The cool thing is that these funky parts are still available. Maybe that's what the high price is for. Ultra Gray the old one if need be.

 

This sounds like an issue I've been having - with the wheel straight ahead (drop arm is centralized), I can grip the lower u-joint that attaches to the input shaft on the box and turn it between 11 and 1 before I meet resistance (wheels on ground). Steering feels tight and responsive on the road, and I know the difference because I recently replaced the lower shaft as the splines were totally flogged out on the lower u-joint. Steering was notchy and I was sailing down the road with the wheel cockeyed 30+ degrees. Recently I have started to encounter a sketchy oscillation of the steering wheel that pops up when hitting certain bumps with one wheel. At lower speeds the oscillation is light but noticeable, the wheel just bounces between 11 and 1 for a split second before settling. It feels like that slack on the input shaft. At higher speeds, it has resulted in the death wobble. Tightening the adjuster screw on the box does not remove the play at the central position, I cranked it all the way down and it made no difference (and yes, I loosened it back up before driving).

Anyway, I'm wondering how much play at the input shaft is too much play, and after hours/days of digging I have only found your thread discussing the issue. I have no clunks or notchiness that would indicate gears failing or splines slipping.

 

I believe the RAVE specifies to tighten the adjuster screw until the play on the intermediate shaft to the steering box is removed. and not to overtighten it. if steering gets
stiff, you went too far. also, when making a turn when you let go of the steering wheel it should return back to center on its own.

The replacement box that I was given has no play at all.

 

Also check out the Trailfitter's Toolbox video for Steering Checks Basic. With wheels off the ground, there should be no backlash when steering wheel is rocked back and forth (short quick movements) rapidly. The adjuster is designed to remove backlash of the box. Other sources of backlash could be the steering input shaft and the tie rod ends.

 

Thanks for the replies. It's great to have some threads going in 2025. Most of them post 2016 seem DOA.

And you are correct about the RAVE procedure. Unfortunately I was not able to remove the play no matter how much I tightened the adjuster (it was already really tight, only had about 1/2 a turn before it wouldn't budge) - and based on your response I suppose a steering box is on the shopping list I hate having my a$$ puckered during drives.

TREs and steering linkages are brand new, as are tires. Freshly balanced and aligned. Steering shaft is new and tight to the splines on both ends, there is no play except at the input shaft on the box. Panhard rod seems rock solid, absolutely no movement and has poly bushes installed which look fine. Bolts on steering box are as tight as they can be. Wheels have zero play laterally and longitudinally - I did my bearings in the last year. Basically all my steering components seems solid aside from that play in the box.

 

One thing that I’ve never seen discussed is, should we be avoiding turning the steering wheel while at a stand still on dry pavement? I’m wondering if we’re wearing out our steering boxes prematurely by doing this. Maybe I’m over thinking this, but on my 2A (no power steering), it was almost impossible to do this. I would always have the vehicle moving slightly while turning the steering wheel. I have a feeling that our power steering allows us to put too much stress on the steering boxes, prematurely wearing them out.

 

disconnect the drag link from the drop arm, put a centralising bolt in the steering box and then try moving the intermediate shaft back and forth. how much play do you have? adjust it to remove any slack (if you can). beyond that...if you can't remove the play, the box needs to be replaced/repaired.

 

For any future readers, like mack I also had a badly worn steering box. The input shaft had a decent amount of freeplay before engaging the gears in the box (tested with all linkages disconnected, this means drag link and lower steering column), and I suspect this also contributed significantly - if not entirely - to the death wobble I began experiencing. This freeplay (backlash) could not be removed using the adjusting nut on top of the box. Replaced with a used part from Will Tillery which was an Adwest box made in England that is currently selling for about $3-4k new. I also found that the splines on the old input shaft were marred in addition to the excess freeplay. This was a recipe for trouble. Everything is nice and tight now, to the point where I need to replace the shims I removed when adjusting my swivel preload (also FYI, if you replace the swivel pins using a rebuild kit that includes new bearings and washers, don't remove shims. From my reading, the bearing gets crushed over time which is why removing shims tightens your steering - the pin gets into better contact with the crushed bearing thus tightening preload to within spec. Replacing the bearing AND removing shims will get your steering too tight most likely, so you'll be redoing the whole shebang just to replace the shims you removed).

A few notes for anyone who may face this repair:

Don't bother jacking up your truck unless you don't have room to crawl underneath - the drag link can be removed with wheels on the ground, it just takes a few extra whacks on the drop arm to release. (Discovery 1 here, I think the Disco 2 has the ball joint pressed into the drop arm)

The adjusting nut (19mm, allen screw is 6mm) on top of the steering box was torqued down more than any nut or bolt I've ever wrenched on aside from axle nuts. I think RAVE spec is 60nm/44ft lbs but it was remarkably seized. It took 5+ seconds of hammering from my big boy Dewalt impact to get it moving after multiple soaks with PB.

You must remove the two pinch bolts on either side of the u-joint which connects to the input shaft in order to release the lower steering column, you cannot just loosen them. Soak the splines in PB or some other solvent, and use a pry bar plus your free hand to slide/wiggle the u-joint off the input shaft. A few taps on the pry bar with a hammer may be necessary to get the lower column moving off the input shaft. If you're just rebuilding and replacing your box, don't accidentally mar the splines on the input shaft by hammering the pry bar into it.

The return and supply hose connections on top of the box were awkward to remove with the space constraints, and different sizes - I think the return hose was a 5/8 and the supply was a 9/16 or vice versa (RAVE actually specifies 14mm and 16mm, but for some reason I was having trouble getting a good grip with the metric wrenches). I had to unbolt the box from the chassis and move it to get space to loosen the supply connection.

4 (19mm) bolts to free the box from the chassis, and 2 (also 19mm I think) bolts to the tie bar (not sure if that's the right term, pulled from RAVE). I left the drop arm attached as my replacement had one. You will absolutely need some extra muscle to remove the box unless you're Mr Universe or you remove a bunch of extraneous hoses, the drop arm, etc. - no thank you. Someone underneath to press up as you pull, while you both maneuver the box and drop arm around the obstacles. I had the old out and the new in its place in 5 minutes with help from a friend after struggling to no avail for 30 minutes the day before by myself.

Replace the 2 (19mm) bolts and nuts which mount the box to the tie bar and start the threads - do not tighten, just get them mated. Manipulate the box (I did this from underneath) until you can locate one of the chassis bolts into the box and start the threads, then locate/thread the bolt diagonal from the one you started just like you're threading lug nuts. The rest is cake. Box to chassis/tie bar is tightened to 81nm/60ft lbs. Replace hose connections - and replace o-rings first. I did not because mine were still intact and pliable, but it's advised and I expect I'll regret my lazy decision. Centralize drop arm with a punch or screwdriver or whatever fits - this is VERY important if you like centered steering. Make sure steering wheel is straight ahead, then reconnect the lower steering column to the input shaft and torque down the pinch bolts on the u-joint to 25nm/18 ft lbs. Finally, with the drop arm still centered replace the drag link and torque the nut to 40nm/30 ft lbs. I found that my steering wheel was notably off center with the old box even after I had centralized the drop arm and steering when replacing other components and getting an alignment, so I had to extend my drag link a bit when reconnecting by threading out the TRE until it located in the drop arm.

Double, then triple check all connections.

Fill up reservoir with Dexron III ATF (or Valvoline Maxxlife ATF in red bottle, compatible with Dexron III) for Discovery 1. Disco 2s take power steering fluid. Start truck once fluid level has settled to get it sucked in, and top off fluid as needed until system is filled. I started/stopped my truck 3 or 4 times before my fluid level was good. RAVE suggests bleeding as a final step, which involves loosening the bleeder with truck running until fluid weeps out and then retightening.

 

I have not installed the one I received yet. it's all cleaned up and ready to install but I knew I'd need a helper to get it installed...so have been delaying. I have not experienced the
speed wobble situation either.

I had previously taken off and replaced the intermediate shaft with a replacement one. Have zero play in the U-joints in that shaft.

 

when I was cleaning/painting the replacement box, I thought, how in the heck am I going to hold this sucker up underneath and start the bolts .....guess I was right