I' ve found a leak from my p/s box. It's leaking from the lower pitman shaft seal. I have seen seal kits available online. Has anyone changed this seal before? Can I change it by just removing the pitman arm while the whole box is still in the truck? It looks like its possible , but I know from experience that when it looks easy, it usually becomes a headache. Any advice?

 

My buddy removed his whole gearbox in his 01 ram, idk what year u have but buy the whole gearbox seal kit and you can do it yourself. It's not that hard to do as long as u have a good assortment of screwdrivers and sockets. He did his in about 2 hours.

 

I've got a 99 Durango, was hoping to avoid messing with the input shaft. I watched a YouTube of some guy removing just the seal from a 90 Cherokee, but it looked like quite a Hassle. I'll get the kit and go from there I guess.

 

Getting ready to do mine also, and my aunts shortly after.. Seems these Jobs are common?

 

I have not done the (output shaft, the one for the pitman arm) seal on anything but a 95 Towncar. The service manual calls for some gee wiz bang tool to remove the seal. Really cost prohibitive, if you can get it? The tool is really not necessary. Remove the pitman arm. There should be a c clip holding the seal in place. Remove it and loosely reconnect the pitman arm. Start it up, make sure you still have some power steering fluid in the resevoir, and turn the wheel left and right until it blows the seal out. Quite messy but if you place a plastic kitchen bag around it you'll have less of a mess. You'll have to replace the seal and install it just far enough to put the c clip in the groove. I used a piece PVC pipe to drive it up. You may want to check the output shaft for a groove where the seal sits. If it is a deep groove it will eventually leak again. I could not get my fingers up far enough to see if there was a groove. You really need to make sure the c clip is in its groove!!!! Ask me how I know!!!! Hope this helps!

 

Yep, it can be done as stated.

However I have heard you can pull out the seal by just using a hook pick hand tool, but then again I heard that and it does make sense.

 

I too a look underneath it today. It looks impossible to remove the pitman arm without removing the steering box. It's sort of blocked by the front crossmember, and that cross member is welded in. The instructions with the kit say I can leave the steering box mounted up, but the dodge service manual says I can't remove the pitman without removing the steering box. There's no room to use a pitman arm removal tool, and even if I pry it off, it's blocked and at a bad angle to properly install the new seal.

 

Mine had more than enough room to use the tool, only, my tool was snapped in half, so I had to take the box off with the pitman arm still attached.. In the process of torching the stupid thing off, but I think my box is DONE. Not sure yet.. From what I have heard though, you CAN do it in the truck, but there is more room outside, and its not hard to get it out.. just disconnect the hoses, three bolts on the frame, your steering linkage, (?) and I took the bolt off the (thing) that connects the pitman arm on the other side.. Sorry, This is my first anything with steering, so My terms are crap.. (Im Learning!)