Steering Box R&R

No special tools really. You said power steering, are we talkin hydroboost brakes, or vacuum assisted? If it is HydroBoost then it will take longer to bleed the system of air, due to the increased size of the system AND the use of an accumulator in the hydroboost system.You will need to pump the brakes a couple of times and make sure you have brake pressure.

Make sure you have about a quart of Mercon ATF available to refill system. Hey now is a good time to do a p/s fluid change.. LOL

Make sure you have atleast a 1/2" break over bar to contend with the box-frame mounting bolts. They are goin to be TIGHT. You might want to put another "donut" (that flexible ring) in the steering column shaft, if its OEM they tend to get tore up during removal. Only thing other than that is the Pitman arm. There is a special spreader to "aid" in the removal of the pitman arm, and it can be rented at pretty much any parts store. If you dont want to do that, a pry bar MIGHT work sufficiently.

Ford Tech

How long should it take to remove and replace?

Forgot to add, it will probably take about 2hrs if you havent done it before. Make sure you have a good tech manual.

On Sat, 27 Jan 2007 07:57:15 -0600, Ford Tech rearranged some electrons to form:

FT, you *should* know better, but I guess you don't.

OP: DON'T use a pry bar. Use the correct tool to avoid damaging the Pitman arm. It's called a 'puller', not a spreader, and it can be rented for free at Autozone.

And here's the SAFE one. Those other cheap MF's will fly apart and who knows where the pieces are going.

On Sat, 27 Jan 2007 12:01:38 -0600, Steve Barker rearranged some electrons to form:

Yeah, that one does look a little more substantial than the one from Autocrapola.

That would be why I added the word MIGHT. Also a twin jaw gear puller would also be able to do the job.

Not everyone is going to have all of the correct tools on hand, or the ability to obtain them. So I offer acceptable alternatives, and if the pry bar is used to pry against the pitman arm right around the shaft, working from side to side, it will not damage the pitman arm. Yes there was a point in time when I didn't have all of the correct tools on hand, and in a pinch, I used the pry bar. I didnt have any problems with the vehicle afterwards.

Sorry about the misuse of my terminology about the "puller" vs "spreader".

I would go for the puller in the link below, as the one listed on the amazon.com site is listed as a *small car* pitman arm puller not rated for light trucks. Also, you can *rent* tools from autozone, which means they are a decent quality of tools. Otherwise everytime they rented one of these out, it would probably break.

There is NO WAY a pry bar could remove a properly tightened pitman arm. And if you try, you'll most likely damage the gear box if you're planning to re-use it.

It was my understanding that according to the OP that he is replacing the gear box as it has failed in some manner, so damaging the gear box would not be an issue.

Thanks to ALL for the feedback... it's appreciated.

Websurfer