I tried getting the one off my '05 earlier this year and could not get it to budge, finally did my work on it from under the truck. broke 2 pitman arm pullers in the process...

CRC has released a freeze spray that may help, freeze the joint, then apply pressure... or apply pressure (with puller) then freeze the joint.

 

I think you need to do some more investigating under there. Have some one sit in the truck and turn the wheel left to right without engine running, while you look at all the steering parts and see whats loose. The guy at Autozone probably meant the trac bar .

 

Thanks guys.

I'm new to the terminology of all these steering component...so please bare wtih me.

I don't think I have a trac bar...it's a 4x2.

When I did my shocks a few weeks ago, I had the front end on jack stands and I moved the front wheels side to side. That's were I saw tons of play where the pitman arm attaches to the center link. If the center link is just a piece of steel...I would doubt that it wears out. I have been spraying the pitman arm down with PB Blaster...so hopefully it won't be such a bear when I finally tackle this project.

I will try and take pictures when I change it out.

I also hear that Moog is the best...are the rest just garbage. Autozone said there pitman arm comes with a lifetime warranty. Is it really a good part...or is just one of those things were you are paying extra for a warranty? Which just leave you doing the work all over again in the near future.

Thanks for all the help guys.
Joe

 

You are right you don't have one. But thats probably what he was thinking since they go bad all the time. Anyway, I would get the MOOG, just because the AZ one has a lifetime warranty doesn't mean it is of good quality.

 

Thanks for all the help guys.

I think I am starting to understand this pitman arm. I'll be replacing it my next free weekend.

The grease fitting is another question. What type of grease should be used? How do you know when it is full? I got the dealer to agreed to 3 years of free oil changes when I bought it and now that the 3 years are up, I'm planning on doing the oil changes myself. I don't want to neglect the grease fittings.

 

I finally got the pitman arm changed. Took about 2.5 hours from renting the tools to returning them. I had hoped to do a write up and take pictures, but with the limited time...me doing it by myself and the fact that it is a greasy mess (didn't wan't to dirty up the camera) I didn't.

I want to say thanks to all for the help. It was a pain to get the arm off...but it was all worth it. It made a world of difference...no more front end slop.

I actually found myself wandering all over the road when retuning the tools. It had just became a natural thing for me to move the steering wheel back and forth to keep it between the white lines...lol.

Thanks again,
Joe

 

so what was wrong with the arm? it's a solid chunk of steel...

 

The pitman arm was junk. It is the center link that is just a chuck of steel. The post that comes out of the pitman arm and attaches to the center link was wobbling back and forth...resulting in all the play in steering.

 

His truck is a 4x2.

 

WHOA!!


DO NOT TORQUE THIS NUT NEAR 600FT/LBS!

Always look for torque specs, you can find them here, any Manual for your truck or the FSM (merry christmas thread) or here:

TORQUE CHART
TORQUE SPECIFICATIONS
DESCRIPTION N·m Ft.lbs
Pitman Arm Gear Nut 250 185 —
Pitman Arm Center Link Nut 115 85 —
Idler Arm Mounting Bolts 271 200 —
Idler Arm Center Link Nut 88 65 —

Tie Rod Knuckle Nut 108 80 —
Tie Rod Center Link Nut 88 65 —
Tie Rod Adjuster Clamp 61 45 —

I did mine today, I used the Autozone puller:


Or you can get the Chrysler puller c-4150a:

Ebay has it for $40
here:http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SPX-M...QQcmdZViewItem

The autozone part is $15

A user here I want to say it was Dhvauhn but I may be wrong had mentioned cutting the arm where it meets the gear. This may be the easiest method, but I didn't try it.

I wanted to do a DIY but I didn't get good pictures.