B
FRONT SUSPENSION AND STEERING
Read all of SAFETY and this section before attempting any procedure. Pay particular attention to Notices, Cautions, Warnings and Dangers.
31
Repair and Service Manual
634756
To avoid damage to the aluminum rack and pinion
unit, secure unit in vice by the mounting ears only.
To access the pinion seal, remove rack and pinion unit
from vehicle. See “Rack and Pinion Unit Replacement”
on page 33. Anchor in vice by clamping on the mounting
ears of the rack and pinion unit.
Slide a small straight blade screwdriver between lip of
seal and pinion and pry top portion of seal up to remove
(Ref. Fig. 18).
Fig. 18 Pinion Seal Replacement
Use screwdriver to lift inner portion of seal up and off pin-
ion.
Check pinion surface for roughness, and sand lightly if
needed.
Wipe bore clean and lubricate pinion and lip of seal with
grease.
The bore has a positive stop to correctly locate the seal
during installation.
Place seal over pinion and tap carefully with socket and
hammer to start seal straight in bore. Drive seal fully into
bore until it stops and wipe clean of any excess grease.
Attach rack and pinion unit to front axle. See “Rack and
Pinion Unit Replacement” on page 33.
Spindle Replacement
Tool List
Qty.
Needle Nose Pliers ......................................................1
Wrench, 11/16" ............................................................1
Ball Joint Separator .....................................................1
Plastic Faced Hammer ................................................1
Wrench, 3/4" ................................................................1
Socket, 3/4" .................................................................1
Socket, 11/16"..............................................................1
Torque Wrench, ft. lbs..................................................1
The spindle bearings are designed to be used “dry”.
Lubrication attracts dirt and will ruin the bearings.
Do not apply grease to the spindle bearings.
Loosen front wheel. Lift and support front of vehicle per
SAFETY section and remove front wheel.
If vehicle is equipped with front disc brakes, remove cali-
per by removing bolts (1) and washers (2). Secure the
caliper with a length of wire, cord or wire tie to relieve any
tension that would be created by the caliper hanging from
the brake line.
Fig. 19 Removing Brake Caliper
To remove tie rod, loosen lock nut (2) until tie rod ball joint
(3) threads are protected (Ref. Fig. 20). Using a ball joint
separator as a lever, apply pressure to ball joint and tap
nut with plastic faced hammer to release tie rod from
spindle arm (4). Remove nut from tie rod and tie rod from
spindle arm.
If removing passenger side spindle, repeat previous step
for rack ball joint.
Remove lock nut (5) and washer (7) from bolt (6) and dis-
card nut. Pull bolt (6) and washer (8) from spindle and
separate spindle from axle. Remove thrust washer (9)
and king pin tube (10) from spindle.
Spindle installation is the reverse order of disassembly.
Lip of
Seal
1
2
