Steering Box Seal Kit.

[Andres]

My '06 steering box started to leak some time ago, early summer, probably 15K miles ago. Just a couple drips per night from the lower seal at the pitman arm.



I figured it was a $10 seal, perhaps a seal, dustboot, and snap ring. I called the dealer and the "seal kits" were on national backorder. Frankly the price was high and I'm not sure that guy in parts wasn't either.



The leak wasn't bad, but since it was the middle of my toy hauling vacation season, I decided to buy a backup gearbox from NAPA and toss it in my toolbox. I've replaced gearboxes on the trails before and the only thing worse is being out of town waiting for one at the nearest dealership.



Well the leak stopped after about a month.



We have a PS box rebuilder in town, Power Steering Specialists (Westerville, OH), who sold me a complete seal kit, Freudenberg #8045. It should retail for around $35.



Now I haven't installed it yet, I only need a few parts of it's 25 pcs. I'll post the actual seal part#'s for the sector shaft fix after I replace mine in the coming weeks.



I can't vouch for the kit yet, but it's stamped "Made in USA", and it looks like it will fix a somewhat common problem for a fair price.

 

[JCasper]

Nice, mine is leaking like crazy right now



I however am thinking about having the spare one I have rebuilt and swapping it in since there is 90K on it with 35" tires most of that time.

 

[Udaloy]

It's too bad there wasn't a follow-up on how tough or easy this job was. I have a friend with a leaky pump, and we're going to tackle it tonight.

 

[SShafranko]

This has nothing to do with this thread but i figured i would ask since you seem knowlidgeable with steering issues. My truck has 150,000 miles and i have a lot of play in my steering. I think its time to replace the box and maybe install the stabilizer as well. Where is the best place to buy a new box and how much will it cost me. Thank you

 

[GSchlegel]

Not sure this will help, I have a 96 4x2. My loose stearing was a worn pitman arm. Have you checked that yet?

 

[SShafranko]

Yes i just had an aligment done and they said it was OK. Replaced the tie rods and track bar bushings.