High mileage suspension/steering refresh.

[Epik]

Hello all. I don’t post here much, and I didn’t find all the answers I was looking for by searching.

My 2004 Z71 has 262k miles & I think it’s time to refresh the suspension & steering components. I bought the truck with 214k miles, & as far as I know all of the suspension & steering components are original to the truck. It’s just starting to feel loose and clunky to me, especially after installing brand new 20” BFG K02 tires. The only suspension part I’ve changed was I installed Bilstein HD shocks roughly 45-50k miles back, & I did the steering intermediate shaft a while back. I assume my Bilsteins should still be solid after 50k miles, or do you think those are already tired too?

I’ve had 3-4 different mechanics look at it, and they say besides a worn out steering box, all else looks in spec. I’ve never driven a Tahoe other than mine, and I can’t imagine this thing feeling this sloppy from the factory? My question is, what are the main components you think would cause this, or should I just replace the entire front and rear suspension/steering system? It seems to make a slight knock/clunk in the front and sometimes in the rear, it feels a tad floaty, it creaks/squeaks going over speed bumps, and I can feel some of this transmitted through the pedals and steering wheel. Despite having it aligned, the tires wear out much faster on the outside edges, and seem to wear more on the driver side of the vehicle.

Last but not least, I would like to raise the front to level out my stance, which are the best keys to get for this?

I appreciate in advance any help or info you experts can offer, and please excuse the long winded newbie post lol.

 

[Epik]

Here a Are a few pics I was able to capture while the tires were being installed today. I keep hearing that everything looks really surprisingly great underneath for such high miles, but it certainly doesn’t feel that way on the road to me. I want it to ride like as new as possible.

 

[CamReynolds]

Here a Are a few pics I was able to capture while the tires were being installed today. I keep hearing that everything looks really surprisingly great underneath for such high miles, but it certainly doesn’t feel that way on the road to me. I want it to ride like as new as possible.

View attachment 190389 View attachment 190391 View attachment 190392 View attachment 190393

dont have any advice on the steering other than check your ball joints. but make sure you get the steering all fixed before you crank up your keys

 

[Epik]

dont have any advice on the steering other than check your ball joints. but make sure you get the steering all fixed before you crank up your keys

Thanks! Yeah, I’m not altering anything until I figure out what is making these noises, creaks, knocks etc. I know most of the play is probably the steering box, but there’s gotta be more worn out at 262k than only what can be seen visually?

 

[MCAT069]

My 04 2500 has 225 (ish) k on it and I ordered inner and outer tie rod ends, upper and lower control arms, steering dampen, link kit, idler arm and bracket and pittman arm to correct the issues you state you are having. According to Amazon push notifications, the parts were delivered today.

 

[Epik]

My 04 2500 has 225 (ish) k on it and I ordered inner and outer tie rod ends, upper and lower control arms, steering dampen, link kit, idler arm and bracket and pittman arm to correct the issues you state you are having. According to Amazon push notifications, the parts were delivered today.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about. How did it feel after the install?

 

[Chubbs]

@Epik

If you search from Google you will find info for diagnosing bushing and ball joint failure, steering linkage degradation & so forth. It really requires an extra person to assist but if you do some research and get your own 2-hands on the moving parts, I'm sure you will feel better about the whole deal and get a sense of what's going on underneath your truck.

There are a lot of moving parts in the steering linkage so instead of starting at the gearbox, you want to begin @ the wheels and work your way toward the steering gear. As @MCAT069 is saying, you have inner & outer tie rods, idler arm, idler arm bracket, & pitman. Any single 1 or all of them collectively will give the driver a feeling of steering wander, lag time from driver input, steering wheel off-center & so on. The intermediate steering shafts & steering column bearing connecting the gearbox to the cabin controls are also more parts that commonly require replacement in these trucks as it makes all kinds of noises from KNOCKING going over bumps to GROANING when turning at a camplete stop. You replaced the shaft but unless it came with the bearing too, I would replace it next.

Also, if the power steering oil hasn't been replaced in a long time go ahead and do a flush through it and collect the waste. If you find the oil contaminated with debris, it's safe to assume their is a possible fault due to lack of maintenance. But if you run with the some new PSF and designated additive, the pump & gearbox may continue to operate without a hitch. There is a screw for adjusting the gearbox but do a search on that too & browse the linked forum discussions for detailed info on other's experiences before you dive head first into that.

Your orig' posting is detailed, I keep having to go back and re-read everything.
I don't like that you are having uneven tire wear after having the wheels aligned. Something in the front end is definitely $hitting the bed. The tech may be getting accurate readings on the lift but real-world driving does not reflect this. You have to jack the front of the truck up where both tires are up off of the ground. From there your helper will use a pry bar to lift/press 1 control arm at a time while you inspect the frAme & bushing interface for movement. Then again at the control arm and steering knuckle interface. Pry bar position & leverage is key to this exercise. A determination should be made on the wheel hub bearings while you are at it.

The fact that the tires have wear issues contradicts what you are being told of the steering box. I don't know where you are having the alignment performed but I use a garage that is strictly OFF-ROAD & off road accessory-related. Those guys don't jack around so you need to look for a business that is comparable. If you bought larger tires this time it will really accentuate whatever handling characteristics you have been battling. I just read where a guy had steering concerns that couldn't be diagnosed until the frame broke where the steering linkage is mounted so don't overlook anything. He was also told the steering box was at fault... $500 later and nearly killing a family of 4, the real problem was exposed.

 

[MCAT069]

I hope it feels amazing; parts arrived today.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about. How did it feel after the install?

 

[Toomanyhobbies]

I just posted about doing the ebay front end kit on my '04 with 195K miles. I had the 4600 shocks you had and went to 5100s as the old ones had done 100K miles and owed me nothing. See my post but overall I am thrilled with the $120 ebay kit.

 

[Epik]

@Epik

If you search from Google you will find info for diagnosing bushing and ball joint failure, steering linkage degradation & so forth. It really requires an extra person to assist but if you do some research and get your own 2-hands on the moving parts, I'm sure you will feel better about the whole deal and get a sense of what's going on underneath your truck.

There are a lot of moving parts in the steering linkage so instead of starting at the gearbox, you want to begin @ the wheels and work your way toward the steering gear. As @MCAT069 is saying, you have inner & outer tie rods, idler arm, idler arm bracket, & pitman. Any single 1 or all of them collectively will give the driver a feeling of steering wander, lag time from driver input, steering wheel off-center & so on. The intermediate steering shafts & steering column bearing connecting the gearbox to the cabin controls are also more parts that commonly require replacement in these trucks as it makes all kinds of noises from KNOCKING going over bumps to GROANING when turning at a camplete stop. You replaced the shaft but unless it came with the bearing too, I would replace it next.

Also, if the power steering oil hasn't been replaced in a long time go ahead and do a flush through it and collect the waste. If you find the oil contaminated with debris, it's safe to assume their is a possible fault due to lack of maintenance. But if you run with the some new PSF and designated additive, the pump & gearbox may continue to operate without a hitch. There is a screw for adjusting the gearbox but do a search on that too & browse the linked forum discussions for detailed info on other's experiences before you dive head first into that.

Your orig' posting is detailed, I keep having to go back and re-read everything.
I don't like that you are having uneven tire wear after having the wheels aligned. Something in the front end is definitely $hitting the bed. The tech may be getting accurate readings on the lift but real-world driving does not reflect this. You have to jack the front of the truck up where both tires are up off of the ground. From there your helper will use a pry bar to lift/press 1 control arm at a time while you inspect the frAme & bushing interface for movement. Then again at the control arm and steering knuckle interface. Pry bar position & leverage is key to this exercise. A determination should be made on the wheel hub bearings while you are at it.

The fact that the tires have wear issues contradicts what you are being told of the steering box. I don't know where you are having the alignment performed but I use a garage that is strictly OFF-ROAD & off road accessory-related. Those guys don't jack around so you need to look for a business that is comparable. If you bought larger tires this time it will really accentuate whatever handling characteristics you have been battling. I just read where a guy had steering concerns that couldn't be diagnosed until the frame broke where the steering linkage is mounted so don't overlook anything. He was also told the steering box was at fault... $500 later and nearly killing a family of 4, the real problem was exposed.

Thanks for the detailed response. I’m aware of all the parts involved in the front steering and suspension setup, but I just wasn’t sure exactly how to diagnose what could be at fault in this situation. I will do more research and get with some of my mechanic buddies to help me out with diag. I’ve been contemplating this job probably 2 years and I’ve had the full moog front end kit (& more) in my rockauto cart for a long time, just haven’t pulled the trigger because I wasn’t sure if I needed everything.

As far as the shaft, I think it had the bearing (it was a GM replacement part) but it’s been a while and I can’t remember. I do remember when I replaced it, the bad clunk and knocking noise it was making went away. The current knocking feels & sounds like something else. I had the power steering fluid flushed and changed when I bought the truck at 214k miles. I read about the adjustable screw on the steering box, but I heard that’s a temp fix. I would rather buy a new box.

The alignment was done at Les Schwab a couple years ago when I installed a full set of 20” oem later model Sierra wheels, with stock 275/55/20 Goodyear Wrangler SRA tires. These tires lasted me around 35k miles or so, but the outer edges definitely had less tread then the middle and inner edges. I even had them check all my suspension parts at the time of the alignment, and then again about 7 months ago, and of course they said all was good to go.

Thanks again, sounds like I have some work and research to do before I pull the trigger. I need to get on this ASAP, because not only am I tired of the ride quality, but I don’t want to ruin my expensive brand new tires.