when turning the wheel from left to right at standstill ,I heard some dumping noise. With further inspection I found the union on the bottom jumping around at the joints.I just ordered one part number 55351247aa. Hopes it the right on. Is this a job I could do myself. Any advise before if I remove.
Thank in advance
Just to let you know I had 90,000 trouble-free miles so far aside from the crank position sensor

 

This one is an easy one to fix, it's a simple unbolt and replace. One thing to do before you unbolt the old one is to wrap your seatbelt around the steering wheel and latch it to prevent it from spinning. Once you pull the intermediate shaft off the clockspring may want to unwind itself.

Make sure you seat the new shaft fully and tighten up the bolts good and tight. You may find it easier to remove the inner plastic fenderwell to gain better access. If you break any of the plastic fasteners when removing them Fastenall has similar replacements that are MUCH cheaper than what you'll buy at the Dodge dealer.


Bob

 

Thanks for the quick reply bobman. Could I have someone just hold the steering wheel when I unbolt it. Also what do you mean by unwind itself and if it does what should I do

 

Yes someone could hold it, when I did mine I was alone. What the clockspring is is a small spring loaded device that sits between the steering wheel and the column and provides electrical contacts for any buttons you may have on your steering wheel as well as the horn. It has a wound spring in it (hence the name clockspring) that is set at a certain tension. If the steering wheel is left alone to rotate freely the spring can unwind. Just take your drivers seatbelt and extend it through the steering wheel, wrap it around it once, and then buckle it. Do this with the steering wheel upright and wheels straight, you're also going to want to have the keys in the ignition to allow the wheel to unlock and rotate slightly.

From underneath rotate the wheel SLIGHTLY to gain access to the bolts. You'll notice that the bolts have a hollow ground into them that locks them across the shaft. Make sure they get inserted the same way. You may have to tap on it slightly with a hammer to get the shaft free.

When putting the new one in orient it the same way and you'll have no issues at all. Honestly, the job sounds ten times harder than it really is.

Bob

 

Thanks bobman, I should be getting the part on Friday . I will post back with the results.