OP
OP
stewwalker
Full Access Member
Anyway...I put 37s on just 6 days ago and I can already hear my power steering pump starting to whine... Not while turning mind you, but just going down the road. I too would like to know if there are any serious upgrades to the steering/power steering system.
I too can hear the pump when leaving a red light. It quiets down once I shift into third and the RPM's drop. Initially I thought it was a idler pully or alternator, but I have since ruled those out after popping the hood and listening. From what I can gather, we are all SOL with the gen 1 steering system. I've done the reservoir and cooler upgrades, and it helped somewhat, but I'm going to start bleeding the system regularly and install an inline magnefine filter.
Hard to troubleshoot your rear end issues over a forum post, but the repair you had done 6k miles ago should still be under warranty, even if the truck is not. There should be a certain amount (i.e. "some") backlash between the pinion gear and the ring gear. If it's opened up, it's for two reasons: the most likely is that the pinion crush sleeve--and therefore pinion bearing preload--was not set properly (this is pretty easy for a novice to screw up); the second could be due to carrier improperly shimmed or preloaded (doubtful). If either prove to be the case, I'd demand a completely new gearset and pinion/carrier bearings--and that the work be done by another repair shop.
My local Ford dealer seems to think differently when it comes to warranty work on things that have already been fixed under warranty. I had to go to three dealers in order for them to honor their warranty on work performed once the 36,000 mile warranty was up. They replaced the steering rack, but ford never payed them for it... As for the read diff, I'm sure "porkchop" the Ford tech ****** it up. It amazes me that a average Joe like me has more knowledge about F-150's than an actual ford tech who gets sent to mechanic school. I once had a dealer tell me that my power steering was electric... Enough said.
I haven't dove into the schematics of the rear diff yet, but I'm hoping I only need to replace the crush sleeve, and not more parts. I also can't find the back lash speccs, but I'm pretty sure it's out of specc.
I thought it was a bad rack and pinion or outter tie rods, so I replaced them and problem still exist.
Unfortunately I have more experience with bad racks than a plastic surgeon. I have a video of all of my symptoms and how to fix a sloppy rack, but I'm lazy and will never get around to posting it. Fortunately someone has already posted a video on youtube explaining how to tighten the rack preload. Search Ryan Felish on youtube. What he does not explain is how to tell is your rack is bad.
Bad steering rack step by step diagnosis:
1. Drive your truck on a windy day as fast as you dare. If you are constantly making minor steering adjustments like a 1960's green screen car chase movie, proceed to step 2.
2. Park your truck on a level surface, set parking brake, turn ignition on to accessory, and shake the wheel like a 14 year old who just found out what his thing can do. If you hear a metallic pinging noise, proceed to step 3.
3. Find a willing volunteer to shake the wheel like a Polaroid picture while you crawl under the truck and inspect the inner and outer tie rods. Once you have confirmed that the noise is not the steering linkage, grab the tie rod and feel for play. Remove the inner tie rod bellow, and confirm that the inner tie rod socket is not worn out and loose.
4. Yell, cuss, spit. Get a beer. Then go to youtube and watch this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8X9xpioehv4 . I have found no need to unbolt the rack from the truck in order to get the fabbed tool into the preload tentioner. It is tight, but it can be done. I only went maybe a 1/16 of a turn and it solved all my rack problems.
I too can hear the pump when leaving a red light. It quiets down once I shift into third and the RPM's drop. Initially I thought it was a idler pully or alternator, but I have since ruled those out after popping the hood and listening. From what I can gather, we are all SOL with the gen 1 steering system. I've done the reservoir and cooler upgrades, and it helped somewhat, but I'm going to start bleeding the system regularly and install an inline magnefine filter.
Hard to troubleshoot your rear end issues over a forum post, but the repair you had done 6k miles ago should still be under warranty, even if the truck is not. There should be a certain amount (i.e. "some") backlash between the pinion gear and the ring gear. If it's opened up, it's for two reasons: the most likely is that the pinion crush sleeve--and therefore pinion bearing preload--was not set properly (this is pretty easy for a novice to screw up); the second could be due to carrier improperly shimmed or preloaded (doubtful). If either prove to be the case, I'd demand a completely new gearset and pinion/carrier bearings--and that the work be done by another repair shop.
My local Ford dealer seems to think differently when it comes to warranty work on things that have already been fixed under warranty. I had to go to three dealers in order for them to honor their warranty on work performed once the 36,000 mile warranty was up. They replaced the steering rack, but ford never payed them for it... As for the read diff, I'm sure "porkchop" the Ford tech ****** it up. It amazes me that a average Joe like me has more knowledge about F-150's than an actual ford tech who gets sent to mechanic school. I once had a dealer tell me that my power steering was electric... Enough said.
I haven't dove into the schematics of the rear diff yet, but I'm hoping I only need to replace the crush sleeve, and not more parts. I also can't find the back lash speccs, but I'm pretty sure it's out of specc.
I thought it was a bad rack and pinion or outter tie rods, so I replaced them and problem still exist.
Unfortunately I have more experience with bad racks than a plastic surgeon. I have a video of all of my symptoms and how to fix a sloppy rack, but I'm lazy and will never get around to posting it. Fortunately someone has already posted a video on youtube explaining how to tighten the rack preload. Search Ryan Felish on youtube. What he does not explain is how to tell is your rack is bad.
Bad steering rack step by step diagnosis:
1. Drive your truck on a windy day as fast as you dare. If you are constantly making minor steering adjustments like a 1960's green screen car chase movie, proceed to step 2.
2. Park your truck on a level surface, set parking brake, turn ignition on to accessory, and shake the wheel like a 14 year old who just found out what his thing can do. If you hear a metallic pinging noise, proceed to step 3.
3. Find a willing volunteer to shake the wheel like a Polaroid picture while you crawl under the truck and inspect the inner and outer tie rods. Once you have confirmed that the noise is not the steering linkage, grab the tie rod and feel for play. Remove the inner tie rod bellow, and confirm that the inner tie rod socket is not worn out and loose.
4. Yell, cuss, spit. Get a beer. Then go to youtube and watch this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8X9xpioehv4 . I have found no need to unbolt the rack from the truck in order to get the fabbed tool into the preload tentioner. It is tight, but it can be done. I only went maybe a 1/16 of a turn and it solved all my rack problems.
Last edited:
