The quest continues with steering intermediate shaft

[Happy Hummer]

As stated.... Saga continues with 06 H3 steering shaft assembly.

Here is a link to past information. ..
http://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/forum/showthread.php?9700-Help!-pls-lol!-wrong-part-or-steering

Nephew came by today and after 3 hours we we had replaced the upper intermediate steering shaft. Wow what a cluster f@ck design.
Well lol the noise, clunking sloppy steering still present. Had the column cover off and see nothing else to replace.

So part# 's as follows have been replaced. ...
25900714
19256702*

What else lol could it be?

And a great big thank you to the members who have posted information and directions on how to do this job.

Chris

 

[4speedfunk]

All of these items can cause noise. The H3 is a rattle-box above 50K miles, and I would recommend crawling underneath from time to time, to make sure everything is tight. Noise makers are:

Worn steering rack tube
Bad steering rack clamp
Bad front diff crossmember bushing
Bad front diff outboard bushing
Bad front driveshaft CV
Bad axle shaft CV
Worn ball joint
Worn control arm bushing
Worn tie Rod
Loose skid plate bolts
Loose body mount bolts
Loose exhaust system
Broken motor mount

Since you are having "slop" in the steering, I would start at the rack first. Installing a new rack bushing kit will do wonders but, not if the rack itself if worn. This is because the tube portion of the used rack gets shaved down by the clamp. If the stock rubber bushing was bad, the tube was slipping back & forth in the clamp, and over time...it actually decreases the OD of the tube (especially if sand or mud got in between them). So even when you install a new clamp kit...it sometimes won't tighten fully against the tube. You should be able to visually see if the rack is slipping by crawling under the truck, (in park)...and having a buddy cycle the wheel from lock-to-lock. You can sometimes slide a shim behind the clamp bushing to get a tighter squeeze on the tube...but don't overdo it, as you could possibly deform the tube when you crank the clamp tight. You can also add a few layers of electrical tape to the tube to restore it to the proper OD but, this is usually temporary.

The H3 rack is a throw-away and periodic replacement is the norm. Not to mention it could be something internal to the rack iteslf. To remove any doubts...replace the rack (comes with new tie-rods) and get a quality aftermarket bushing kit. That's really all you can do to the stock steering, and this seems to end 99% of steering issues for most H3s.

 

[GoBlueHummer]

Are you sure it's not in the steering column itself? There are little plastic...not shims but that's all I can think of at the moment....anyway, they break and can cause noise and "clunking" in the steering, especially over bumps etc. It would be very easy to confuse with problems farther down the steering system.

 

[08H3]

I was in your situation and thanks to 4Speeds advice, it was the shock. Fixed my rattle I originally attributed to the shaft.

 

[Happy Hummer]

As always thanks for all the suggestions.
The shocks were done last summer.
The pulley assembly and belt, pre tensioner were done too.
The drivers side hub just this spring.
The transfer case actuator last summer.
The transmission was flushed and filter replaced.
Lol we've done a bunch and this is just from memory.

Checked the rack 3 weeks ago and no movement. The tie rods look good too.

This is definitely apparent in the cabin area and directly in front of you at the steering column.

All of this began with the mechanic at gf's last job doing a write up and inspection stating intermediate steering shaft needing replacement.

Oh well now I know her steering parts are replaced and solid.
We're going to have a alignment done and if there are any items a miss they let me know.

Chris

 

[08H3]

One other thing to check-- I had another rattle under the dash right above the clutch/brake/accel pedals. Turned out a connector and wire had come out of the clip that secured it and was hitting the steering column when going over bumps. It was a very simple problem to fix, but I spent weeks trying to pinpoint it. Just make sure everything under the dash is secure.