So since I got my LR3 I noticed the steering seemed stiff but not to the point it bothered me. Fast forward to last week. I did something I dont normally do, and that is to crank the steering around without the vehicle in motion a little to reduce stress. Since then its tight enough that it does not return to center. At the extreme ends though, its normal. Just stiffens up quick when getting back to center.

So a couple days ago I put her on ice and it was still stiff when turning. Was not moving, so that rules out alignment issues. Could still be component (ball joint). Fluid flows really well and looks good. Belts are great. No slippage.

So besides ball joints, etc. My thoughts are the lower steering joint. But the truck has only 110,000 miles. Are these prone to fail at such low milage? Should I look at some other things? I really can't feel/find any other issues. Next step would be a fluid change (again, it looks good was records show it was done before). Or possibly a pump change....

 

Mine was completely shot, was sloppy on center and would bind occassionaly to top it off.

Not bad to do at all. I picked up a good used one from Abran here on the forum.

 

How many miles were you at?

Yeah, at about $235 for a new one its not the worst but its not cheap considering what it is. Form what I have read, they used to be A LOT cheaper. Some right ups have prices under $100 USD for new.

And indeed, replacement does not seem terrible if one goes from below and above by removing some plastic bits. Then the upper bolt is really easy to see and get to.

 

I was at 125k when it was completely junk on the 06, the 07 is starting to go bad at 140k.

To aid in getting it off a old school pickle fork(ball joint fork) is very helpful to pop it off the upper shaft. A large flat tip screw driver is good to spread the lower clamp area. Take it out the inner plastic liner at the front of the drivers side at the front inside at the frame. Much easier can slide the new one up that to. Can probably find a few pics if you need

 

I ordered the shaft, but today when working on the front valve block I dawned on me to spray the joint with lubricant and see if there is a change. Sure enough, steering is smooth and easy again. Given that u-joints often fail via bad bearings I will replace it anyway next week. But for diagnosis, I should have tried the spray first. Just glad its not some other part.

 

New shaft went in today. The old one was far, far worse than I expected. It was really binding up and very "notchy" when moving it. The new shaft has made a huge difference in feel and handling.

With that said, has anyone needed an alignment after? My steering is now tilted to the left about 3 degrees or so. Enough that its noticeable. I read up on replacement and some said dealers recommended it but the "Internet wisdom" said there should be no need. While its true that its keyed, I am not sure how precise manufacturing is. Its a genuine part I bought form Lucky8. I will have to drive tonight to see if its enough to trigger the adaptive lights to shift. The way it goes together, there really is no way to get it off just a little. It would have to be off a half or full turn.

 

I got lucky and mine was on point. I did control arms about 2 weeks later so the alignment came then

 

I think tomorrow I will just mark and adjust the tie-rods equally to re-center the steering. If it were not for so many systems depending on a steering angle I would probably ignore it for a while. I have been searching more and more, seems no one normally needs to adjust anything.

Couple of notes:

When I did mine, I put the vehicle into super extended mode (off-road height, then used a wood block to trigger extended - then applied brake pedal while holding suspension raise switch for three seconds). That get me more room than needed to do the work. Did not remove wheel, no need.
From above, I removed a heat shield (held on by one screw to the plastic box). Then I removed half the aux box plastic bits closest to engine. Pretty straight forward really. This gave access to the upper bolt which is removable when steering is centered to normal. This also gives room for pulling out the shaft.
From below I only removed one small plastic shield - there are two on each side, below radiator area. Held on by four plastic push clips. Then I could access the lower E10 bolt. Be sure to get a proper E10 socket! Steering had to be turned a bit to get the bolt pointing towards the wheel. Then I could use a ratchet and extension along the half-shaft opening. Helps to have a second person to get it pointed just right.
The upper bolt was pretty easy to remove. The lower was very difficult due to corrosion on the end opposite the head which is exposed (bolt is longer than needed). Lubricate often when removing! Helps to drive it back in sometimes, then back out again. If you have any concerns, get a new bolt.
Once bolts were out, I used a hammer and rod to pound up on the bottom of the shaft. That popped it up and off the rack shaft. I then pulled it out through the top which is a little tricky. The new one I slid up form below and secured the upper bolt temporarily. The bottom is not too hard to get onto the shaft. You can probably fit your entire hand on the joint and angle/slide it on. I have large hands and it was not an issue. Getting that lower bolt in was not easy though. I cleaned them up with a brush wheel. But the lower one was such a pain to start that I actually ground it to a sharper point to help it in locating. Once started, it was smooth and not an issue.

 

So the main issue is the actual turning joint, connecting the lower steering column shaft to the rack & pinion shaft, correct?
Also, do you have any pictures of what the corroded/seized joint looked like after you removed it?

 

Yes, the u-joint is the failure point. Google image search can get you some pics.