying to follow these steps. First of all, I could not find any way to disconnect the pressure or return lines without removing the steering gear box first, short of removing my grill and radiator. So I proceeded to remove the pitman arm nut, but when I pulled on the torque wrench to loosen the nut, it turned the wheels to the left. The haynes manual listed something about keeping the wheels strait. I set the wheels back strait, and lowered the vehicle back to the ground. The pitman arm, nut, and washer all came off easily without turning the steering this time.

Next, I removed what I could best guess as the lower pinch bolt on the intermediate shaft. The pictures in the haynes manual suck so I'm not sure if it was the right bolt. There is a sleeve that goes over the steering gear box input shaft, with what can be best described as a clamp with a bolt that is perpendicular to the input shaft. Is this the lower pinch bolt, or did I remove the wrong bolt?

Next I removed the three mounting bolts and lowered the gear box a few inches and placed it on a jack stand. When I tried to remove the pressure and return lines, the fitting would only turn while also turning the entire line and it ripped the line from the fitting. After destroying both the pressure and return line, I tried to pull the steering gear box off the intermediate shaft and this is where I am currently stuck. No matter how hard I pull on the box, the intermediate shaft will not slip off. This is what is leading me to believe I removed the wrong bolt, and did not take off the lower pinch bolt as I described in the previous paragraph.

Did lowering the box before remove the pressure and return line cause the fitting to bind up like that and rip the lines from the fitting, or can that be attributed to having been through 13 NY salty winter seasons? Is anyone able to scan the page from a FSM that would show the lower pinch bolt better? Also I'm not entirely clear how the steering will be lined up when I put the new box back in. How do I ensure the steering wheel is centered with the wheels and gear box? I am currently waiting on a new pressure line to be delivered, but everyone I call says the return line is just a rubber hose. No one seems to know anything about the metal fitting and line that goes into the box and the return line rubber hose goes over. Does anyone know the name of this part?

[Heep]

I just replaced my steering box. I didnt have any trouble getting to my lines because I have a 1" BL, so I don't know what to tell you about the lines. Take the bolt out of the input shaft and the gear box should slide off. I used a write-up from Stu's.... http://www.stu-offroad.com/steering/gearbox/gearbox-1.htm

[Faramir66103]

I also had a terrible time with my steering box replacement. To top it off, the new one was faulty, so I had do it all again with a different unit.

The Haynes manual, while better than the Chilton isn't all that great. Do whatever you can to find an FSM.

Then check out Stu's site. It's great. Another great resource is 4x4xplorer.com.

I too found that I had to lower the steering box to access the fluid lines. I'd bet the it was the 13 NY winters more than it being lowered that caused the failures.

I don't know what this "lower pinch bolt is" though I'd guess it's the bolt that pinches the collar that joins the steering shaft to the steering box input shaft. On Stu's site it's called the "steering column coupler". I had to completely remove that bolt from the collar to get the steering box off. It rides in a little groove in the steering box input shaft, so even loose, the two shafts won't separate. Even with this bolt removed, it took some substantial pull to get the steering box to come off the steering column. I was laying under the Jeep and pretty much lifting my entire body by the steering box. Some PB Blaster might help clean out any grime and break up any rust from that joint. Apply liberally, take a 5, and try again. Repeat if necessary.

I don't think the pitman arm, and steering column shafts can be misaligned because they are keyed. So hopefully that's a relief.

When you go to put the new one in place, I'd apply some grease to both the steering column shaft joint and the pitman arm shaft to make assembly easier. Getting those shafts to line up wasn't that tough, but getting the steering colunm to seat properly was a beast.

In the end, we had to place the steering box on a jack stand and use my longest screwdriver and hammer to gently tap the steering column fully into place from above. We tried everything else we could think of, and this was a last resort. It did help to lift the overflow bottle out of it's bracket to get it out of the way to gain better access from the top.

I also had no means of properly torquing the fluid lines and the first time we fired it up, we sprayed power steering fluid everywhere, so make sure they are tight and watch them closely when you first fire it up. If they leak, shut it down and tighten them a bit more.

Once it's in place and the steering linkages are all reconnected, bleed the system as Stu describes and you should be good to go.



HTH,
Adam

[bg7m]

I am going to attemp to replace the steering gear box on my 94 Grand Cherokee Laredo this weekend. I have a Haynes book and it states to mark the input and output shafts before removing the gear box. My question is, if I am using a replacement, what is the need to mark the old one? Is it possible to install the new one wrong, since there seems to be only one way the shafts will go on? Thanks

[PeteYJTJ]

The important thing to note is to be sure the steering wheel is centered, and the steering box is centered, when you remove the box. When you remove the box, don't turn the wheel at all!

Then, be sure the new steering box is centered to match the steering wheel. If you lose the alignment between the box and steering wheel, you can snap the clockspring in the steering wheel that goes to your airbag, and steering wheel mounted controls for cruise control, if you have it.

Pete

[bg7m]

Thank you for your quick response. So if I index the input shaft to match the old one, with the wheels straight, that should work?

[Dogman]

Remove the bolt all the way. It's the bolt nearest the steering box. I unbolted mine before removing the steering lines, so I would guess the NY winters took their toll.

As for the steering wheel. Lock it in place. The pitman arm shaft and the input shaft are both indexed so the mating pieces will only go on one way.

[Unlimited04]

also keep in mind Haynes & Chilton manuals are worthless. get a Factory Service Manual.