My 17 yr old, 120,900 miles of service, R/T has a leaking rack and pinion unit, mostly on the right side. It drives fine, but is just making a but of a mess of my usually grease free Durango. Does anyone have any suggestions on which replacement unit to buy?

 

My vote would be Cardone.

 

Holy frelling Moly.
Amazon has the A1 Cardone for $154.09, with no up front core charge! (local Auto parts wants $185 + tax + core.)
Even though that price is low enough already, Cardone gives you a $95 'rebate' if you return the old one, using their pre-paid shipping label! That means the replacement bottom line to me is actually $59!

 

Anyone have an idea how much steering fluid is needed for a full replace of everything? I'd guess 2-3 qts? It's not in the '01 FSM.

 

[I know, I'm talking to myself...lol] The new unit is in, done yesterday on my Durango's 17th birthday. I still have to adjust the toe later this morning, but looks good so far after 1st test drive.

 

I usually buy a few quarts when doing stuff like this. Fill it till it's full. If you bought too much. Set it on the shelf as you will someday need to top it off. If you don't buy enough, go buy another quart.

 

I had bought two quarts. Turned out after driving a bit and topping it off after, it only needed one. As you suggest, I'll keep the other on shelf, unopened and fresh. With three vehicles in the garage, I'm sure it will get used.

I had done a reasonable job of getting the end to end length right on the bench, good enough for testing. On the next day I altered the tie rods to adjust the steering wheel center and the toe. All good, drives fine.