2010 ram 3500 steering upgrade?
Wondering if there are any upgrades I could do to get a tighter steering feel and a more "on center" driving. Truck has 130k and is due for some ball joints which should help but anything else out th...
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First, before replacing ball joints, how do you know they are in need of replacement? I only say this because I believe a good deal of the replacements sold are due to being "out of spec" for play, but in reality are perfectly serviceable and not causing any other issues.
IE, if camber is not bad and truck doesn't eat tires, ball joints can be "out of spec" and be just fine. And they would have to be pretty bad to make is drive wiggly.
What are your steering specs (from an alignment)?
Caster of less than approx +4.5 deg will contribute to "wandering" steering".
Any toe out at all will have a similar feel, as will play in the steering box.
Yes there are products like the steering box brace that helps tighten up the paly in the sector shaft (bearings/bushings?). Moreso its to make the steering box last longer, but supposed to help it feel tighter as well.
Other causes, any play in the rod ends, pittman or drag link ends?
Is the steering stabilizer still charged?
If all those things are tight, and alignment is good, then it likely is a worn steering box. Not uncommon on these trucks. A good private shop could check and adjust the lash (likely) to tighten up the steering box and gain some more miles out of it.
I'm not smart enough about steering boxes, but know that adjusting the lash may effect other things like how smooth or how well it returns to center and it's not a "permanent fix."
I'd start with the easy stuff, check for any paly in the steering components. 2 person test
1 turning wheel, 1 inspecting each point for play.
If the steering shaft and sector shaft (in and out of the steering box don't have excessive play, then check the other wear areas (rods/pittman/draglink).
If none of those have noticeable play, then alignment check.
Issue is, 130k miles, could be just a smidge of several things and do you want to replace several components to have a bit better steering feel?
IE, if camber is not bad and truck doesn't eat tires, ball joints can be "out of spec" and be just fine. And they would have to be pretty bad to make is drive wiggly.
What are your steering specs (from an alignment)?
Caster of less than approx +4.5 deg will contribute to "wandering" steering".
Any toe out at all will have a similar feel, as will play in the steering box.
Yes there are products like the steering box brace that helps tighten up the paly in the sector shaft (bearings/bushings?). Moreso its to make the steering box last longer, but supposed to help it feel tighter as well.
Other causes, any play in the rod ends, pittman or drag link ends?
Is the steering stabilizer still charged?
If all those things are tight, and alignment is good, then it likely is a worn steering box. Not uncommon on these trucks. A good private shop could check and adjust the lash (likely) to tighten up the steering box and gain some more miles out of it.
I'm not smart enough about steering boxes, but know that adjusting the lash may effect other things like how smooth or how well it returns to center and it's not a "permanent fix."
I'd start with the easy stuff, check for any paly in the steering components. 2 person test
1 turning wheel, 1 inspecting each point for play.
If the steering shaft and sector shaft (in and out of the steering box don't have excessive play, then check the other wear areas (rods/pittman/draglink).
If none of those have noticeable play, then alignment check.
Issue is, 130k miles, could be just a smidge of several things and do you want to replace several components to have a bit better steering feel?
