What Broke?? I Lost All Steering Help Asap!

[MiZZ]

i was drivin down the street today and was turning out of a street and completely lost my steering, not power steering, all steering. (had to slam on my brakes to avoid a pole, i have no control of the steering). i can turn the wheel around and round and no response to the front wheels.. it's like the steering wheel isn't connect anymore it'll just spin in circles. something broke...LOL.. it's not in the column because i can still see the steering rod? turning in the engine compartment before it goes into the steering box. (please excuse if i have the terms wrong, i know a little here and there but right now i'm lost!) please help me figure out what it is!! :thumbdwn:


thanks,
Mike

 

[Turdle]

Is there a u-joint, or rag joint there?

 

[410Fortune]

wow scary, glad u are okay

if the shaft going into the steering box is spinning with the wheel look in front of your front axle, and check the pitman arm (on the steering box) and tie rods.....

if everything checks out then I would say your steering box is history.

 

[section525]

..and now your clock spring is history too.

Glad you're alive though!

 

[MiZZ]

not sure about a u or rag joint there, theres a plastic sleave right before the steering box, but i can't see whats under there.

however, i should have included that it started to have a big dead soot in the steering when going left... the rights where fine, but the left there was a big dead spot (meaning in order to go left, i had to turn the wheel a little before the wheels would re-act. It's been doing this for about 2 days and i was going to get it checked this weekend.

it was definetly scarey!!! lol i'd just like to know what it is so i can fix it asap because i have it up for sale, i want a 5.0 explorer! with no front end problems lol.

 

[410Fortune]

visual inspection is the best way to find your problem, remove the plastic fender liner and drivers tire, get front wheels off the ground (safely) and get under the front end and inside the engine bay on the d side to see whats going on

Its a simple system His clock spring should be just find since the wheel is still connected and turning the column

Yes a Gen I has a rubber rag joint in the intermediate shaft but if the shaft is turning all the way to the gear box, then its eother the box itself internally or the pitman arm, tie rods, or knuckles

 

[DeRocha]

Sounds like the Steering Gear is toast...
The plastic cover where the steering shaft connects to the steering pulls off.. You need to have someone turn the wheel (with engine running) to see if the steering shaft is moving the input shaft of the steering gear. If it is then steering gear should be moving the pitman arm...

BTW as section has mentioned there is a spring located in the steering wheel that can break if you keep spinning the wheel to one side..

 

[MiZZ]

wow i hate to say it but i think i'm going to have to give up on my explorer, i can't afford to put anymore $$ into it!!! it runs BEAUTIFUL, rebuilt tranny, and it looks mint!!! just the damn front end has given me problems since day one. looks like it's going to have to go on craigslist for cheap tonight because i need a new daily asap!!! i hate to even consider this, but i've been wanting a v8 explorer anyways.

but anyways i went out there and looked some more, i jacked it up, the wheel just spins and spins, i can still manually move the wheel/tires from left to right but it has no reaction on the steering wheel. it feels like something broke, or is stripped. etc

would the fact that it grew a dead spot in the lefts mean it was on it's way out? is it the steering box, or gear? the pitman arm looks all there, tie rods are all there. everythings how it should be, it seems like it's something inside the box, where i can't see. is the gear something i could do myself, or something they'd carry at an autoparts store? or is it a junkyard type item?

 

[MiZZ]

and when the left turns started acting up, it would only turn so far left, meaning if you wanted to make a sharp left you'd have to back up and go at it again because it would only turn so far, and sometimes it even got a little stuck in a left and you had to kind of pull it back to the right to center it out... i knew something was wrong and i was going to get it checked out on saturday, i had no idea it would break this soon!! i didn't even drive it much since that happen! the dead spot in the wheel was from the 12 to i'll say... 8? position on the wheel, (like a clock) so it was a pretty good size dead spot.

 

[Turdle]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1991...013QQitemZ230096451935QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWD1V

Junkyard leverage-

 

[MiZZ]

Thanks, unfortunately i think i'm going to have to sell it as is, rent was due this week so now im broke!! LOL ayyy. anyone wanna buy it CHEAP!!! runs perfect!! lol worth a shot! we'll see, have to see what i have in the bank.. -mike

 

[Jefe]

An auto parts store should have a rebuilt steering box for ~$150 + core.

 

[Dan Whitaker]

Not to be an ass but if you don't have the money to fix it how are you going to have the money to buy another Explorer.

 

[MiZZ]

LOL well this week i'm a little broker then normal, my rents 1600 a month! but i do have the money to fix it, it's just i really rather not drop another 60-150 into it! it's a really nice looking truck but i'm sick of front end problems.. i had a whole parts explorer that i should have kept! i will probably end up fixing it, but if someone wanted to buy it as is i'd sell it. cheap. i still have my camaro which is more of a weekend and summer toy, but still can be used to go to and from work.. (with a couple speeding tickets in between.. jk) but it's the point that i'm not car less, which is why i'd sell it as is to someone for cheap just because i don't want to deal with it anymore LOL.

i love the truck, but it seems it doesn't love me haha

-mike

 

[410Fortune]

fix it then sell it, the steering box can be replaced with a good used unit for about $50 and $3 worth of fluid. The process takes about 1 hour, but you will need a pickle fork to remove the tie rod from the old pitman arm and/or a pitman arm puller to swap the arm from one box to the other.

That is of course if the box is your problem to begin with

 

[MiZZ]

sounds good, i have it up for sale if it don't sell by the weekends end, then i'll fix it and maybe even keep it.. who knows. but anyways i looked and looked again and it has to be something in the steering box, because everything else is fine and moves as it should, and the dead spot in the wheel is an indicator of a bad steering box in a jeep, but not too sure about ford/explorers.

 

[410Fortune]

it may just be stripped where the intermediate shaft enters the steering box OR a bolt came loose.

I would remove that plastic cover you were talking about that covers the shaft where it enters the steering box, it simply pulls upwards to remove it (it snaps around the hydraulic line fitting)

could be a very simple fix